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Chapter Text

She dreamt of a man with green scales and emerald eyes hidden within black irises. His calmingly deep voice sent shivers down her spine when he whispered seductively in her ears. A man who was unlike anything she’d seen her entire 65 years of life.

She knew he was just a figment of her imagination. Something given to her by the parasite in her head meant to seduce her, brought on by the use of the Ilithid powers granted by said parasite. She knew she should stop using them, but she couldn’t make herself do so, if only just to see the strange alien man in her dreams.

So after exhausting herself every day by using her strange powers in order to see the strange man, she was always disappointed to wake up with no more answers then she had the day before. When she would pull from her meditations she would see the same familiar sights of her camp she shared with the others in the same predicament as her.

Until one day she didn’t. Instead of open skies and lush wilderness around her, she saw walls made from what appeared to be metal although it wasn’t shaped like anything she’d ever seen before. The area she stood was in darkness. Where the hell am I? She wondered.

She stood to her feet and began to wander toward the light she saw. Once she emerged from the alley she froze, looking at hundreds of creatures which she didn’t recognize. Then she spotted one that was familiar to her: humans.

“Excuse me,” she said, walking up to the nearest human and speaking in Common.

The human glanced at her, and gave her a face of confusion before moving on, not seeming to care. She stared after them and tried to get another’s attention. They paused for a moment as she said, “Can you tell me where I am?”

“The Citadel, duh,” the human replied before rolling their eyes and walking on.

She blinked and tried to think. Citadel? That was a church wasn’t it. But who are all these people? What are they?

One thing she knew for certain is that this was not anywhere in the material plane. These creatures were too... alien. She watched the crowd for a moment, trying to figure out what she could until she was bumped into and a tall thin creature with big bug eyes which snapped out a “watch where you’re going”. Except something was off.

She understood the words a few minutes after they were spoken, but before she understood them there was a very different noise. She began to hear all sorts of tongues she didn’t recognize, slowly beginning to converge into a language she did know. Her head throbbed and she clutched at it, grunting in pain as the headache started to surface. A headache she was familiar with.

But I’m not even trying to-

/You’re not doing it, I am/ a voice suddenly echoed in her head. /Sleep, Nyralyn, and all will be well./

She cried out in pain, her ears ringing and the lights becoming blindingly bright. Her vision blurred before she succumbed to the voice in her head, falling to her knees as her world went black.

. . .

When she came too, she was in a new place, her eyes being blasted once more by the light from above, causing her head to ache. She grunted and sluggishly lifted a hand to try to block out the light.

“She’s awake!” came a voice to her side, causing her to turn to try to find the source, blinking away the light.

She spotted a human racing out of the room wearing some sort of white coat. As they left, her gaze began to focus and she noticed there were more things made of metal and shaped like boxes. She pushed herself up, feeling cloth beneath her and realizing she was on some sort of bed.

She realized she wasn’t wearing the clothes she’d been wearing earlier, instead wearing some sort of gown that was open at the back.

As she continued to gaze around the room, she noticed glowing images on what appeared to be glass nearby. She was about to go over and touch them before the human returned along with a strange blue human woman? No, they weren’t human. They definitely weren’t drow, despite the coloring. She had strange tentacle things swooping off her head, looking almost like hair. Nyralyn had never seen anything like her before.

“Hello, Ms…”

“Kolith. Nyralyn Kolith.”

The woman smiled. “Kolith, we have some questions for you if you wouldn’t mind answering.”

Nyra gave the woman a cautious look. This didn’t sound good. Then again, neither did her predicament. She was in an unfamiliar environment with weird creatures she’d never seen before. She assumed she’d somehow been transported to another plane of existence, one no one had heard of before. “Depends on the questions,” she said.

The woman nodded. “First off, in order to help you, we had to take a blood sample, we’ve never seen anyone like you before so we didn’t know how to treat you. We noticed that you have similarities to humans, but enough differences that you aren’t of the same race. So, what exactly are you?”

“I’m a drow...a dark elf.”

“Alright. What is your home planet?”

She frowned, confused by the word. /Faerûn/ came the echoey voice in her head. She stiffened at the voice, trying to figure out where it was coming from, realizing the people before her were patiently waiting for her to speak. She decided to trust the voice for now. “Faerûn.”

“Interesting. I’ve never heard of that planet. Could you tell me where it is?” the woman asked, suddenly holding up a handheld thing of glass with glowing images. The image shown before her looked like a giant circle made of light. She stared at it, not sure what it was.

“Um...I’m not sure where Faerûn is. I don’t really remember how I got here.”

“I see. What is it you last remember?”

“I remember….bright lights. Something about a Citadel? Then I passed out,” she said.

The woman nodded. “While you were out we also did a scan. We noticed something strange in your brain. We’re not sure if it’s a racial trait for you, or if it was some sort of anomaly. But it could cause strange side effects or even be fatal.” She swiped on the glass and showed Nyra an image.

Nyra stared at it, noting the natural curls of her brain -- she’d seen brains before, despite being a bit shocked it was an image of one. Then she spotted something that didn’t seem to fit. It covered part of her brain, almost as if shielding it. Her blood went cold and she knew that without a doubt it was the parasite in her mind. It didn’t look exactly like the one that had been put in her eye, but she could recognize parts of it.

Her breathing began to get ragged and she curled up, pushing her hands into her eyes. “No, no, no…” she muttered.

“I’m going to guess by your reaction that it’s not normal.”

She shook her head. “No, it’s not.”

“And you’ve known about this for a while?”

She looked up from her hands and nodded, laughing wryly. “Where I come from, the only cure is death, or making a deal with a devil.”

While she sat there, she suddenly started to feel emotions of pity from the woman before her. She knew she wasn’t attempting to read the woman’s mind, but before she could help it, she slipped in. Flashes of memories from the woman sliding into her. Her name was Kali H’ryn, an Asari of about 361 years. A doctor with two loving daughters who had a Salarian father.

Then she flashed back to her own body and she groaned, clutching at the new memories now swirling in her head. Kali likewise looked a little dazed, but once she regained her composure, she looked at Nyra with both caution and intrigue.

“What did you just do?” the Asari asked, a little breathless.

“I...I don’t know. I didn’t mean to do it. It just happened.”

“It was almost like mind melding, but not exactly like it. Incredible. Is that an ability of your people?”

Nyra looked away, wrapping her arms around herself. She didn’t answer.

“I see...well, thank you for answering my questions. I assume you know that whatever is affecting your brain is spreading.”

She nodded.

“If you need any further help, please feel free to return. I don’t think we have anything else for you. Since you’re new here, do you have a place to stay?”

“Um...not yet, but I’m sure I can find something. I’m resourceful.”

Kali smiled and stood, shooing the human out. “I can tell.” She then walked over to the counter and picked a pile of clothing. “Your old outfit wasn’t hygienic and contained some possibly dangerous chemicals to some of the inhabitants here so we had to dispose of them. I’m sorry. But your other personal effects are in this drawer,” she said, opening said drawer to reveal the weapons Nyra had been wearing.

“Thanks…”

“Put those on and I’ll have someone help escort you from the hospital.” The asari paused before leaving. “If you would like, you could stay with me until you’re able to stand on your own two feet.”

“Oh….thank you,” Nyra replied and then waited for the Asari to leave before she began to dress. The new outfit was white and simple with a top and pants. She frowned. She didn’t like white, it tended to stain too quickly -- especially for what she did.

As she was slipping her blades and their sheathes on the belt of her current garments, she thought about what she’d gone through in the last few hours? She hadn’t dared ask the time. But she missed home. Hells, she missed Gale and the others. She’d hated the predicament that had brought them all together, but she’d enjoyed her time getting to know them. And now she was stuck in some other plane of existence with no way to return home. Were they even still alive? She didn’t know.

She sighed and shook herself, knowing it would be useless to dwell on it. With that thought in her mind, she decided to take the Asari up on her offer -- at least for now. Perhaps she could convince her to help her find some income. She could tell from the memories she’d received that she would need to have some sort of background, but her true history couldn’t be revealed. No one would understand. This was not a world of magic but of technology and science -- a concept she didn’t yet grasp.

Squaring her jaw, she headed out of the hospital room to first speak with Kali, and then see where the “wind” took her.

More Than Just a Dream Official Cover by Frostbite711

Chapter Text

A few months had passed since her unusual arrival in this universe. She now knew that the person she kept seeing in her dreams was a Drell. But she’d still never met him. She didn’t know if she ever would.

She’d been staying with Kali since her hospital release and thanks to the Asari, she’d managed to get a job with C-Sec after carefully working to fabricate a background for her that would align with this world. It helped that the two of them were able to read memories, although Nyra usually refused to do so, scared of what would happen if she did.

Kali was a wonderful friend, and sometimes the two of them would chat after work. Sometimes Nyra’s mind would “meld” accidentally with Kali or other people on the streets - prodding, other times she would control it. Kali was helping her learn control, while also keeping progress and updated on the parasite growing in her head. So far, it hasn't gotten any worse, but it also hadn’t gotten any better.

Nyra was the talk of her C-Sec office, being a strange woman who didn’t look like any of the others on the station. She wasn’t really upset about the stares or whispers that went on behind her back. Being a drow, she’d gotten used to criticism when she’d been on the surface. Drow weren’t really accepted amongst most folk.

She quietly headed for the desk she shared with her partner, a turian named Garrus Vakarian. She nodded to him as she approached. Despite being relatively new to the force, with her fake background, she’d managed to get a decent standing. Both she and Garrus were relatively new, although she’d learned both through fellow officers as well as her own searches that Garrus had family in C-Sec.

The turian was relatively young, about 24 years old, which was a lot younger than Nyra, despite her inexperience with this particular universe. He was brash and stubborn, meanwhile she was a little more calm, but all just as stubborn.

“Hey partner,” he said.

“Vakarian. So, what’s the assignment today?”

He reached over and grabbed a datapad, tossing it to her. She caught it and hummed as she opened the files and began to skim through the information. “Okay...a fight in the lower wards, several dead. Only witness is a volus who happened to spot the scene as he was heading to work,” she muttered. She closed her eyes and tapped the datapad to her chin. “We need to speak with this volus, but also check on the bodies.”

“I suggest we check out the bodies first, before they get too cold.”

She opened her eyes and looked at him, giving a nod. “Let’s get going then,” she said.

His mandibles flicked outwards before he followed her.

After looking at the bodies in the morgue, they were able to conclude that the kills were clean. Clearly a professional. Most likely an assassin. Nyra didn’t know as much about the killers of this world, but only an assassin would be able to make kills that clean. Unfortunately, it was uncertain who was the assassin’s target.

So the two of them headed to the Volus to question him. He said he hadn’t seen anything aside from a shadow too fast to make out before the bodies dropped. They’d pried him for more information on the shadow. If he had any, he gave none.

Garrus believed the Volus was hiding something. Nyra didn’t know. It was hard to tell with creatures that lived inside suits of armor. If she’d been back in her world, she would’ve just gotten someone who could cast “Zone of Truth” to hopefully get him to speak. Unfortunately, she wasn’t home, and she didn’t have that skill.

Their investigation was coming up with nothing. Both of them were frustrated so Nyra suggested visiting the scene of the crime. Since Garrus couldn’t think of a better plan, he agreed and the two of them soon arrived.

As they approached the roped off segment of the ward, Nyra couldn’t help but notice how it looked similar to the ward she’d arrived in a month ago. It wasn’t the same one, but there were a lot of places that held similar designs on the Citadel.

The area was mostly spotless aside from some leftover remnants guns going off and the general dirt and grime of this part of the wards. Humming to herself, she walked past the barriers and wandered into the space, looking around for anything they might have missed.

In the dim light of the ward, her eyes caught onto some splatters on the ground and the wall. Curious, she stepped closer.

“Garrus, I found something,” she announced.

The turian glanced over from where he’d been observing the gun shells, marking down the types he’d found. “What is it?” he asked, walking over, careful not to disturb anything.

She closed her eyes and bent closer, sniffing softly before reaching deep into her dormant powers. “Blood,” she whispered, her eyes opening. She lifted her arm, activating her omnitool to take a picture.

“Blood?”

“Mmmhmmm. I know the dead consisted of a few humans and a krogan. Whoever was able to take down a krogan with this little blood shed is a master of killing.” She grimaced. “They are probably excellent at hiding traces of who they are as well. This is probably going to end up a dead end.”

“Probably. Although it seems wrong. I wonder why a professional would come for them. The files of the deceased shows they were mercenaries with some pretty shady history.”

Nyra nodded quietly. “Curious. Mercenaries with that much of a target on their back wouldn’t come this close to the presidium, much less the Citadel unless they were looking for something or someone.”

“But what were they after?” Garrus asked.

“Hells if I know.”

“Perhaps this should be an investigation for another day? It’s starting to get late.” Garrus turned and began to head towards the skycar.

“Yeah,” she sighed and was about to follow him when she noticed a faint glimmer coming from the alleyway that was just beyond the fight. Curious, she turned around and walked into the shadowy corridor. Her vision picking out her surroundings well in the gloom.

As she neared the end, she spotted what had caught her attention, her mother’s necklace. She stopped and bent down, picking it up. She frowned. She couldn’t remember seeing it when she’d arrived all those months ago. She had thought they’d thrown it out with the rest of her clothes. Were they after me? She suddenly wondered, but she shook that thought from her head. It was impossible.

Clutching the necklace to her chest, she stood to her feet, looking at the delicate thing.

“Nyra?” Garrus called out, his voice suggesting he was at the entrance to the alley.

She jumped and quickly tucked the necklace away. “Coming! Sorry, thought I saw something but it must’ve just been my mind playing tricks on me,” she said with a shake of her head.

The turian looked at her for a moment before shrugging. “Alright then. Ready to go?”

She nodded and together the two of them headed for their skycar. As they walked away, she couldn’t help but glance back. No doubt about it, that place was probably the same alley she arrived in.

She would have to investigate it later on her own when it wasn’t a crime scene.

Chapter Text

After the crime scene was cleaned up, the case filed away as unsolved, Nyralyn returned to the alleyway in the ward on her day off. Per usual, people were milling around going on their day-to-day business, not paying her any mind.

Wearing a sweater that matched her dark purple skin, blue jeans and tennis shoes, she approached the alley. As she got close, she lifted a hand, running her delicate fingers against the wall.

She eventually reached the area she’d remembered waking up in and she observed it. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing interesting. Her skin didn’t humm with magic like it did when she used her abilities in the quiet of her room at Kali’s. She didn’t use her magic often, mostly due to its nature, but a part of her missed it. Missed the constant buzz of magic that had wrapped around everything back in her world.

She crouched down and ran her fingers across the ground, feeling the cold metal beneath her fingers, casting Detect Magic as she did so. There was nothing of interest here. Sighing, she stood to her feet and was about to make her way out of the alley when she noticed someone blocking her exit.

She tensed and her hands immediately went for the blades she always kept on her person. The figure moved too fast. Before she could even blink, her hands were now being held tightly and yanked from where they’d been reaching. The figure was close enough that their breath mingled in the space between them.

“Do not draw your weapons. I mean you no harm,” came a rich male voice. A voice that sounded vaguely familiar. She could make out the shape with her sharp eyes, but the colors were lost to her. She could tell they were a male drell.

“Then perhaps you shouldn’t block my exit, or grab my arms like that,” she said, her voice devoid of humor.

The male before her hummed. “I suppose you are correct. My apologies. It is a force of habit,” he said, stepping back and letting go of her hands.

She lowered her hands as he let go, vaguely aware of the feeling of warmth from where he’d touched her. She crossed her arms and faced him.

“So your habit is to stand ominously outside an alley and then grab at random strangers?”

He shook his head. “No...you were going for your weapons. I wanted to prevent you from using them against me,” he responded.

“You are aware that I could have harmed you even without my blades.”

“I am aware. But those seemed the most dangerous threat.”

“I see. So, why are you here?”

“Why are you here?” he countered.

She paused and frowned. That was a good question, one she didn’t want to answer. “It’s complicated and frankly none of your business.”

“I saw you here a few weeks ago, with that turian. Are you intending to try to find the killer of those merchs?”

She blinked and eyed him, wondering if this man was the killer. She had a feeling that no matter the answer to that, he had no ill will towards her. She felt no hostile intentions from him. “Not really. I just….wanted some answers.”

“Answers that an alleyway could give you?”

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “No, not really. Doesn’t matter anyway, there are no answers here. Not for what I’m looking for anyway.”

“I see. I too am looking for answers.”

“And have you found any?”

“Not as many as I would like. Would you care to walk with me? Perhaps we can help each other,” he said, gently holding out a hand to her in invitation.

She looked at the hand, hesitating a moment, unsure if she should before she took it.

A small smile twitched on the drell’s lips and he gently guided her into the light. Once they emerged she blinked at the light, adjusting her eyes before she froze, staring at the drell. She recognized him.

Green scales, emerald eyes with black pupils, red gills on the sides of his head and neck. There was no doubt about it, he was the man she kept seeing in her illithid induced dreams.

“Is this a dream?” she said aloud.

The man seemed to have noticed her stop and he turned to look at her. Emerald eyes met violet as the two saw each other face to face with no darkness between them.

“It is not a dream.”

“You’re real,” she whispered, letting go of his hand and running both of hers through her hair.

He seemed confused at her response, but chuckled. “Of course I am real. And so are you.”

“Holy hells. The gods must have some weird sense of humor,” she muttered, beginning to pace.

“I do not believe the gods would make a joke,” he responded.

She didn’t notice his remark, continuing to pace, biting her thumb as she did so. “Maybe I’m going insane? That is a very big possibility. For all I know these last few months could be a dream to get me trapped in an eternal nightmare.”

That’s when she felt strong hands grip her arms, stopping her pacing. “Stop pacing. I don’t know what has got you so upset about seeing my face. Take a deep breath. Relax,” the drell said.

She stared at him before taking a deep breath letting it out.

“Good. Now, do you want to sit somewhere more private so we can discuss?”

She hesitated a moment. “That might...help,” she said.

He gave her a nod and then began to lead the way through the crowd. At some point, she almost lost him, but he stopped and then waited for her to catch up before he led the way to a coffee shop.

Once the two entered, they both ordered a drink before he led the way to a back corner where he sat down, inviting her to sit as well.

She paused a moment before joining him, placing her hands on the table and twiddling her thumbs while she tried to think. Part of her still felt this was a dream, despite being here for so many months. It didn’t help that the man sitting across from her was the very one she’d spent so much time using the illithid powers in order to see. She watched him quietly, noting his calm posture and eyes that seemed to be regarding her just as much as she was him.

She could tell he was intelligent and collected. She might even say he had the quiet calm of an assassin. She could tell just by how he sat and watched her. They said nothing until their drinks were brought over, when she wrapped her hands around her cup as something to help anchor her.

“You said you think this is a dream. Why is that so?” he asked.

“Ah…” she opened her mouth just slightly, thinking again about her dreams. His fingers sliding sensually along her spine, his voice whispering softly in her ear. She slid her gaze away from him, feeling her face heat up and glad for her naturally dark skin tone that hid her blush. “It’s hard to explain.”

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw him cross his arms. He seemed to regard her, analyzing her expression and her demeanor. Then he frowned. “I’m sorry if that is a private matter.”

She glanced at him. This was so unlike her dream version of him. She expected as much, but it was still a shock to her. “It’s just really complicated and kind of weird. Even back where I’m from,” she said.

He nodded. “And you are definitely not from around here.”

“Yes. It’s...difficult adjusting to this place,” she said, waving a hand at their surroundings.

He chuckled. “It can be a surprise to many people not used to a place as busy as the Citadel.”

She nodded in response before sipping her coffee. She watched him silently as she did so. As she set her cup down, their gazes met and suddenly she saw herself through his eyes.

Small, almost human-like features, but most definitely not a human. Bright violet eyes that sparkle with an intelligence unlike anything I’ve seen. Skin a dark purple, similar to Asari. Pointed ears. What is she? And where did she come from? People are after her, I don’t know why.

She is...intriguing.

Then she snapped back to her own body and she jolted at the unexpected mind search, her cup tipping and spilling her drink on her lap. She hissed at the hot liquid, jumping to her feat.

The drell besides her stood as well, hands out slightly. “Are you hurt?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No, this is nothing. It’s just a little hot,” she responded. She looked at him again, noting that he seemed a bit concerned. She didn’t know why he was. Even though she’d seen him in her dreams, he was a complete stranger to her.

“Good,” he said as one of the cafe workers noticed the spill and raced over, coming to clean it up.

She observed him. He didn’t seem to notice her monetary accidental intrusion. She supposed since he didn’t have a parasite wriggling in his head that he wouldn’t notice unless she actually intended to focus. She was curious about this man, almost as curious as he was about her. As she continued to look at him and before she could stop herself, she was suddenly thrust into his mind.

Thane Krios. Age 34. Drell. Assassin. Widower...son named Kolyat, dead wife named Irikah. Revenged her death. Death...dying….Kepral’s Syndrome.

She reeled from the memories stumbling backwards a few steps, hands on her head. She hadn’t expected so many memories to come piling up. She hadn’t dealt with many drell before, but she had no doubt that it could have been due to their unique ability to remember everything. Tears sprang from her eyes as her own mind tried to sift through the memories she’d seen, latching onto the death of Irikah and Thane’s feelings of grief.

She placed a hand to her mouth and sank to her knees, even while her head throbbed. What brought her back to the present was a hand clasping tightly on her shoulder and a suddenly very intense drell looking at her. He seemed a little upset if his narrowed eyes were anything to go by.

“What did you do?’ he questioned, his voice hard.

“I...I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to...I’m sorry,” she said, burying her head in her hands. “You’ve gone through so much pain. And you’re still fighting. You’ve lost so many, and you still push on.” She then met his gaze. “It’s not your fault, Thane.”

The man before her flinched as she said his name as if she’d hit him. “Explain how you know that name. And why you invaded my thoughts...and how.”

“I….it’s a long story,” she said.

“Don’t dodge the question.”

She gave him a look. “I will tell you, but not here. It’s...too busy.”

He stared at her a moment longer before he seemed to agree, letting go of her shoulder as he stood. Then he held out a hand for her. She looked at it for a moment before taking it, allowing him to help haul her to her feet.

As soon as she got to her feat, her head began to pound sharper than before. “Ngh,” she clutched at her head as if she could make the pain go away. She swayed on her feet before her legs started to collapse beneath her.

“What’s the matter?” Thane asked, his hands suddenly grabbing her, holding her up.

“It hurts...need Kali…” was all she managed to get out before she started to lose consciousness.

The last thing she remembered was feeling Thane loop one arm under her legs while the other rested on her back. “Hold on,” he rumbled before she slipped into darkness.

Chapter Text

The dream started like many of her others, with her laying on her side. Her eyes flickered open, and instead of the usual garden mountain top, she noticed the scenery was of one of the courtyards on the Citadel. Frowning at the change, she began to sit up.

She froze once she heard a voice. Not the voice of Thane. It was similar to her own, but filled with an echoey “dual toned” quality to it.

“Fear not, Nyra, I mean you no harm.”

Turning toward the direction of the sound, she noticed a turquoise skinned mind flayer whose eyes were the same color as her own, albeit with a sort of unearthly golden glow to them. She jumped to her feat, her hands itching toward her weaponry.

The mind flayer made no move towards her, but regarded her calmly. “Even if you tried, you wouldn’t be able to harm me in this dream state. Please, relax and let us converse openly.”

Nyra regarded the mind flayer for a moment before relaxing. “You’re not trying to lull me into submission and convince me that I need to embrace your power, are you?”

The mind flayer shook their head. “No. That is not my intention anymore.”

“Anymore?”

“Before we came to this land,” they paused to gesture at the courtyard, “I was only doing as my instincts dictated. I had thoughts of my own besides trying to consume my host, as most tadpoles do. But….since we came here, I have evolved. I have...grown a conscience.

“You have always been a unique host. I learned through your interactions and memories that the appearance I took in your dreams was not one you recognized. I do not understand this connection, or why you have it, but I believe it helps tie into how we arrived in this world.

“Upon arrival, it was evident that this world was vastly different then either of us were used to. I myself evolved enough to where I was able to exert some control of my...our shared abilities.”

Nyra crossed her arms. “So that’s why I keep slipping into people’s minds without wishing to.”

The mindflayer nodded. “At first, it was out of self preservation. We needed to know more about this world in order to survive in it. We are a ‘fish out of water’ as it were, and that is a very dangerous situation to be in in an unfamiliar world with different laws of nature then our own. After I believed we’d learned the basics, I got curious. There are so many unique creatures here, I couldn’t help myself at feeling the abundance of knowledge at my fingertips.”

“But why did you peer into Thane’s mind.”

“He...is the persona I took. I may not be you, but I have also developed an interest in the strange man. I wanted to know why you dreamed of him and not someone from our world.”

“And? Have you figured it out?”

They shook their head. “Not yet. But I believe in time, it should be revealed.”

“Okay…Why did you only now decide to show up to me all of a sudden?”

“In the past, you were always the one to initiate our abilities, to invite me further into your mind. Since coming here, it has always been me reaching out, trying to learn more about the world. I believe the reason we are able to converse now is because you have met the guise I was using in your dreams, which has made you come to question more things about yourself. You were finally ready to seek me out, even if it was an subconscious decision, and I wanted to speak with you in as in-person as we can get considering our predicament.”

Nyra ran a hand through her hair and began to pace. “So what you’re saying is that we both decided we wanted to speak to each other?”

“Yes.”

She thought for a moment about that, before speaking the one question that she feared. “Am I still dying?”

“If you mean going through metamorphosis, then yes and no. My progress was halted severely before we arrived here. But once I started to gain my own consciousness, I have become too entangled in your mind. I do not know if you will turn into me. And as much as I would like to have my own physical form, I do not want that for you. I’ve come to respect you and your spirit. I want us both to live.”

“I see...so how do you propose we keep you from turning me into a mindless husk as you emerge?”

If a mindflayer could look sad, this one did. “I do not know. Not yet. I hope...I hope that someone can help us. But I don’t know if it is possible. If it is any consolation, if I feel I am taking too much of your mind, I will cease all action and rely on your decisions. We are two organisms, two minds, in one body. We must learn to coexist, or we will both surely suffer.”

Nyra nodded. This was a little hard to wrap her mind around. She didn’t understand why the mindflayer wanted her alive, but if that’s what it wanted, then she wasn’t about to argue. Smiling softly, she glanced at the mindflayer, her...other half so to speak. “Well, since we’re sharing a body, what should I call you? It seems rude to call you parasite,” she said.

The mind flayer binked, seeming a little caught off guard, but then their tentacles shifted into what could have been some sort of illithid smile. “You can call me Atteran.”

The two looked at each other, eyes meeting as they came to a mutual understanding if not slight appreciation for the other. “Atteran, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” Nyra said, holding out her hand.

Atteran reached forward and shook the drow’s hand, their thin turquoise fingers contrasting nicely with Nyra’s dark purple skin as the area around them started to grow dim. Before she knew it, she was opening her eyes to her dark room, a soft blanket draped loosely over her. The headache that had been assaulting her after reading Thane’s mind fading like the last images of her dream.

“Atteran,” she murmured as she sat up and then slid out from her blankets, stretching before heading toward the door.

Chapter Text

Approaching the door, she was able to make out two voices floating out from the main room. She paused to listen, recognizing the feminine voice of Kali as the asari spoke before a deep baritone voice responded to something she’d said.

She frowned and then opened the door. “Kali, did you invite some-” she broke off as she spotted the owner of the deep voice. Thane. “Oh.” she swallowed. “I didn’t think you’d be here.”

“I wanted to make sure you were alright…” he paused and glanced at Kali. “Your friend told me about your condition. I apologize for how I acted at the cafe.”

She winced and walked over, tugging the arms of her sweater to cover her hands. “It’s okay, really. I did pry into your mind without your permission. Sometimes I can control it, other times I can’t. I’m sorry that it even happened, I honestly wasn’t trying to.”

“Whether you meant it or not, it has already happened. We cannot change the past.”

She grimaced at his words. In her world, if one had the right spell, they could do just about anything if they put their mind to it. Of course, she would never say that. “I can at least apologize for it. And for what it’s worth...I’m sorry,” she said, meeting his gaze, trying to communicate with her eyes that she meant his own disease.

His gaze caught on hers and he gave her a nod in understanding, an expression flickering over his face. They were silent for a moment before Kali got up to make some coffee and tea for the three of them. Nyra shifted her focus to stare at her hands which she’d begun to play with. “I know you have a lot of questions about me. I can try to share some of them, but I’m afraid a few will have to remain as they are as I may not know the answer myself. Due to our little accident in the cafe, most of the questions I have for you were already answered.”

He nodded and thought for a moment. “You seem to have some sort of interest in that alley where we met. Why is that?”

She rocked on the balls of her feet for a moment before leaning against the counter. “I know you know by now that I am not from here. This may be hard to believe, but I’m not from this universe. You see...I come from a place not of technology, but of magic. In some places, the very air hums with the pulse of what may seem like a thousand stars. It’s hard to explain to someone who has never seen magic or experienced it before.”

He watched her, seeming to be trying to understand. He gestured for her to go on.

“Several months ago, I had a parasite inserted into here,” she paused, gesturing to her right eye. “Since then, I’ve gained strange abilities. Kali could only tell you bits and pieces of it, only what I’ve felt comfortable sharing. One of those abilities is reading minds. Sometimes I can control it, other times I can’t. The times I can’t are the worst. That’s when the headaches set in and I lose consciousness.

“I didn’t have this particular problem until I came here. One moment I was with my friends at camp, the next, I opened my eyes to unfamiliar surroundings and metal walls. It was shortly after my first episode of uncontrolled mind ‘melding’ that I met Kali. I’ve been here every sense. I don’t know how to return to my world, but I thought that perhaps that alley could have provided a clue. Unfortunately,” she shook her head, “nothing. I came up empty.”

There was another moment of silence while Thane watched her silently. He seemed to be processing the information before he leaned forward. “I see. Do you know why someone would be after you?”

She looked at him and shrugged. “I’ve been a C-Sec officer for a couple of months after coming out of practically thin air. I’m an anomaly amongst an already diverse group of aliens. I have strange mind powers like Asari, have no need of a translator, not to mention I have a ticking time bomb in my head. A time bomb of which I don’t know the expiration date of.” She didn’t dare mention she had magic. It wasn’t a lot in the first place, but she never announced it or used it in public in this world of technology...yet.

“Hmmm,” he leaned back and regarded her. “If anyone knows about any that, that could explain why.”

Just then Kali walked over with their drinks: tea for Thane, coffee for Nyra. “Unfortunately, she had scans done of her at Huetra Hospital after she was brought in from her first collapse. We knew nothing about her or her condition at the time, so it’s possible information may have been leaked.”

“Perhaps...If you will permit me, I could look into it for you,” Thane said.

Nyra frowned. “Why would you? You barely know me.”

The man gave her a mischievous smile. “I know more than you think. I’ve seen you a few times before we met face to face. Plus, I have a good feeling about you.”

Though that comment had her suddenly feeling a bit flattered, a part of her was suddenly wary and she eyed him. “Alright, fine. On one condition.”

“What is that?”

“You allow me to help you. I may be C-Sec, but I was a ranger...a tracker in my old world. I know how to fight and defend myself.”

“Of your fighting skills I have no doubt,” he said with a light smirk. He took a moment to think, sipping his tea while he did so before he met her eyes and nodded. “Alright, I agree to your terms.”

She smiled and stuck out her hand to which he set down his mug and took it. The two of them shook and their expressions almost mirrored each other. “Great,” Nyra replied. She couldn’t help but notice the pleasant warmth of his hand around hers and when they both let go, she felt it was both too long and not long enough.

Then he opened his omnitool, typing away. “Here’s my contact,” he said.

A moment later, her own pinged and she looked at the device, noting the number and saving it. “Thank you, Thane,” she said.

He finished his cup and stood. “It is my pleasure…” he trailed off.

“Nyralyn. Nyralyn Kolith, but you can call me Nyra,” she said with a smile.

His lips quirked up in a smile that brightened his eyes. “Nyra. I will speak to you soon,” he said before he turned and left the apartment.

Once he’d gone, Kali looked at the drow. “So…”

Nyra glanced at her and frowned. “So what?”

“Are you going to explain to me what that connection between you was?”

“Connection? What connection?”

Kali crossed her arms. “Nyralyn, don’t lie to me. I may not be a Matriarch, but I am older than you. I can tell when there is a spark between two people.”

Nyra looked at her and then looked at the cup in her hands, staring at it as if it could answer Kali’s question for her. Then she sighed, knowing Kali wouldn’t give up. “It’s pretty embarrassing. But another side effect of the parasite is vivid...seductive dreams. My friends who suffered the same fate as myself saw someone who was attractive to them. Me...I saw Thane,” she said. She felt a blush start to heat up her cheeks at her confession.

Kali stared at her before placing a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “So you’ve been having erotic dreams of a sexy drell man? There’s worse things that could have happened.”

“Kali,” Nyra groaned. “It worries me. Why was I dreaming of him? I’ve seen plenty of attractive people in my life, some of them I actually had feelings for. But why did I dream of a stranger? And why did I end up coming to a strange world where he existed? Is he part of why I was transported here?”

The purple-skinned woman sighed and shook her head. “Thinking about it brings too many questions. Questions I don’t have the answer for, and questions I’m not sure I want to be answered.”

“Oh Nyra, I’m so sorry. I wish there was some way I could help,” Kali said, wrapping an arm around the drow.

Nyra smiled. “Thanks Kali. You’re the best friend I could ask for.”

Kali smiled. “No problem,” she responded. “Now, shall we get dinner?”

Nyra nodded and finished her coffee, standing and going to help Kali cook.

Chapter Text

There was no news from Thane for the next couple of months, and Nyra was starting to think that maybe they were wrong about someone coming after her. She settled quickly into her routine with Garrus, going out on patrols and investigating cases until they were finally assigned to dig into Saren Arterius, a spectre and personal favorite of the council.

They were supposed to see if there was anything suspicious after new floated in about a botched Spectre assessment. The spectre over seeing the mission was dead, and the humans who had been present were blaming Saren.

Nyra didn’t know who to believe, but she and Garrus began digging, both of them felt that something didn’t add up. Someone was lying, and the more Nyra dug into Saren’s past, the more she disliked the guy. She wasn’t a fan of racism back in her own world, so she felt a great dislike for the spectre. Considering she could almost be mistaken for a human aside from her pointed ears and dark skin, she had a feeling that he would treat her with as much contempt as he did humans.

If Thane did send her a message, she never noticed. For she was too busy scrambling for information about Saren, yet finding nothing that didn’t break the laws placed on Spectres with hers and Garrus’s limited clearance at least. Garrus was certain there was more to it, especially considering their limited clearance with them being C-Sec and him being a Spectre. She was inclined to agree and it frustrated her that they came up with nothing.

On the day the humans were said to arrive, she and Garrus headed up to the tower to bring what information they could find about the spectre. Garrus was upset and while he was voicing his annoyance and trying to tell their superior that they needed more time, she decided to wander around the Council Chambers if only because she’d never come up here before. She made sure not to go where she wasn’t permitted. She wasn’t exploring long before she was pinged from Garrus, telling her to meet her at the elevator.

As she was heading towards the elevator, she caught sight of a group of humans in full armor heading toward where the Council was waiting. Her eyes caught onto a flash of purple hair. She had yet to see many humans in this world with that color, so she paused to observe them.

They walked in the lead of the other two and their posture was graceful yet powerful, a predator from head to toe. From the distance she was at, Nyra couldn’t make out the human’s eye color, but they were definitely female. She carried two weapons from what she could see which looked like a sniper rifle and a pistol.

  Commander Shepard, she thought, if the reports she and Garrus had been pouring over were correct. After a moment of watching the woman and her fellow human soldiers, she turned and continued on her way to the elevator.

“You sure took your time,” Garrus remarked.

“Hush you. I was observing the humans,” she said, lightly slapping his shoulder as she stepped inside the moving room.

He nodded as he followed and the elevator began its descent. “The commander and her ground team from Eden Prime,” he remarked.

“So my suspicions were correct. Interesting. Even from a distance, her hair is pretty unique.”

Garrus cast her a glance. “Yeah…” he then went silent for a while before glancing at Nyra again. “Hey, I know C-Sec doesn’t want us to investigate any further but-”

“But you think there is more to this story. I agree. I was trying to find some leads, I can send a message to someone I think could help. I don’t know if he will respond though, he hasn’t communicated with me in a while.”

“Hmm, well, I have a few leads I wanted to chase down as well.”

Nyra looked at him as the elevator landed and they exited. “Alright, what have you got?”

His mandibles flicked out in a turian smile before he took the lead, sending the info he’d collected to her omnitool.

“So Barla Von and a doctor in the lower wards named Michel?” she asked, glancing at him.

He nodded.

“I’ll take the Shadow Broker’s informant, you can get Michel,” she said. “I’ll also send a message to my friend, see if he could send out any feelers for me.”

“Sounds good to me,” Garrus replied.

“I’ll ping you if and when I get any information.”

“See you later, Nyra.”

She grinned. “Stay safe.”

“You too,” was his response before the two parted ways, heading for their own destinations. As she walked away, she pulled up her omnitool and opened her contacts. She paused when she saw a message from Thane.

Biting her lip, she tapped on it.

[Nyra, I found something. It is...disturbing. Please call me as soon as you see this, I would rather tell you as in person as I can.]

This was sent two weeks ago. A pit of dread settled in her stomach.

[Nyra...are you okay? Please respond. Has your condition progressed? If not, please respond, I fear you may be in danger.]

This one was sent yesterday. Danger? That definitely wasn’t good.

Looking around to see if anyone was watching, she began to run a quick program -- which Garrus taught her -- that would help her keep the line secure before she called Thane.

It took only a few minutes before he answered. At the sight of her, he seemed to relax, his shoulders lowering ever so slightly.

“Nyra, it is good to see you alive.” 

“You as well Thane.”

“Has your...condition worsened?” He seemed a bit hesitant to ask.

Nyra shook her head. “Not really. Kali makes sure to check on me if I have any severe symptoms. What about you? And what’s this about me being in danger? Or at least being in more danger then I am as it stands.”

“I am doing fine. Thank you for asking.” He paused and was silent for a moment. “Are you alone?”

“As alone as I can be. I was heading off to do something for work.”

He nodded. “Someone is after you. They found out about your records from the hospital. They discovered your...telepathic abilities, and they want you so they can use them. For what purpose, I am unsure.”

“Do they have a name?”

Again, a nod. “Yes. They are very powerful, and almost untouchable. It was not easy to find this information.”

Nyra narrowed her eyes, he seemed to be hesitating, trying to stall her as if trying to protect her. “Who is it?”

He didn’t respond for a moment. “The Spectre Saren Arterius.”

She blinked for a moment, trying to absorb this information before she leaned against the railing behind her, running her free hand through her hair. “Shit.”

“Nyra?” Thane asked. “Is everything alright?”

Nyra laughed wryly. “No, no it’s not. Although I appreciate your concern.”

“Do you want to explain?” he asked, gently. He didn’t seem to want to pry.

She grimaced and glanced at him through her screen. “I was assigned to try finding out information about Saren. Me and my partner were investigating.”

“The turian. Is he with you?”

“No, we separated to try following some leads.”

“I see...are you going to continue the investigation?”

Nyra nodded. “Yeah. Now I know that he’s bad news, I’m not just going to sit back on my ass and let him take me. If he wants me, he’s going to have to fight me. Besides, I’m not going to run just because I’m in danger. If what the humans say is true, then he’s a danger to a lot of people, not just myself.”

“You’re not worried he’ll catch you?”

“Oh, of course I’m worried. But hiding in fear isn’t going to get me anywhere.”

“Then I will pray for Arashu to watch over you, Siha.”

“Arashu? Siha?” Nyra frowned.

He smiled. “Ah, a discussion for another time. I’m sure you are quite busy.”

Nyra sighed in agreement. “Yeah. Talk to you later Thane,” she said.

“I’ll keep in touch,” he responded before the vid call ended.

With renewed purpose, Nyra straightened her spine and headed towards the Shadow Broker’s Citadel informant.

Chapter Text

Nyra walked with a spring in her step, albeit cautious, as she headed to C-Sec academy to find the Krogan Mercenary. One who had been sent by the Shadow Broker to deal with a man named Fist. As she entered the building, it wasn’t hard to spot the guy. He was standing in front of three officers. They seemed to be talking about him threatening Fist.

She caught the eyes of the three who noticed her C-Sec uniform before looking back at Wrex. The Krogan glanced towards her and huffed.

She waved to the other officers and tipped her head. “You guys go ahead and report to your stations, I can deal with this guy,” she said with a slight smile.

All four looked at her.

The krogan sneered. “A skinny thing like you wouldn’t be able take me on.”

“Mmm, I don’t need to take you on when I’m not here to fight, but to offer my assistance.”

A blink. “You’re C-Sec. How do I know you aren’t like these guys?” he gestured behind him to the three which had started to walk away.

“Because, me and my partner were the ones investigating Saren Arterius. I heard from Barla Von that Fist is the one to be able to help me get more information on him.”

He looked at her for a moment. “Barla Von is a wise man. It seems we share a common enemy.”

Nyra grinned. “Nyralyn Kolith,” she said, sticking out her hand.

He glanced at it before taking it. “Urdnot Wrex.”

“Well then, shall we get going then, Wrex?”

He nodded. “Best not to waste any time.”

. . .

As the two were exiting the academy, Nyra spotted the familiar figure of her partner walking towards them, accompanied by Shepard and one of the humans from earlier.

At the sight of them, Nyra grinned and met them, Wrex following behind her. “Hey partner, I’m assuming your part of the assignment went well?” she asked.

Garrus nodded. “There was a little snag, but luckily Commander Shepard and her team helped me out,” he gestured to the woman.

Nyra slid her glance over and gave her a once over now that she could see her better. The woman was tall, taller than her -- which wasn’t surprising seeing as elves were usually shorter than humans were she came from -- with purple hair and sharp silver eyes. She wore black N7 armor and Nyra noticed that the omnitool band on her arm was much more complicated than that of most people she’d met.

“Nyra, this is Commander Shepard and Kaidan. Shepard and Kaidan, this is my partner, Nyralyn.”

“And who is your krogan friend?” Shepard asked.

“The name’s Urdnot Wrex, don’t forget it, human,” he said.

Nyra glanced at him. “Let’s all play nice. What did you guys learn?”

“There was a quarian who has some information about Saren. She went to go speak with Fist in Chora’s Den,” Garrus answered.

“Wrex here has a contract to kill him. Either way, it looks like we need to pay the owner of Chora’s Den a visit,” Nyra said.

“Hold up, a contract to kill?” Shepard interjected, holding a hand up as she narrowed her eyes on Wrex.

“You got a problem with that, human?” Wrex said, leaning forward menacingly.

Garrus, Nyra, and Kaidan all shared a look. “Can we please not fight? As C-Sec I could arrest you two if you try to cause a scene and disturb the piece,” Nyra said, hands on her hips.

Wrex turned to her. “I’d like to see you try,” he challenged.

Nyra narrowed her eyes. She didn’t have any armor on, despite being given some standard-issue armor from C-Sec, but she did have her blade and custom sniper rifle. And she had her magic. And her mind.

“Don’t underestimate me just because I look weak, Wrex,” she said, eyes narrowed, her mind suddenly twitching. For the first time ever, she felt a stirring in her mind, Atteran was paying attention and ready to help if Nyra couldn’t do it on her own.

He stared her down for a moment longer before laughing and slapping her on the back, enough to send her stumbling a bit. “I like you Nyra, no matter what weird alien you are.”

“Thank you, I’ll take that as a compliment. Now, are we going or what?”

After the situation seemed to diffuse, they headed for the night club. As they approached, Garrus glanced at her. “Nyra, be careful, unlike the rest of us, you aren’t wearing your armor. And we don’t know what we’ll be up against.”

“Yeah...I didn’t think I would need it today. I regret that decision,” she said with a grimace.

“Don’t worry, you can shoot them from the back,” Kaidan said, offering a smile.

She gave the man a nod in response. She noticed how his eyes trailed after her in curiosity before drifting to Shepard in what could be respect or something...more. She didn’t know him very well so she couldn’t say, but she remembered seeing that look on Gale’s face when he’d looked at her. She pursed her lips, trying to push thoughts from her old world to the back of her mind, the memories too much to bear.

She missed her friends from that world, but she didn’t see there was any way she could return there. She wondered how they were and what they were doing, if they’d found a cure. Only the gods would know, but she would have to be content to live out her days in this world of technology and aliens.

She was drawn out of her thoughts by the sound of gunfire. Quickly, she removed her sniper from its holster on her back and held its scope in front of her, following the others as they progressed. She made sure to stay in the back, firing only when necessary, which wasn’t as often as she thought due to the efficiency of the others.

When they headed toward the back, she volunteered to stay as a look out, Kaidan stayed back as well to help her while Garrus, Wrex, and Shepard went on ahead.

She held her gun in her hands, standing outside Fist’s office. She thought back to what Thane had told her, about the target on her back. Her expression soured as she wondered how Saren had collected her information. As she thought about it, perhaps she should have gone in. Maybe Fist would have sold her hospital records to Saren. It made sense. Not that it mattered how he got the information so much as he had it.

“Nyralyn, I hear something from the main room, stay here,” Kaidan said, drawing her once more out of her thoughts as he headed the way they came. He then peaked around the door and then darted back, waving for her.

“There’s a few men out there, waiting for us. If I use a biotic lift, think you could snipe them down?”

She slunk over quietly and looked out for a moment before nodding. “I think so.”

He gave a light smile back before he ducked out from his corner, biotics flaring as he lifted one of the men in the air. Quickly, she whipped around, aiming her sniper and firing, shooting him right through the head.

The two of them continued like that until the men were all down at the same time Shepard and the others came rushing out of the room. “Commander?” Kaidan questioned.

“Later, Alenko. We have a quarian to save,” she responded, not bothering to stop as she barreled out of the night club, Wrex and Garrus hot on her heels.

Kaidan and Nyra shared a look before following.

More Than Just A Dream by Frostbite711

Chapter Text

A fight broke out in the wards as Shepard and the others managed to make it to the quarian where they made short work of their enemies. Shepard then spoke with the quarian, explaining how they were trying to find information on Saren.

She agreed to help them and Shepard led the way to the human embassy. Nyra followed the others at a distance, watching them and their surroundings. She wasn’t looking for anything in particular, but she felt on edge. Despite how well things had turned out so far, something told her this was only the beginning.

Once they reached the embassy, Nyra opted to stand near the entrance, just inside the embassy doors. She was infinitely glad for her dark skin as it helped her blend in a bit with the shadows around her. She noticed the hostility of the one human, Councilor Udina, and her expression became guarded.

Humans in this world were just as racist as those of her world it seemed. After the recording had been played to its full extent and Tali’Zorah -- the quarian -- had joined the crew, the human councilor and captain headed to speak with the Council, leaving Shepard with her rag-tag group of soldiers.

She looked at all of them and spoke. “I know most of you decided to follow out of necessity of our mission here on the Citadel, but you’ve all proven yourself capable fighters. If given the chance, I would like to invite all of you to join my crew.”

The others all agreed, but Nyra stayed silent, watching. She found it interesting Garrus had agreed, but she understood why. Both of them had a desire to put down men like Saren.

Shepard nodded at them, smiling and headed for the exit. As she did, Nyra finally spoke. “I will join your crew, only if we are hunting Saren.”

Shepard jumped a bit, almost surprised that Nyra was there. “Oh, well, you are welcome to join us,” she said with a smile.

Nyra gave her a slight tip of her head in acknowledgement before following Shepard and the others out of the embassy. Nyra glanced over at the quarian, taking in her appearance now that the two of them were walking side by side. They were both around the same height, and despite her armor hiding her appearance, Nyra felt that she was probably quite beautiful under her mask. The purple and black armor complimented itself well, and Nyra found herself appreciating the combination. She would definitely wear her armor in those colors if it wasn’t for C-Sec regs.

After the meeting with the council, Shepard was declared the first human Spectre and then sent on a mission to find and take down Saren. Nyra swiftly departed after, telling Shepard she’d meet her on the ship after she’d packed her things for the mission.

Despite living on the Citadel for almost two years now, she still had very little in belongings. Having been trained as a ranger, living off the land, she only really had one or two sentimental items while the rest were all essentials.

It only took her a couple of minutes to pack a duffel bag full of everything she needed, which just so happened to be everything she owned: her armor, about four casual outfits, two books, and feminine hygiene. Everything else she owned, she was wearing. Then as she was heading toward Docking Bay 422 where she was supposed to meet up with Shepard and the others, she sent two messages.

The first one was to Kali, letting her know she was leaving the Citadel for who knows how long in order to help Shepard take down a rogue Spectre --  making sure to ask her for her medical records. She knew enough about this world to know that it was usually standard issue to have a doctor of some kind on board, and even if she didn’t trust them or know them, her condition needed to be monitored which could only work if the medic knew what they were getting themselves into. Not to mention her biology was unlike pretty much all the other races of the Citadel.

The second was to her C-Sec superiors, letting them know she was going on a leave of absence to help Shepard. If she survived, she would return to work so long as they were willing to take her back.

Then she stepped out of the elevator to see the others standing with their own bags of belongings while Shepard spoke with the councilor and the captain. After the councilor left, stepping through the crowd of aliens, Shepard glanced towards the ship in awe. “The Normandy’s mine,” she said softly. Then she focused back on Anderson and asked a few more questions about the mission before she waved for the others to follow her.

Upon entering, she began to show them around, explaining the various rooms and their uses. She told them that they would all have to check in with Dr. Chakwas before they left in order to make sure the doctor had everything they needed and to make sure the crew was in tip-top shape.

Then she led them deeper into the ship where the engine and cargo bay resided. Once the tour was complete, people started spreading out, going their separate ways. Nyra noticed Garrus head for the Mako where he set his bag down and looked at it. “This thing is beautiful,” he said.

Nyra smirked as she stepped up next to him. “Don’t tell me you’re going to tinker with it,” she said.

He blinked and gave her a sheepish smile. “Only if I’m allowed to.”

“If you think you can improve it, knock yourself out,” Shepard said, walking up.

Garrus looked at her in shock like he was confused at what she’d said. It took Nyra a moment to realize he was wondering why he’d knock himself out and she let out a chuckle. “She doesn’t mean literally, Garrus. Knock yourself out is a phrase people use kind of like ‘go ahead’.”

He glanced at his partner before relaxing. “Oh, good,” he muttered before rubbing the back of his head.

Shepard watched him in amusement at his reaction before looking between the two of them. “I’m glad you two could join us. It’ll be interesting to have two C-Sec officers on board.”

“Well, we’re glad to be here and of some help,” Nyra responded. Garrus had now averted his attention to the Mako.

“Good. Make sure to check in with Chakwas once you get the chance.”

Nyra nodded. “I was actually going up right now,” she said, picking her bag back up. “See you later, Garrus,” she waved.

He grunted and waved back as she entered the elevator with Shepard. As they were ascending, the human woman looked at her.

“I don’t mean to seem rude, but you’re not like any alien I’ve seen before. Where are you from? If you don’t mind me asking.”

Nyra hummed a bit and rocked on her heels. “Yeah, I’m not really from around here. It’s...hard to explain, but you probably won’t see any of my people. Even where I’m from, we’re pretty recluse. Doesn’t help that a lot of people are racist towards us.”

The Commander’s expression softened. “I’m sorry. If there’s anything I can do to help-”

Nyra waved her hand. “Don’t worry about it. I’m used to it. I’m a lot older than I look. My kind...we call ourselves Drow, and we live far longer than most Citadel races aside from maybe Krogan and Asari.”

“I see. That is interesting. I knew you weren’t human, despite the similarities.”

Nyra nodded. “Yeah,” she said as they reached the main floor and her omnitool pinged. She took a look at it and smiled. “Well, I’m going to go give Chakwas my medical information. Do you know where we’re going first?”

Shepard crossed her arms momentarily as she closed her eyes in thought. “I was going to head to Therum. We need to pick up that Asari scientist,” she said.

“Alright, see you later, Shepard,” Nyra said before she turned and headed for the medbay.

As she entered the medbay, Wrex was stepping out after getting his check up. He grinned at Nyra as she entered. “Kolith,” he greeted.

“Wrex,” she responded, smiling back. Once he’d left, she turned toward the doctor.

The woman was getting up in her years with graying hair cut short and a few pronounced wrinkles on her face. She smiled kindly to Nyra as she entered. “Welcome, you must be one of our C-Sec officers,” she said, gesturing toward Nyra’s uniform which she had yet to remove.

“Nyralyn Kolith. I came with my medical records...I would ask that you please keep these as confidential as possible. I already have enough trouble as is with my records,” she said, pulling up her omnitool and sending the information to the doctor.

Chakwas gave her a confused look before walking over to her computer and pulling up the information Nyra had sent there. It only took her a few moments before she was nodding. “I don’t know what all this means yet, but it looks serious.”

Nyra nodded. “It’s essentially terminal with no known cure except an early death. Much as I hate letting people know of my...condition, I know that it would be dangerous to keep this to myself on this sort of mission. Not to mention you are the resident doctor and should have my records in case something happens. It shouldn’t endanger the crew, but if it does, feel free to eject me into space.”

Chackwas nodded, frowning at her words. “I would only think that would be a last resort, but I will let the Commander know.”

Nyra hesitated, thinking that nugget of information over. “Aside from her, please don’t tell anyone else. I want to keep this quiet for as long as I can. It has yet to hinder my work at C-Sec and I refuse to let it do so here,” she said.

The doctor again nodded. “I understand. I will review these when I get the chance and let you and the Commander know,” she said. “When was your last check up?”

“A few days ago. The one who sent me my records is actually my flatmate on the Citadel, Kali H’ryn. She works at Huerta Memorial.”

Chakwas smiled. “Ah, I believe I’ve heard of her. In that case, her records of your medical history should work just fine,” she said.

Nyra smiled. “Thank you, Doctor,” she said before she turned and left the medbay.

Chapter Text

After leaving the docks of the Citadel, the Normandy began to make its way towards Therum where Shepard said that an Asari scientist was last heard of. Nyra spent most of the time down with Garrus or Wrex, asking the Krogan questions about his life and teasing Garrus like they did so often on patrols. It was nice having a familiar face on this hunt for Saren.

She didn’t know much about the two humans on Shepard’s squad, or Tali, but she made sure to try speaking with them. Kaidan was pretty friendly, he told her about human biotics after she’d asked him about them. She’d been curious since she’d seen him use them in Chora’s den.

Nyra wasn’t sure what to make of Ashley, the woman didn’t seem to like non-humans all that much, and considering Nyra herself wasn’t human, she didn’t know how the woman would act around her. Ashley had been sort of hostile around Nyra, so the drow just decided she wasn’t worth her time. She’d dealt with enough racism and racist people back in Faerûn that at this point it didn’t personally bother her, but she avoided her all the same just to prevent a fight.

Tali was a different story, the young quarian was curious and friendly, willing to share information on the geth and her people. Nyra felt Atteran perk up at the mention of her people being exiled and the drow knew that they felt sympathy for her due to their similar histories. The Illithid had been driven out of the Astral Plains by the Githyanki. Of course, it was a different story for them seeing as how the Illithid had enslaved the Gith while the quarians had only created the geth.

They’d only been traveling for a few days when Shepard informed the crew they were making a detour as she’d gotten news of an asteroid that was on a collision course for Terra Nova. As the Normandy approached the Asteroid, Shepard came into the cargo bay.

“Kolith, Vakarian, come with me. I want to see you two in action,” she said as she marched her way over to the lockers.

Nyra had been sitting on a crate next to Garrus while they’d been chatting with Kaidan and the requisitions officer. The two C-Sec officers shared a glance and immediately headed over, strapping on their weapons and armor.

“What’s the situation, Commander?” Garrus asked.

“The message was broken, but we know an asteroid is heading for Terra Nova and will be colliding in four hours if we don’t stop it. There are three torches propelling it forward.”

“I’m going to assume we need to shut down the torches and kill or apprehend anything that tries to stop us then?” Nyra asked.

“Yeah,” Shepard responded as the three of them climbed into the mako with Shepard taking the wheel. Nyra decided to help navigate while Garrus took charge over the guns. Once they landed on the surface, Shepard was off with Nyra helping her chart the best path to the first torch.

Luckily, the first one was nearby, and after taking out the turrets, they headed inside. Shepard froze as the door opened and they saw Batarians standing near a dead body that a Varren was feeding on. Then her expression darkened and she gripped her gun.”Batarians,” she practically spat before the batarians spotted them and sent their varren after them.

Nyra quickly pulled out her sniper and shot them down before ducking behind the wall as the Batarians started fighting back. She glanced over at Shepard to see the woman with a dark if not slightly haunted look in her eye and she remembered the Commander’s record. Shepard had been a colonist on Mondoir and had lost her family to Batarians.

The dark-skinned woman frowned as they took care of the batarians in the area, wondering how the other woman was taking it. Casting a look at Garrus, she could tell he seemed curious on how the Commander was going to respond to this attack.

While Shepard went to shut down the torch, Nyra stayed in the main area, searching around for anything useful and making sure no Batarians tried to return. Garrus stayed with Nyra, wanting to help make sure the perimeter was secure.

Once she felt it was safe and they’d collected everything, she went over to look at the body that the Varren had been eating, frowning at the scene. She was not new to gore -- being a ranger and a C-Sec officer had presented her with some grisely sights, but it was always unfortunate when someone innocent was killed. She supposed that it was part of nature for the things sometimes, but that didn’t mean she had to like it.

She glanced up as she heard footsteps and spotted Shepard walking over with Garrus. “Come, let’s head to the second torch.”

Nyra nodded and stood, following the two of them. They were almost out of the building when they were confronted with an engineer who explained the situation a bit more and asked them to look for his team. With a nod and a remark for him to find somewhere safe, they were off, heading back to the mako.

“Where to next, Commander?” Garrus asked.

“We should try to look for the team on the way if we can, but the torches are our top priority.”

“Understood,” Nyra responded as she sat down and looked over the radar. She pointed at a blip. “If you want to fix that tower to find the engineer team, looks like its on top of this slope.”

Shepard nodded and then set the mako on course for the tower. It didn’t take long to fix it before they were off again, heading for the second torch. This one had the sensory mines that the man warned them about. They took down the defense towers and then slowly made their way forward. Just as they got close to the torch, they came under fire.

Shepard swore and ducked down, both she and Garrus overloading their weapons while Nyra pulled out her sniper and began firing. As a shot came for her, she moved diagonally backwards, and realized too late that she ran right into one of the land mines as it beeped and then exploded. Nyra screeched as she was blasted forwards, landing face first into the ground.

Her breathing felt shallow and her right leg felt like it was on fire. She coughed and tried to shift, only to feel more pain lace through her. Her head pounded and she was barely aware of the sound of gunfire coming to an end before two figures were crouched next to her. Their words floated above her head and all she could make out was the sound of their voices above the ringing in her ears and she felt the beginnings of a headache as Atteran stirred frantically in her mind.

Her hearing slowly started to return as the pain decreased and she realized that Shepard had given her some medigel. She coughed, and the feeling sent icy hot tendrils through her lungs.

“Nyralyn, are you still with us?” Shepard called out.

“Ngh…” Nyra groaned.

/Nyra, cast a healing spell./ Atteran’s sharp voice said in her mind, compelling her to obey. She felt her fingertips tingle and her lips moved softly as she whispered the words that would cast Cure Wounds. It took a moment, but then the rest of her pain floated away and she felt her breathing return to normal.

“Nyra?” Garrus questioned.

“I’m alive,” she murmured.

“Good, if you’re able, we need to get moving. Just be careful and perhaps try to stay out of combat until we can get Chackwas to take a look at you,” Shepard said. “Your armor is in pretty bad shape.”

“Fantastic. Maybe one of these batarians has armor I can wear until we can get me something better?” Nyra asked as she rolled over, hissing as her partly damaged armor crunched against her leg.

“That might work,” Shepard responded as she held out a hand to the other woman.

Nyra took the hand and allowed Shepard to help her to her feet, hissing slightly as the metal of her armor shifted. “Yeah, definitely want to replace this,” she grumbled as she followed the two of them into the base to shut down the second torch.

While they fought, Nyra made sure to stay mostly hidden, popping out once in a while to shoot with her sniper and it wasn’t long before they’d cleared the building. While Shepard moved to go shut down the torch, Nyra went around to the bodies, looking for armor that would work. Once she found some, she sat down on a crate and began to change into the armor.

“Nyra, I have to ask, what was that back there?” Garrus suddenly asked as he walked up.

“Hmm? Back where?” she glanced up at him.

“Outside, when you were on the ground. Your fingers moved and started to glow.”

“Oh...that was a healing spell.”

He gave her a blank look, confusion clear on his face. “What’s a spell?”

“It’s um...magic. Hard to explain. But I can’t use it too often without getting rest as casting can be exhausting.”

“Nyra, are you saying you have magic?” Shepard asked as she walked up, seeming confused.

The drow finished putting on the armor and stood, stretching a bit to see how it fit. It wasn’t perfect, but it would do in a pinch. “Yes. I do. Where I come from, lots of people can learn how to use magic. Not everyone does. Kind of like biotics, accept that some people who aren’t born with magic can learn to use it with proper time and study.”

“Interesting. Do you know if you could teach others?”

“Maybe...I have never taught anyone else before, and my knowledge of magic casting is limited only to the spells I’ve learned. But I really don’t think it wise to teach others. Can you imagine the chaos if people were casting spells in a world already filled with biotics, technology, and guns? A lot of people could die, and I don’t want that to be on my conscience.”

Shepard nodded. “I suppose that makes sense. I wouldn’t want that either. Anyway, if you’re ready, let’s head to the last torch.” Then she turned and jogged back the way they came. Garrus glanced at Nyra a moment before following, leaving the drow to catch up as she clipped her weapons in their usual places on the armor.

. . .

The next torch didn’t have the mines, to which Nyra was infinitely grateful for, and they swept through the base like a well oiled machine. It helped that Nyra and Garrus had experience in combat with each other due to being C-Sec partners. As they were heading towards the exit, they were confronted by some batarians who Shepard was able to convince to leave instead of fight.

Nyra gave the woman a curious look, knowing her history with Batarians and found it interesting that she was willing to let them go. She didn’t raise a fuss about it though because they had bigger concerns as the three of them headed to the main base.

The base was guarded by cannons which both Nyra and Garrus set about helping to get rid of as Shepard made sure to dodge the rockets before they went inside. They were just exiting a stairwell when they were set upon by rocket drones and more batarians. Garrus and Nyra focused on the batarians while Shepard focused on the drones, and before long, they’d cleared the main chamber. Then they set out, shooting down any who remained as they headed for the front where Nyra could see a batarian, who was clearly the leader, coming out of one of the rooms.

The batarian addressed Shepard and told her that she had a choice, let him walk out of there alive, or let the bombs go off. Nyra watched Shepard clenching her fists but the woman backed down as she barked out an order for Garrus and Nyra to follow before she turned and raced towards the bombs.

Garrus followed without question, but Nyra hesitated as she spotted the batarian walking away. Gritting her jaw, she pulled out her sniper rifle and cast Hunter’s Mark on the man. While Shepard was focused on the bombs and Garrus on the drones that had appeared, Nyra crouched and set up her shot, aiming at the back of the man’s head.

With the twitch of her finger, her bullet flew through the air, striking through his skull. Before the other batarian with him could react, she’d recast hunter’s mark on him and fired, her bullet again hitting its target. The varren that had been with them growled and started coming towards her, quickly she spun and pulled her blades free, dropping her sniper as she sliced through the varren with ease.

Once they were down, she sheathed her blades and picked up her gun just as Shepard was finished disabling the last charge. Garrus was staring at Nyra slack jawed, the drones long gone. Shepard spotted the bodies of the batarians Nyra had taken down and her gaze went to the woman who focused her attention on the entrance, gun pointed at whoever was coming, only to lower it when she realized it was the man from the first torch.

Shepard and him had a conversation and he asked about his team who Shepard informed him were dead. The man thanked her sadly and then went to the front of the station. While Shepard was speaking to the man, Nyra had headed over to where the hostages had been and let them out. Then Shepard walked over with her arms crossed.

“Why did you shoot him? I asked you to follow me.”

“With all due respect, Shepard, if he had gotten away, I don’t know if he’d ever be found again. Besides, he was a racist asshole and put the lives of innocent people at risk over something as silly as colonizing worlds that his people didn’t even claim. Besides, you two had the bombs covered, and I was able to put him down without endangering anyone.”

Shepard opened her mouth to speak but then shut it for a moment. “We could have tried to arrest him.”

“Maybe, or maybe if we tried, he’d get out and kill even more innocents. It wasn’t a risk I was willing to take.”

“I see your point. But next time, be more careful, and follow orders when given. You may be C-Sec, but you are working with me and I don’t need people disobeying my orders.”

“I only disobey orders if I either see a better solution or the orders given are stupid. Your orders weren’t stupid, but I had the capability to put him down, so I did.”

Shepard sighed and ran a hand over her face. “Fine, but only if it doesn’t endanger innocent lives or put the team and mission in danger.”

“Understood,” Nyra said, giving Shepard a nod.

Shepard then looked at Garrus and then back at Nyra. “If we’re done here, then let’s get off this rock. We have an Asari to find.”

“As you say, Commander,” Garrus replied before the three of them left the facility and got back on the Normandy .

Chapter Text

Nyra wasn’t taken on the ground team for Therum, which she was just fine with. While Garrus, Wrex, and Shepard headed out, Nyra found a seat in the mess hall where she sat, messaging Thane. She hadn’t yet told him she’d left the Citadel and didn’t want him to worry for her.

[Hey, Thane!]

[Siha] Came his response a few moments later. [Has something happened? Are you alright?]

[Oh, yeah, I’m fine. I decided to help Commander Shepard hunt down Saren.]

[Is that...is that wise?]

[I don’t know. But I’d rather hunt Saren then be hunted. I’m not about to sit back and just let him take me.]

There was a pause. [Where are you headed?]

[Right now we’re on Therum, retrieving an Asari scientist. After that, I’m not sure. I heard we have leads for both Feros and Noveria.]

[Noveria? Interesting…]

Nyra frowned. [What’s so interesting?]

[I have a contract to fulfill on Noveria. If you happen to journey there while I’m working, perhaps we could meet up. I would...enjoy seeing you in person.]

Nyra blinked and stared at the message. He wanted to see her? She couldn’t help a small smile and she felt a warmth begin to spread through her body. [I’d love that! Perhaps then you could explain to me why you keep calling me Siha, and who Arashu is.]

There was another pause and she assumed he was probably chuckling. [It’s a deal. I’ll send you the information on where I’m staying in case you get the chance.]

[Thanks, Thane.] She paused as there came the voices of Shepard and the others from the CIC, right before the comms flared to life and Shepard told everyone to meet in the conference room. [I gotta go, talk to you later.]

[May Armonkira help you on your hunt, Siha.]

Nyra smiled and then shut off her Omnitool before heading to the meeting.

Nyra sat in one of the chairs in silence, both her legs and arms crossed, leaning back as she listened to the conversation. They discussed Liara and her mother, and then Liara volunteered to peer into Shepard’s mind.

Nyra sucked in her cheeks. She hadn’t been made aware of Shepard having strange visions placed upon her memory. Shepard hadn’t mentioned it. Not that Nyra expected her to, but she knew Chakwas had been studying her medical records to try helping her and had told the Commander bits and pieces of the information. Nyra assumed she only told Shepard about her condition and how eventually she would die -- to simplify it. She, as everyone knew her, would cease to exist, traded in for Atteran, the illithid in her brain.

As she watched Liara meld with Shepard, she felt Atteran stir, having sensed the Asari’s powers.

No, don’t you dare. Nyra chided, knowing the illithid wanted to snoop.

/We can learn more about both of them./

To hells you won’t. I might very well end up unconscious if you do so.

Atteran went silent and before she knew it, she was flung into the meld. Images flashed across her vision too fast for her to make anything out, at least until she saw a being that looked like a giant squid. Just as quickly as they’d merged, Atteran and Nyra were jolted from the memories with such force that Nyra yelped and fell off the chair.

Everyone but Shepard and Liara glanced over just as Liara was stepping away from the Commander. Liara mentioned how she couldn’t figure out what she saw, but it had been bad, and now she was exhausted. Then the asari took her leave shortly before everyone was dismissed.

Nyra sat on the floor for a moment, her mind reeling as she tried to sort through the memories she’d just been subjected to. She wasn’t really paying any attention to what was going on until a pale hand appeared in her field of vision.

“You okay there?” Shepard asked.

Nyra looked at the hand offered and took it, getting to her feat. She shook her head. “Just a little overwhelmed by my thoughts. I’ll be fine,” she half-lied. “Shepard, when we get to Noveria, I’d like to go meet with a friend. They’re going to be on the planet for their job, but I don’t know how long that will be.”

Shepard looked at her and then smiled. “Sure, if we have time, you have my permission. We’re going to head back to the Citadel first though, we have a few errands to run before we head to either Noveria or Feros.”

Nyra nodded, understanding. Much as she wanted to see Thane, she understood that logic. No one knew the full state of the other two leads, if they’d be able to even get supplies, so it was best to try stalking up when they could. Not to mention Nyra remembered they’d stopped on a few dozen planets before Therum while on their way, leading to a list of various quests and errands. She didn’t know the full extent of them all, but she did know that some of them required a trip to the Citadel.

Shepard then waved for her to shoo. “I have to contact the council,” she said, giving Nyra a slight smile.

“Alright, thanks Shepard,” she said.

“No problem.”

Then she headed down toward the mess hall where she grabbed a protein bar before taking the elevator to the cargo bay so she could hang out with Garrus. Per usual since they’d joined Shepard’s crew, he was working on the Mako from under the vehicle. He seemed particularly annoyed today, grumbling about Geth troopers and Shepard being a crazy driver.

Nyra walked over and plopped herself on one of the crates nearby, munching on her snack. “I take it Shepard decided to run into some geth?” she asked.

He grunted his response. “That woman is crazy.”

Nyra laughed. “Takes one to know one,” she teased.

He then rolled out from under the Mako and fixed her with a friendly glare. “I am not crazy.”

“Mmm, what about that time you chased a poor asari halfway across the presidium because you thought she was kidnapping a child?”

“In my defense, the asari was acting suspicious,” he replied as he rolled back under the vehicle.

“Or that time when you decided it was a good idea to go swimming in one of the lakes on the Presidium, in your armor.”

“I was drunk!”

“Or the time when you tried to bring me to the nurse after you realized I hadn't slept in a week.”

“Alright, point taken. But still, you aren’t like any other race on the Citadel, anything related to you is a new experience,” he pointed out, rolling out from under the vehicle to give her a look as he grabbed another tool.

She sighed. “I suppose you have a point there,” she said before she fell silent, swinging her legs back and forth as she thought about what transpired during the debriefing.

She grimaced as the images flashed once more through her mind, as if Atteran was just as confused as her and wanted to figure out what they meant. She understood that the squid things were Reapers, Shepard had mentioned that before Nyra had joined the crew. She also figured out that this was a message of destruction.

She figured that out with some help from Atteran, who seemed to be sorting through the information. It was incomplete though. Whatever Shepard had in her memory was much more complicated then the snippets Nyra had managed to snag. Perhaps she’d ask Shepard about them, perhaps not. She hadn’t told anyone on board about her mind-abilities, and she’d asked Chakwas not to share.

True to her word, the doctor had kept silent, only telling Shepard that Nyra was living with a ticking time-bomb in her head. She hadn’t told Shepard much more than that as Nyra had asked her not to reveal more than was needed. If Shepard wanted to know, she’d have to ask, and Nyra had to be willing to share.

Nyra then glanced up as the elevator began to make noise before Shepard stepped out and spotted the two C-Sec officers, walking over.

“What are you two up to?”

Nyra hummed, tipping her head. “Just pestering my partner while he fixes the Mako,” she said.

“I see. You two must be close,” she said, glancing between the turian, who was still under the Mako, and Nyra.

She shrugged. “More like we put up with each other’s shenanigans. We’ve only known each other for about a year. He’s one of the best snipers I know.”

“Don’t sell yourself short, Nyra, you’re pretty good yourself,” the turian responded.

“If you say so. But I also have the advantage of being much older than you.”

Shepard looked at the drow. “You’ve mentioned your advanced age before, how old are you?”

She tapped her chin a moment as she recalled, counting in for before she arrived in this world. “In earth years I suppose I’d be around 66. I don’t know my age by galactic standards. Where I come from, time is pretty much universal and goes by the same time frame as that of earth.”

“Interesting. Do all people of your species live long?”

“Yeah. If nothing kills us prematurely, we have a lifespan of about 900 years.”

“Oh…” Shepard fell silent for a moment and Nyra could tell she knew about the part of her condition that essentially meant her death. “So, what’s C-Sec like? Any special cases?” she asked, changing the subject, casting a glance at Garrus.

Nyra noticed the look the Commander gave her partner. Smiling to herself, she slid off the crate. “I’m going to get some coffee. I’m sure Garrus has plenty more stories to tell then I do,” she said, pointing her thumb at the turian before heading up, leaving the two to talk.

Chapter Text

Thane crouched over the kitchen counter of an apartment of Port Hanshan on Noveria, sipping his tea while he worked on studying his target. He was very good at his job, but Noveria presented it’s own sort of challenge with there being lots of businesses, corporations and lots of politics that had to do with any sort of transaction. Not to mention their extreme security at the port hanger, regardless of who entered. Currently, the assassin was here under the guise of being a businessman looking at what Noveria had to offer, when in truth he was hunting. He wasn’t a big fan of the planet with its extremely cold climate, but he went where the jobs took him.

He glanced at his Omnitool for a moment, reading over his messages to see if he received anything new. He paused as he spotted the ones from the strange purple skinned woman whose gaze pulled him in. She’d been messaging him every now and then since she’d joined Shepard’s team, keeping him up to date and asking him if he knew anything about Saren’s wareabouts. No matter how much he searched, he couldn’t find much else other than what she’d learned already. The rogue spectre was really hard to track, despite Thane’s skill.

He sighed softly, feeling the sudden scratch of his lungs and he let out a soft cough. His thoughts flew toward her once again. Something about her drew him in like no one before, besides maybe Irkah. He couldn’t put his finger on what it was exactly, but he knew he found her fascinating. She was tough and smart. She would rather be the hunter than the prey, even with her deteriorating condition. She hadn’t told him all of it, but he knew enough to know she was dying like he was. He felt it would be a shame if she died. The world would be a darker place if she passed on — at least that’s how he felt.

As he was thinking about her, his vision suddenly blurred and suddenly he found himself in the citadel. One of the market districts by the look of it. He wondered how he could be here. This wasn’t a memory, at least not one of his own, he realized as he spotted a familiar Turian — Nyra’s partner — ahead. 

He realized the Turian was browsing one of the weapon stores, his back toward the person behind him who turned and headed to a different part of the market, seeming to browse around the store fronts. Thane quickly realized he was seeing through the eyes of Nyra — however impossible — as she browsed for supplies.

The area she was walking through was more tightly packed with dimmer lighting, almost as if a back-alley where possibly more shady items were traded and sold.

Suddenly he heard a sound behind her in this memory. She spun around her hands reaching for her daggers.

“Who’s there!?” She called out.

No response. Thane could tell she was on edge.

As she turned back to resume her search, two Krogan and an Asari blocked her path. They said nothing to her but Thane could tell they were probably mercenaries or maybe lackies of Saren’s.

Nyra probably realized that as well as she yanked her daggers out and threw them at the krogan. Neither flinched as before they could even hit, both of them were wrapped in blue flames. Biotics. She swore in a language that didn’t translate for him, and he realized it must be a word from her native tongue.

She started to back up, but the krogans moved quickly. Before she could get far, they were on her, grabbing her arms. She fought back, struggling. She tried to scream, to warn somebody, but then there came a great pain in the back of her head as if someone smashed a stone into her skull before her world went black. “Thane” was the last word to leave her lips as she slipped into unconsciousness before Thane was suddenly thrust out of the vision. 

“Siha?” he questioned aloud, blinking as he was once more found himself in the apartment on Noveria. What he had just seen had been so vivid, he wondered if he’d imagined it. A part of him, the part of him that was a spiritual being, told him it wasn’t. That Nyra, his Siha, had been kidnapped.

Worrying his hands together for a moment, he then began to type rapidly into his omnitool, trying to search up information. After a couple of hours, he managed to find the contacts of one Garrus Vakarian and one Commander Shepard. He first tried for the turian, knowing that he had been with Nyra shortly before her capture.

[Garrus Vakarian, it has come to my attention that something may have happened to a...mutual friend of ours. Please respond back as soon as possible] He tried to be vague, testing the waters, and staying calm outwardly, even while he felt jittery inside.

There was a pause before there came a response. [Who is this, and how did you get my contact?]

[It doesn’t matter who I am. What matters is our friend could be in danger.]

[And how do I know you aren’t trying to scam me?]

[If I had meant to scam you, I would have used a different method. Please, our friend is in danger. If my suspicions are correct, she has been kidnapped.]

There was a pregnant pause when it seemed that either the turian was in shock, or was more likely running to tell the Commander. [Is this about Nyralyn?]

[Yes.]

[Crap. Okay...what do you know?]

[There was...two krogan and an asari. I have no idea where they took her.]

[Okay...do you have any reason why they would kidnap her? Or who they are?]

It was Thane’s turn to pause, thinking of a response. He knew why they were likely after her, but he knew it wasn’t his place to tell. She had trusted him with her secret with her roommate and doctor. He would not want to break that trust. [I have a theory. But it is not my place to tell. Nyralyn is a very private person.]

[That’s for sure. Alright, what else do you know?]

[Not much. Not yet. Hearing that she is indeed missing has confirmed my suspicions that she was kidnapped. If my next suspicions are correct, tell your Commander to hasten her hunt for Saren….If the Commander wishes to speak in person after I have gathered more information, meet me on Noveria at the mezzanine of Port Hanshan.]

[Got it. Good luck in your search.]

[Good luck in your hunt.]

Satisfied, Thane pulled from the message and tried to return to his work before the vision had come. He found it hard to concentrate, his mind more concerned on the wellbeing and whereabouts of Nyra.

Clasping his hands together for a moment as he closed his eyes and offered a prayer up to Arashu to watch over and protect Nyra. Then he pulled up his omnitool, deciding to find out more about Nyra’s captures. He was determined to find them and rescue her from Saren’s clutches before she ended up killed or worse, consumed by her parasite.

Nyralyn by Frostbite711

Chapter Text

A throbbing pain in the back of her head carried her into consciousness, making her groan. She knew without asking that it wasn’t Atteran’s doing, but some external force. When she opened her eyes, she realized she was in a dim room...a cage of some sort. Similar but different compared to the ones on the Nautilus.

Panic overtook her for a moment as she thought she was back in that awful ship. That she was going to live through another insertion, or worse, have the process accelerated like what she and Lae’zel had seen. Then she realized the room looked different. Darker. Not a hint of the reddish fleshy look that had been present in the Nautilus. Instead she was surrounded by brown walls of metal.

It then took her a moment to remember the events that transpired before being knocked out. A whispered Siha echoing in her head right as she was being kidnapped. Kidnapped. She felt the blood drain from her face and she began to struggle against her cage, even though it was pointless.

Atteran, what’s going on?

The mind flayer stirred in her subconscious, sounding tired and groggy. /Saren’s men got us. I regret I didn’t have the strength to stop them...I was more focused on boosting a message./

What message?

/I...I’m not completely sure. I think it was a warning to someone. Your mind was trying to reach Thane. I helped it along./

Reach Thane? What do you mean? Why?

/It’s hard to explain. I think there’s more to our situation then we know. There’s more to you then we know./

That doesn’t help, Atteran.

/I know. I’m sorry./

Their apology hit her like a train wreck. She’d never thought she’d ever hear a mind flayer apologize. She sat in silence for a bit before she felt something like prodding claws try to latch onto her skull. She hissed and she felt rather than heard Atteran letting out a growl of their own as they fought back against the intrusion. The claws pulled back as if they’d been burned and she felt a heavy presence looming around her. It seemed curious but also annoyed and wary.

As she was thinking that, she heard the tell tale ting of clawed feet scratching on metal floors before a figure she’d only seen in pictures stepped forward into the light before her.

“Saren,” she hissed, baring her teeth at him.

He didn’t seem to care about her response but watched her in silence. “You put up quite a challenge for me. I wanted you to come quietly, to come here and submit.”

“Like hells I would,” she growled.

He regarded her for a moment. “It has been made apparent that you are resilient. No matter. Eventually, you will see.”

“See what?”

“That siding with the reapers is the best way to live past their oncoming arrival.”

She felt a sense of dread hit her. A dread that lay much deeper she thought, like something from her nightmares would come to pass. She didn’t know why this dread was so deep, aside from maybe being linked to that memory she saw in Shepard’s mind. “I would never side with the Reapers! They murdered an entire civilization!”

“Murder is a harsh word. They prefer ‘cleansing’ the universe.”

Nyra spit on her cage door. “That’s disgusting. I can’t believe you would side with them. I heard you were a great spectre long ago. Now I feel pity for what you’ve become,” she said, her eyes flicking to note the wires and metal bits attached to his body.

“The Reapers need me, need us. I’m aware they indoctrinate, but I’m still useful, therefore I will not be controlled.”

She felt an itching in the back of her mind, like something from long ago was trying to surface, but she couldn’t quite grasp it. Then she felt Atteran let out a panting breath and they seemed to relax in her mind. 

/I’m sorry, Nyra. I’m still too weak./

She wondered what they meant by that, but barely had a moment before those claws she’d felt earlier pierced into her mind, sharp and insistent, pulling, scraping and cutting. She let out a screech as memories flashed in her mindseye, too fast for her to make out. Then those claws pulled away again, almost as if contemplative.

A booming voice that echoed around her and shook her to her bones then spoke. This creature is much older than we were led to believe. I have not felt her kind for a long time. They should all have passed in the previous cycle.

Saren, who was still outside paused and glanced up before meeting her gaze.

“Interesting. What about the strange power in her mind? What allows her to use her thoughts like the Asari?”

I feel it can do much more than that. It is an ancient being. Much older than myself. But it has altered from what it was. Mutated. This is what the cycles prevent. The eventual chaos that organics create.

They are both useful to us as they are, but be wary. There is much I was not able to sense.

Saren now gave her a more curious glance, his mandibles twitching outward. “We will head for Virmire. Matriarch Benezzia should be on her mission,” he snapped, glancing at a Geth nearby. “Don’t kill this one, she is useful,” he pointed at Nyra.

She growled at him and smashed a hand against the cage, hissing slightly against the sting of the glass on her fist. It didn’t break.

Atteran, what does that voice mean by ancient?

Atteran was silent, seeming to try to sort their thoughts before responding. /I am not entirely sure. My memories only go so far back as when I was inserted into your skull. But yours...that Reaper drudged up some old memories, despite my efforts to keep it from our shared mind. Allow me to show you./

. . .

Then the world around her melted and she found herself looking at an unfamiliar skyline, metal buildings that looked like Prothean tech rising high into the air. Creatures of all different shapes and sizes walked around on edge, weapons in hand, looking toward the sky. Most of them, she realized, looked similar to her. Not all of them were purple -- some were dark blues or black, much like the drow from Faerûn, except their eye colors were much more varied.

The memory had her turning her head, focusing on the person ahead of her. Hajuin, she recalled, her father and her instructor who taught her how to fight. He was a Prothean. An actual prothean, not one of the races who had been brought into the empire. He was talking about his squad which had been struggling to fight off the Reapers.

Then the memories skipped forward to the Reapers attack on her homeworld. She remembered flying through space, trying to both avoid the Reapers and find her brothers. She’d promised her father after he died she’d look out for them. Before she even reached them, her ship was hit by a blast and its shield broke with one hit. Her ship spun in the air and the last thing she remembered was smashing her head on her console before she fell unconscious.

. . .

She gasped as she was pulled from the memories, her past she’d forgotten about hitting her like a storm. She remembered everything. She wasn’t a drow. She was something else that looked like a drow. Eamonic. One of the many races the Protheans conquered and brought into their Empire. Of course, she wasn’t alive when the Protheans had done so.

She remembered her parents, a Prothean named Hajuin, and an Emonic named Falseth. Her father died before her 43rd year. Her mother died after her twin brothers had been born, when she was 15.

She remembered the Reaper war, how quickly and utterly they were decimated and how she’d been separated. She didn’t know how she ended up in Faerûn, but if she had to guess, it was some sort of portal. Somehow she managed to bypass that 50,000 years since her people were killed. She assumed her ship somehow brought her to the Astral Planes, unconscious, but not dead. She recalled that the drow she’d been sort of “adopted” by had found her there while travelling, but when she’d woken, she hadn’t remembered anything from her life before.

She ran her hands through her hair, soaking up her memories, remembering all the good and the bad times. Remembering her two brothers whose eyes had taken on the golden glow of their father while their skin had been dark blue with bits of a carapace strewn throughout like armor. She smiled at the memories of the two of them. They had both been assigned to be placed into cryostasis when the Reapers attacked Veriden. She wondered if they survived. She remembered they certainly hadn’t been sent into Faerûn. Or at least she hoped not. She didn’t think they would have survived very long there.

Pieces of her past began to click into place. The reason her Mind Flayer dreams had been so odd making sense. Eamonic usually had one true soulmate their entire lives. Their soulmate was said to be the one they would be able to reproduce healthy children with. Dreams were usually the key to discovering their Soulmate. They were always different for each Eamonic.

Nyra had been 215 by the time she’d been placed in stasis. She’d never once dreamt of her soulmate, which was odd for her people as usually they started dreaming of them much earlier on. She hadn’t dreamt of hers until Atteran had been bonded to her.

She realized now that those Illithid dreams were much more than just fantasies. She’d begun to realize that after meeting Thane himself. Her heart clenched and she closed her eyes, covering her face as best she could with her hands. Thane was her soulmate. For all she might never have dreamed of him, or even met him if it hadn’t been for Atteran.

She still had no idea how she traveled through space and time to Faerûn and then back here, but now she knew it might have been her destiny to return to the universe of her birth.

Closing her eyes briefly, she took a deep breath, focusing once again on her soulmate. She recalled that soulmates with a bond, particularly a strong one, could be alerted if one of them was in danger. She also remembered how Atteran told her they’d sent along a message to Thane.

Atteran, you said you sent a message to Thane?

/Yes. I sensed the alert your mind was trying to send. As you and I now know, it is part of your ever growing bond with him. If I were not here, he would not have gotten the message. I just hope he realizes what it is and is able to do something about it before it is too late./

Agreed. I don’t know how to thank you, Atteran.

/There is no need, Nyra. We are in this together. As curious as I am about the Reaper’s words about my kind, your life is more important than my curiosity. If someday we find a way to separate the two of us, I will search for the answers without risking your life./

But, Atteran, I’m curious too. It spoke as if it knew what you were. What if you are from this world?

/That is a possibility. I sense similarities to myself in this machine...but I do not want to be controlled. This being is stronger than I am at my current power. The only way I could rival it is if I didn’t have to worry about your well being. I do not want you to die, Nyra. I have grown quite fond of you./

Well, thank you. I didn’t know you felt that way.

/To be honest, neither did I. It surprised me. But I do not regret it./

Nyra smiled and could feel Atteran buzzing happily in her mind. Well, should we try to find a way out of here?

/We can certainly try. Perhaps the geth or remaining Organics on this ship could help...aside from Saren. I think the Reaper has its claws too deep in his mind./

I agree.

With that thought in mind, Nyra closed her eyes and the two of them slowly started to figure out a way to escape.

Chapter Text

Thane sat in the mezzanine, away from the exit to the rest of the port in order to watch people come and go. He opted to stay in a darker part of the room as he waited for the Commander to arrive. She’d said she wanted to meet. She also said she’d be on Noveria in a couple days after his initial message to Vakarian, and Thane had been down every day both preparing to take down his target as well as speak with the human.

It was just as he was about to go into meditation when his gaze caught on three figures entering the Mezzanine. One human, one asari, and the turian Thane recognized as Garrus Vakarian. He watched them in silence to see what they did.

Shepard looked around the room before her eyes seemed to lock onto him. She inclined her head toward the two behind her who nodded and followed at a distance as she approached the Drell.

“I noticed your gaze from across the room. You don’t seem like the type to be here often.”

He allowed a small smile to appear on his face. “You are correct about that. I’m meeting someone,” he said, casting a glance at her companions, taking in their features.

“Oh? Business partner?”

“Of a sort. We agreed to meet up. We have a meeting to discuss a mutual friend,” he said, remembering to stay cryptic. Who knew if Saren had any eyes and ears in this place. Better to be safe than sorry.

Then the Commander sat down across from him. “You must be the one who contacted Garrus,” she said, lowering her voice as she gestured towards the turian.

“I am,” he said with a slight nod, after a moment of hesitation to study the group.

“Do you have any information?”

“I am still trying to gather some. The ones who took her are very hard to track. Although, I can give you one thing I was able to figure out. Some of Saren’s men took her.”

“Are you sure?”

He fixed an unblinking gaze on her. “Yes.”

“Damnit!” Shepard shouted, slamming her fist on the table. Then she placed her head in her hands. “Why would he want her?”

“I do not know. I only know she was taken by them. Wherever Saren is, she’s bound to be. I have a feeling he would keep her nearby.”

Shepard sighed and nodded. “I guess we just have more incentive to find Saren now.”

“My mother might have some information. We should hurry,” the Asari said.

“Perhaps. It’s worth a shot at the least,” Garrus responded.

“One problem, we need to get a garage pass,” Shepard said.

“If I may, that turian over there can help you,” Thane spoke up, giving a nod to the turian in question across the room.

“Oh, thanks….”

“Tannor Naura,” he said, giving one of his aliases. It’s not that he didn’t trust Shepard, but he didn’t feel it was wise to reveal who he was, especially on Noveria while on the job. “If it wouldn’t be too much to ask, I would like to accompany you to find our...mutual friend once you have concluded your business here.”

Shepard looked at him for a moment. “I don’t have a problem with that. It might be easier to find her with your help anyway.”

He gave her a nod, glancing behind her as he suddenly saw his target enter the mezzanine. “I won’t keep you. I have some other business to attend to,” he said.

She nodded in return and stood before heading over to the turian he’d pointed out. His gaze focused elsewhere, watching his target. He would have to make his move soon if he was to leave with the Commander and her crew.

Chapter Text

They worked slowly, meticulously. Ever wary of the watchful presence of both the Geth and the Reaper that surrounded them. Carefully, Atteran was able to start sending signals to the organics, encouraging them to come. To help them escape. Nothing big, nothing noticeable. Slowly frying the circuits and locks on the cage that held them. All the while, the ship was moving towards its destination, Virmire.

The Reaper moved fast compared to most ships, and as it went through the relays, there was almost no evidence of the acceleration from the inside. Nyra and Atteran only became aware that they were on Virmire once the Geth started moving around outside their cell.

/I doubt they would be letting us onto the surface of Virmire unless Saren manages to break the hold Sovereign has over him. The Reaper’s mental claws are much stronger than he thinks they are. Saren will not be relinquished easily./ Atteran mused.

Are you trying to get Saren to help us?

/No. Merely just an observation. I do not even have to pry to notice how much control the Reaper has. This Reaper is like an Elderbrain. I fear for the fact that there are many more like this one, and many of them are stronger than Sovereign./

Agreed. It is not a good sign.

They spent the next few days quietly in their cell, Atteran protecting Nyra from indoctrination. By now, the illithid had started calling itself a “he” and he informed Nyra he would prefer if she referred to him as a he rather than an it. She didn’t mind, it made it a bit easier on her. It also helped that his voice had slowly changed from an offshoot of her own to something deeper...more masculine.

They were not brought onto Virmire’s surface. It seemed that when Saren attempted it. Sovereign made him think otherwise, made him change his mind. Nyra wasn’t sure what the machine wanted with her and Atteran, but they’d finally managed to get their cell unlocked so they could escape when the time was right.

For a while, nothing happened, and then Saren’s Virmire base was attacked and Sovereign became distracted helping Saren deal with the threat, even while holding back and remaining passive. Nyra pushed on the glass that contained her, smiling as the door opened with a quiet hiss.

The geth onboard didn’t seem to notice, their backs turned, before she lifted a hand, tapping into Atteran’s mind flayer power which he’d been slowly building up. The two geth’s heads crunched like tin cans and she walked past them, grabbing the sniper rifle and a pistol they had on her way past them.

She hadn’t been wearing armor when she’d been kidnapped, but she had been wearing her weapons. They were gone now. Even though she was upset at losing them, there wasn’t much she could do about it.

As she passed by another group of geth, she lifted a hand, throwing them over the edge of the balcony, their robotic groans echoing in the chambers.

Where are you going? The voice boomed in her head as Sovereign became aware of her actions.

She gritted her teeth. “Getting out of here you piece of shit,” she growled.

Foolish organic. There is no escape. We are inevitable.

“Eat my ass, Sovereign,” she responded, pulling her gun up and shooting at the oncoming geth and now the husks which had begun to awaken. She hissed at them as she made her way to one the exits, shooting and throwing any enemies who came for her.

You ready, Atteran? She asked as soon as she spotted an exit.

/As ready as I’ll ever be. Let’s go./ He said before she leaped off the balcony she was on, heading for the exit and trusting Atteran to use his telekinetic powers to help levitate them. She felt a straining in her mind as she fell quickly out of Sovereign, but eventually, she felt herself slow.

Before long, she found herself outside on a lush tropical world. Her nose prickled with the smell of sea water and nature.

/I’m...losing strength. Unless I intend to expand over your mind./

Alright, thank you Atteran. She responded to him as her descent sped up fast enough that when she hit the waves on the beach, she had to roll to help break her fall.

Once she stood back up on her feet, she suddenly heard the sounds of geth dropping nearby, splashing water and sand in their wake.

She glanced around her and narrowed her eyes as they prepared to attack. Before they could, she tapped into her magic, something she hadn’t touched in a while, and cast spike growth. Within seconds, the ground erupted in spikes, shooting upwards and impaling the geth.

She heard distantly, the groaning of Sovereign as its quarry escaped while she began running further inland, away from its sight. It didn’t have long to dwell on that before there came the tell tale signs of ships firing on it. As she continued running, she eventually came across a gate guarded by Geth. Gritting her teeth, she raced forward and began taking them out, opening the gate so she could get to the otherside without jumping from a story up.

It wasn’t long past that gate when she came across what looked like a camp or outpost of some kind not run by geth, but by Salarians. As she slowed her approach, cautious about them being indoctrinated, they lifted their guns at her.

“Stop right there!” one of them called, stepping forward. She could tell this one was the leader by how he stood and how the others regarded him.

She lifted her hands, and dropped her guns in a sign of peace. If she had wanted to hurt them, she could do so without the guns.

“Who are you?”

She lifted her chin and looked at them. “I should say the same to you. I haven’t seen anyone but geth and indoctrinated servants for the last….how long has it been? Days? Weeks? It’s hard to keep track in a cell.”

The lead salarian narrowed his eyes. “We are part of the STG.”

She blinked and then nodded. “Alright. My name is Nyralyn Kolith, I am a C-Sec officer who was kidnapped by Saren’s men.”

They gave her a wary look. “How did you escape?”

She smirked. “I’m a lot tougher than I look. Saren underestimated me when he took me.”

They said nothing for a moment before the leader turned as a message came in. He said something in response before nodding. Eventually he focused back on her. “Until we have further proof you aren’t one of Saren’s agents, we’re going to have to detain you.”

“So long as it’s not in a pod-like cage, I’ll be fine.”

The leader eyed her but said nothing, gesturing for some of the salarians to capture her. She lowered her arms and put up no fight, making no attempt to grab the guns she’d dropped. Even though she hated to be disarmed, she knew it wouldn’t be wise to reach for them in case that made them attack her.

They brought her into one of the tents, put shackles on her wrists and then two salarians stood outside. The other salarians she could see from her temporary “cell” either stood guard or rushed around urgently. She eventually found herself falling into meditation, able to relax just a bit since she was able to get in a more comfortable position, and not being surrounded by geth or a creature she and her people had been fighting so many years ago.

As she mediated, there came the whirr of an engine accompanied by the splashing of tires on the watered sand. She pulled herself from the mediation and looked up, a smile appearing on her face at the sight of the mako. She stood to her feet, but stayed in the tent, watching as the vehicle stopped and three figures stepped out. From this distance, she had trouble figuring out who it was at first until she recognized the purple hair of Shepard and the typical blue armor of Garrus.

“Shepard! Garrus!” she called, waving her cuffed hands at them.

At first they didn’t seem to hear, but then Garrus noticed. He tapped Shepard on the shoulder and pointed at Nyra.

A grin lay on her face as Shepard and Garrus came over with the salarian leader, he was telling them about her arrival no doubt. As they got close enough, both of them grinned back and gave her hugs. “Thank goodness you’re alive,” Shepard said.

Nyra laughed. “I’m glad to be alive.”

“How did you escape?” Garrus asked.

Nyra tipped her head and gave them a mischievous look as the salarian, Captain Kirrahe, undid her cuffs. She rubbed her wrists as it came off. “I have my ways. I wasn’t going to stay a captive of that Reaper and Saren forever.”

The two shared a look. “How do we know you’re not indoctrinated?”

Nyra sighed. “That’s going to be a long story.”

“And probably one best saved for another time,” Kirrahe interrupted.

“Right, okay,” Shepard said, turning to the salarian. “I suppose we might as well do what we can here first and discuss this later. Saren’s facility needs to be taken care of.”

“Agreed,” replied the Captain as she began to lead the way.

Garrus was about to follow but then stopped, glancing at Nyra. “Joker’s landing the ship. I should let you know, you have a friend on board who has been helping us try to find you.”

She gave him a confused look. Kali? She wondered. “Friend?”

He fixed his gaze on her. “Yes. A drell by the name of Tannor Nuara. He said he was your friend”

She stared at him, even more confused. “I don’t have a friend by that name.”

His eyes widened. “Then who-”

He broke off as the Normandy appeared in the clearing, gently landing near the Mako. Garrus took up a spot on the side of Nyra, his gun suddenly in his hands. He said nothing, but she could tell he was on edge and was about to demand that this Tannor person tell him everything.

The two C-Sec agents stood quietly, waiting as the cargo hold door lowered and the crew started stepping out to get some fresh air. “There’s our guy,” he said, nodding as a flash of familiar green scales caught her attention.

Her eyes widened and she took a step forward. “Thane?” she said softly in both shock and disbelief.

As his name was said, the drell turned and their eyes met. Emerald on violet. A smile twitched at the corners of his mouth and before she could stop herself, she launched herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and laughing.

He stumbled a bit in surprise at her enthusiastic greeting and one of his hands wrapped around her back while the other stroked her hair. “Siha, you are safe.”

She smiled at the nickname. At this point in time, she didn’t care what it meant, she loved it. She then pulled away just enough to look at his face, but still be in his arms. “How...why are you here?”

“I...saw something. I don’t know how to explain. I had a feeling you were kidnapped.”

Silent tears began to snake their way down her face. He watched and gently, one of his hands moved to wipe them away. One of her own moved to gently trace the lines of his face, his gills. “I do. It’s part of who I am.”

“Oh?” He gave her a curious look.

A goofy smile split her face. “I’ll explain later, but for now…” she then leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips. Glad that he was here, that he had come for her.

He went still at the kiss, seeming a bit shocked, but then he relaxed. “Siha,” he murmured before he pulled her close and kissed her deeply. She felt his tongue lightly touch her lips and she didn’t hesitate to let him in.

She made out a light moan as she tasted him: spicy yet tangy, like lemon and sage. Her eyes closed and she got lost in the kiss, feeling her body come to life, her blood becoming liquid fire in her veins. She clung to him with everything she had and eventually they broke the kiss to both breathe.

Their eyes met and identical smiles touched their faces. She could tell he’d enjoyed that as much as she did.

That’s when someone’s throat was cleared and the two of them glanced at the intruder, although they made no move out of each other’s arms.

“If that’s how you greet friends, then what am I?” Garrus said, looking at her with humor in his eyes.

She pulled herself from Thane’s arms and lightly smacked her partner’s shoulder while the drell chuckled in light amusement. “I’m not kissing you, you big dummy. Besides...Thane’s more than a friend. It’s complicated,” she said, holding a hand up to stop questions she knew Garrus had.

“I promise I’ll try to explain everything once this is all over and Saren’s taken care of.”

“I’ll hold you to that, Kolith,” Shepard said as she walked up. She looked at the group gathered on the docking bay door. “Garrus, I want you and Wrex with me to break into Saren’s base. Nyra, you should get suited up. Tali and Liara are going to help Kaidan with the bomb. Ashley is going with Kirrahe’s team.”

“What about us?” Nyra questioned, gesturing to herself and Thane.

Shepard looked at Nyra and then at the drell beside her. “You two are going to be back up in case something goes wrong. Let’s go team!” she said before she turned and with her ground team following, headed to do her job.

Nyra glanced at Thane who shook his head. “Go get ready, Siha. We can speak later.”

“Right,” she responded before she turned and headed for her locker as the docking bay door closed where she took out her armor and began putting it on. This was going to be interesting.

Chapter Text

While the battle waged below and Kaidan prepped the bomb, Nyra paced back and forth fiddling with what appeared to be a necklace, having finished snapping on her armor a few minutes ago. Thane sat on one of the crates, eyes tracking her movement. He was silent for a long time before he got up and walked over to her, grabbing her hands in his and stilling her.

“Calm, Siha. Pacing won’t change this situation.”

Her gaze met his and after a moment she sighed, looking down at their hands. “I know. I just can’t help it.”

“Perhaps it would help if you thought of other things?” he suggested, shifting his hands to lightly grip her arms.

“Perhaps.”

He then nodded to her hands which still clutched her necklace. “I’ve noticed you almost never go anywhere without that. It must be important to you.”

She blinked and looked at it, her expression softening as she ran a delicate finger over it. “It was my mother’s. An heirloom and the only thing I have left of her.”

Thane watched as shadows danced in her eyes as she spoke of her mother. “You must miss her.”

“Terribly. She died giving birth to my brothers,” she responded.

“I’m sorry…”

She shook her head. “That was a long time ago. In another time, another life.” Her gaze seemed to cloud over and she became troubled. Thane lifted a hand and gently traced her jaw line, causing her to focus on him. She smiled at the contact and he felt better just seeing it.

“What was your mother like?”

She closed her eyes for a moment and hummed. “She was kind and gentle. Despite the chaos going on around her, she was like a rock that anchored us. She was very busy, but she always made sure to have time for me when things got hard.”

“She sounds like a wonderful woman.”

“She was.”

“I would have loved to meet her.”

She smiled again. “I’m sure she would have loved to meet you.”

The calm intimacy of the moment was broken when the cargo hold door began to lower, Kaidan exiting with Liara, Tali, and a few other alliance soldiers as they set the bomb down. Nyra and Thane glanced over as they did so, spotting Shepard below with her team.

The woman gave Kaidan a nod, made sure he was set before a message came in. Her already hard expression hardened and she waved for Garrus and Wrex to follow her before they headed off.

A few minutes later, the ramp was lifting as the alliance soldiers headed back onto the ship and the Normandy took off to the sky once more to fight. Shortly after they were in the air, Nyra stiffened and her face contorted in pain.

“Nyra?” He questioned as she backed away from him, her hands messaging her temples.

“Get outta my head,” she hissed, her eyes staring past Thane, almost as if she wasn’t seeing him.

He watched her in concern but didn’t step closer, noting how she was stiff and wound tight like a coiled spring. “Siha,” he tried again after a moment, inching toward her and tentatively putting a hand on her arm.

She suddenly jerked up, snarling and baring her teeth at him, her eyes glowing with a faint orange color. He withdrew quickly just as the orange faded and she blinked, seeing him again.

“Siha?”

She seemed to notice the concerned look on his face and she grimaced. She didn’t say anything to him though as she began walking with purpose to the elevator. Both out of curiosity and concern, he followed.

“What’s the matter? Siha, you’re worrying me,” he said.

She made a face and then sighed, crossing her arms as the elevator made its slow ascension. “I’m sorry, Thane. I don’t mean to worry you. I spent some time inside Sovereign, Saren’s ship which is also a Reaper.”

He stared at her, blinking both of his lids. “That...is concerning,” he settled for, after trying to come up with a response.

She gave him a grim nod. “Sovereign peered into my mind and dredged up old memories. I think it still has a connection to me which I intend to sever. Atteran is too exhausted to be of much help, although I can access his power.”

“Atteran?”

She waved a hand in the air. “The parasite in my brain. We’ve come to a mutual understanding. It’s...really hard to explain, even to someone with the same condition as myself. Anyway, Sovereign just now tried to touch my mind, to try to control it. Luckily, Atteran and I combined had enough strength to kick it out.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“I...I don’t know, not yet. I need to see what’s going on to get a better idea of the situation, and the best place to do that is from the cockpit.”

Thane nodded. “I do think it would be wise for you to perhaps try not to strain yourself. You did after all escape from a Reaper.”

“I know, but you know me, I can’t just sit on my ass and let others do everything. I want to be useful, even if that means distracting Saren or Sovereign.”

He nodded again and looked at her. “Just don’t mistake recklessness for usefulness,” he said as they arrived on the crew deck and they made their way around to the stairs that lead to the CIC.

She sighed. “I know. But I don’t know what else to do.”

“You’ve been through a lot, and you and I both know you weren’t in the best condition before this hunt for Saren started. I know you want to help, but you should rest, Siha. You won’t be of any help to anyone if you overexert yourself.”

She looked up at him. “I can’t rest. Not while Sovereign is nearby. Both Atteran and I are nearing the edge of our ropes. But if we rest, it might very well be able to assert control over myself. I can’t let it do that. I can’t risk hurting the rest of the crew. Perhaps I should have stayed back at the camp,” she said.

“Siha, I won’t let you hurt anyone.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but if I truly was taken over by Sovereign, I doubt you’d be able to stop me.”

“Then what would you suggest?”

She ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t know.”

Suddenly, she touched the comm unit in her ear, listening to what was going on. Her expression hardened. “Kaidan and the others are being overwhelmed by geth,” she explained, heading to the CIC where she walked to the docking bay door. Thane followed behind, noting how she was now a woman on a mission. “Joker, fly near the bomb and open these doors,” she said without waiting for him as she reached on her back for her gun.

“Nyra? What’s going-”

“No time to explain Joker, just do it.”

“Fine,” he responded before he did as she asked.

“What are you going to do?” Thane questioned.

“I’m going to help,” was her answer as the doors opened. She took a couple steps back before racing forward and then leaping off the edge of the ship.

Chapter Text

Her sniper jolted with each shot she took at the geth as she fell. Luckily, Joker had pulled near enough that she didn’t fall far, and didn’t have to tap into the illithid powers. Above her she could hear Thane’s voice vaguely shout in surprise, but she ignored him, intent on helping Kaidan and the others.

As soon as she reached the ground, she rolled and then was back up, shooting again. She then switched her gun to a pistol as it had a faster firing rate and cast Hunter’s Mark to increase her damage and accuracy.

Nyralyn was pretty sure none of the others could tell she’d even cast a spell, after all, they didn’t know anything about this other world she’d been in. She’d never told them. Once she’d reached Tali, Kaidan, and Liara, she noticed them giving her a slight look of surprise, but they didn’t object as she spun around and helped them fight.

The geth were quite numerous and she narrowed her eyes and tried to stay in cover. Liara was throwing out biotics while Tali was shutting them down. Kaidan himself was busy arming the bomb. The geth didn’t let up, even when chatter came over the radio from Shepard and her team. Nyra grit her teeth and then thrust a hand out, digging into her magic as she cast Spike Growth again. She watched as over half the geth got spiked and the rest that were still standing slowed and tried to make their way through the new terrain.

“ Keelah, “ Tali said, blinking at the spikes.

“By the Goddess, where did those come from?” Liara asked, glancing at the others as they finally took down the last geth.

Nyra pursed her lips, continuing to watch the area, on edge as she felt the traces of Sovereign around them and in her mind. “Kaidan, how’s the bomb?” she asked.

“Almost done...and good to go,” he said as he stood and looked at the three woman who all gave a nod to one another.

“Joker, come pick us up, the bomb is ready,” Liara said into her com.

Meanwhile, Kaidan looked at the devastation as the spikes began to disappear while Nyra let go of the spell. He whistled low. “That damage is much more than biotics could achieve,” he said.

“That’s because it’s not biotics. It was a spell,” Nyra said, turning to look at the destroyed geth. She ignored the curious gazes of the others as she took a deep breath and watched the Normandy approach.

“Spells? As in magic? Like in childhood fairy tales?” Kaidan asked.

She glanced at him before heading for the lowered cargo bay door. “That’s correct. Now let’s stop talking and get out of here,” she said. “My head feels like it's going to split in half.”

Once the four of them entered, they were met with Shepard and the rest of the crew who came over. There were hugs, pats on the back, and handshakes spread around. Shepard was beaming and she turned to Nyra after she noticed the woman standing near the back, lightly massaging her head.

“I thought you were supposed to be on the ship, resting.”

“In your exact words, you said I was back up in case something went wrong. Kaidan and the others might have been overwhelmed if it wasn’t for my assistance. There was a lot of geth, and Kaidan was busy making sure the bomb was set so he wasn’t able to help fight.”

Shepard frowned at her. “I suppose you’re correct. But you look exhausted, you should get some sleep…”

“I will...eventually. But Saren and Sovereign need to be stopped.”

Shepard gave her a look and chuckled softly. “You sound like me,” she said.

“I’m being realistic. The Reapers destroyed many civilizations, including but not limited to the Protheans.”

“Hmmm,” Shepard narrowed her eyes. “I wasn’t aware that the information Sovereign told us was projected to the rest of the crew, and I certainly haven’t told anyone else yet.”

Nyra sighed. “It’s a long story. I was a prisoner of Sovereign and Saren for a bit.”

Shepard frowned and was suddenly on edge, her hand reaching for her weapons. The room fell silent, even as the elevator slowly began to descend, as tension began to build between the two women thick enough that everyone else could feel it. Shepard said nothing, but Nyra immediately realized that she thought she was indoctrinated. If it wasn’t for Atteran’s existence, she might very well have been. But perhaps she wouldn’t have even been captured if it wasn’t for the Illithid’s presence.

“Okay, I know what you’re probably thinking. But I’m not indoctrinated. At least, not yet. I have sort of a...protection from it, albeit it’s a very weak protection at the moment,” Nyra said.

“Explain,” Shepard hissed.

Nyra blinked, surprised by the sudden hostility. Then she sighed and slumped her shoulders. She would have to explain her condition. “I have a parasite,” she said, glancing at the ground, feeling a bit of shame wash over her.

“Doctor Chackwas is aware of my condition. I have...special abilities granted to me by the parasite which help me gain a resistance to being mind-controlled. But using the abilities comes at a cost. It’s slowly killing me, hollowing out my skull to turn me into something else. Unless I can find a cure, a way to separate him from me, the person you see before you and everything that makes me me, will cease to exist.

“Atteran is the only reason I wasn’t able to be controlled, although I was able to feel the Reaper trying to probe my mind. I don’t know if it was going to try to control me, but Atteran protected me from that. Instead, all it did was unlock memories I had forgotten I had.”

“Memories?” Garrus asked.

Nyra flicked her gaze towards him and then back to Shepard who was still looking at her with caution. Nyra’s head flared again in pain, feeling the exhaustion beginning to kick in from Atteran’s struggles to keep Sovereign from her mind. The distant sound of screaming and horrible monstrosities echoed in her head. She closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself, remembering her family who were probably lost now after so many centuries.

“What do these memories have to do with Saren and the Reapers?”

Nyra opened her eyes and met Shepard’s gaze, stealing her emotions. “Because my father was a true pure-blooded Prothean,” she said.

Silence descended the room and she felt the eyes of everyone on her, silence so heavy that it seemed the air had stilled as if everyone was too afraid to breathe. Nyra wasn’t even aware that the elevator had stopped and the occupant had frozen in his tracks as she revealed the truth of her origin.

Chapter Text

Her father was a Prothean? Thane frowned at the words, trying to sort them in his head. He couldn’t be sure whether she really was telling the truth or not, but after their brief amount of time together, he didn’t think she was the sort to lie -- not about this at least. Once the initial shock of the news had passed over the crowd, he quietly made his way forward as Shepard spoke out.

“If your father was a Prothean, does that make you one as well? And how is that possible? How can we know you’re telling us the truth?”

Nyra lowered her head a moment before meeting Shepard’s gaze, her violet eyes certain and determined. Thane knew with that look that at the very least, Nyra believed the words she spoke.

“Technically I am and I am not. By blood, I am only half-Prothean. But the Protheans had an empire, and any race they conquered was considered a Prothean as well -- or they were wiped out. If you don’t believe me, Liara is allowed to sift through my memories. I won’t stop her, and neither will Atteran,” she said.

There was that name again. Atteran. He wondered who this Atteran was and what significance they had to Nyra. And then it clicked. He remembered her speaking of her parasite shortly after they’d met. Was Atteran the creature’s name? Why didn’t she talk about it sooner? He supposed it might have been because Thane and Nyra had only just met so she wasn’t too sure about it. It made sense.

While he was musing in his thoughts, Shepard had waved Liara forward without taking her eyes off of Nyra.

The purple skinned woman turned her attention to Liara and gave her a nod, closing her eyes. “Go ahead. I won’t stop you,” Nyra said.

The asari nodded before putting her hands on Nyra’s shoulders. “Embrace Eternity!” she called out and the two of them went silent. Everyone else watched quietly, unsure what to do. By now, Thane had shifted across the room closer to Nyra. He kept his distance, if only so he wasn’t in the way, even if he wanted to go to Nyra -- but he suppressed the urge.

After a moment, Liara pulled away, blinking. “By the Goddess…”

“What is it Liara?” Shepard asked.

“She is half Prothean, as she says. The Reapers destroyed her people and her home,” Liara said. She then looked at Nyra. “I’m so sorry.”

Nyra shrugged. “It’s not your fault. In hindsight, we didn’t stand a chance. We had no warnings and the Prothean pure-bloods themselves were a very proud people.”

Liara nodded sympathetically.

“Well, I guess we have much more reason to stop Saren and Sovereign then. Liara, there was a beacon on Virmire that I touched. It gave me a much clearer vision. Think you could talk a look? I think it has to do with the Conduit.”

Liara nodded again, this time a little more serious. “Do you want to do this here?” she asked the human woman.

“No, we’ll do it up in the debriefing room. Nyralyn, why don’t you get some rest.”

Nyra didn’t argue, although it looked like a small part of her wanted to, but then she grimaced and swayed a bit on her feet.

In two steps, Thane was by her side, even while Shepard’s squad headed up to the debriefing room. He lightly put his arms on Nyra to steady her and she blinked before smiling at him. “Hey, Thane,” she greeted.

“Siha...please do not jump out of a ship like that again. It was...worrisome.” he said softly, reaching out to stroke her hair.

She grimaced slightly. “Sorry. I’d say I’m normally not that wreckless, but that would be a lie considering all I’ve done in the past couple of hours.”

He laughed quietly. “Indeed. You have been quite busy. Come, let us get you somewhere so you can rest. I’m sure it will be a while until we reach the Conduit that Shepard is looking for,” he said.

Nyra nodded. “Yeah, probably. I don’t even know where it would be. Even with the accidental memories I collected once from Shepard when Liara was peering into her mind, they were pretty scattered. I’m sure they are more concise now, but...I’m too exhausted to even want to attempt reading someone’s mind.”

Thane frowned and gave her a look to which she chuckled softly, her tiredness flickering in her gaze as they headed for the elevator which had finally finished taking Shepard’s squad up.

“When you’ve had more rest, I am curious to know more about you and your people.”

She yawned. “I promise I’ll tell you, if you finally promise to tell me what Siha means.”

He chuckled and smiled. “Deal.”

She smiled back, her tired eyes sparkling. “I look forward to it,” she said before they reached her sleeper pod where he helped her in. After she was in, he began to move away, but she reached out and grabbed his hand. “Thane, could you stay...at least until I fall asleep?”

Thane met her gaze and nodded. “Of course, Siha,” he said.

He moved to stand next to the pod, but she shuffled off to one side and patted the space next to her. He blinked, but understood her meaning and without a word, he climbed in and settled next to her. It was a little tight with the two of them, but she didn’t seem to mind. She smiled softly and shifted to rest against him, laying her head on his chest. Thane watched her in silence for a few moments, awed by how warm and soft she felt. Carefully, he moved his arm around her and began to gently stroke her still-bound hair.

She made a sound and nestled deeper into his embrace, her eyes closed. It wasn’t long before she fell asleep and Thane found himself not wanting to leave her side. Smiling to himself, he shifted his position to a slightly more comfortable one and he held her in her sleep. It wasn’t long before he too drifted off.

Chapter Text

When she finally awoke, she felt warm arms wrapped around her. Turning her head, she spotted Thane asleep next to her. She smiled at the image before her. He looked more at peace than he usually did. Gently, trying not to wake him, she reached over and planted a kiss on his forehead before she quietly slipped from his grasp.

“Siha…” he murmured softly, his eyes opening.

“Oh, good morning, Thane. I’m sorry if I woke you.”

“It is not a problem, Siha,” he said. “Did you sleep well?”

She nodded. “Yeah. I hadn’t actually slept in days, but the exhaustion accompanied by being next to you allowed me to.”

He blinked his lids and moved out of the pod and he walked over, concerned. “Was that because of Sovereign?”

“Mmm, partly,” she responded, tapping her chin. “My race don’t need to sleep as often as humans. We usually go into meditation in order to gain energy. It only works so long though before we eventually need to sleep. I didn’t think it was wise to try sleeping while I was being held captive. My walls would have been down and it might have been easier for Sovereign to look into my mind and possibly indoctrinate me.”

“I see...that’s interesting. Your meditation, what’s it like?”

“It’s...hard to describe, but usually involves us having to relax our bodies and souls and let our minds wander.”

He nodded but said no more, seeming to be thinking over her words. She didn’t press him to speak, simply turned on her heel to go find Shepard. She wanted to know what the woman wanted to do next. It turns out she didn’t have to go far because the Commander was in the mess hall, speaking with her team. Upon spotting Nyra approaching, she looked up and waved her over.

“Good, you’re up. I just got a message from Udina. He wants us to return to the Citadel. I don’t know why as I think we should head straight for Ilos, but we do need to stalk back up on supplies and drop Captain Kirrahe and his men off.”

Nyra nodded as she sat down across from Shepard, Thane coming over and sitting quietly beside her. She couldn’t help but notice how the woman was sitting next to Garrus, sort of leaning towards him, their hands both resting on the table almost touching. The eamonic hid a smile. Even if they didn’t realize it just yet, they looked good together. She’d be rooting for them.

“I think we should present the case to head to Ilos to the Council as well. The Citadel fleets are being amassed, but this threat is bigger than just Saren and his geth.”

“Do you really think they’ll listen?” Ashley asked, scorn for the council clear in her voice.

“No, but they need to be aware of the situation.” The Commander then looked at Nyra. “I would like it if you would come with us. Considering that you are actually part Prothean, it could help our case.”

“Sure, it couldn’t hurt,” Nyra said with a shrug.

Shepard gave her a nod. “Thanks. Kaidan and Ashley will be coming with us as they are part of the human representatives and I know Udina will throw a fit if they aren’t there.”

Then a thought occurred to Nyra as she remembered how Shepard liked to debrief the council after her missions. “Shepard...did you tell them about me being half-Prothean when you debriefed the council after Virmire?”

The woman shook her head. “No. That’s something personal to you, I thought it would be best for you to decide to tell them...if that’s what you want.”

“I would like to tell them, but I doubt they’ll believe mere words. They’ll want evidence, especially since I am still C-Sec and if they do pay attention to their officer records, my file on my race is distinctly different then what I truly am.”

Shepard nodded. “I suppose you are going to update your file then?”

“Mmm. Much as I like working for C-Sec, I don’t think I’ll be returning after all this. I have a lot to think about and I want to find a way to get my parasite out of my head. He deserves freedom as much as I do. Since we’re heading back to the Citadel, I might as well send in my resignation.”

“You won’t be returning to the force with me?” Garrus said, his voice sounding sad.

“Yeah. Sorry not sorry Garrus. But...I do want to tell the council about my heritage. I’ll have to have Chackwas and Kali send over my files and scan my DNA for the Prothean similarities.”

“Imagine the look on their faces when they realize what you are. I’d kill to see that,” Garrus chuckled.

Nyra grinned wickedly. “I can record it for you if you’d like,” she said.

“Please do!”

“You should probably get your DNA tested then,” Shepard told her.

“Yeah. I’ll go do that,” Nyra said, standing and making her way over to the medbay.

She wasn’t aware that Thane had followed her until his hand gently grabbed her arm and she stopped to look up at him. “Are you sure about this, Siha?” he asked.

She frowned. “About what?”

“Telling the council about your Prothean heritage?”

She met his gaze and noting the concern he hid under his usual cool mask of indifference, she gave him a soft smile and hugged him, breathing in his scent. She loved that smell of lemon and sage that was uniquely him. “I’m sure, Thane. If Saren and his men were able to get my records, then who knows if and when it will get leaked. I’ve worked at C-Sec for a year now and I know how easy it can be for information to get out to the public if it gets into the wrong hands.”

“You’re not worried that people will come for you?”

“Oh, people will come for me regardless of it being public or not. I’m already not like any other race on the Citadel. At least this way I can be more prepared for it...we can be more prepared for it,” she said, pulling away just enough to look into his face.

“If you’re sure about this.”

“I am. I do appreciate your concern for my well being though, Thane.”

“You’re welcome. But please, try to be careful.”

She smirked and pulled away, gently running her hand along the outside of his frills. “I will try, but I make no promises,” she said before she turned and entered the Medbay, informing Chackwas about what she wanted to do.

The doctor agreed it would be a good decision and, within minutes, she had everything prepared before she took a blood sample from Nyra and began to scan it. Nyra patched up her arm with some medigel and went out to join the others as they sat around the tables, talking about their next move while also reminiscing about their journey.

She smiled faintly as she listened, standing next to Thane and realizing just how much she’d missed while she’d been captive. She felt a soft pang at the thought. She’d tried to not get captured, but in the end she had. She supposed something good had become of her misfortune, but it was disconcerting to realize how much she’d missed out on.

They’d encountered Rachni, a creature called the Thorian who had been enslaving colonists, Geth outposts, Cerberus. Shepard had apparently also helped Wrex, Tali, and Garrus with things they needed. Thane had apparently been along for most of the journey, commenting when asked about taking care of husks or geth they’d encountered.

She began to slowly realize how she’d started this mission with them all, but due to how long she was held captive, she was probably now more of an outsider then Thane was. Slowly over the course of the trip back to the Citadel, she began to withdraw into herself. She supposed she should be used to feeling out of place. She’d felt that way her whole life.

/You’re not alone, Nyralyn./

Of course I’m not. I have you.

/You also have Thane./

I...suppose I do. 

/The others may be wary of you for now, but don’t give up. Garrus and Shepard also think of you as a friend./

They...do?

/Yes. I don’t have to invade their minds to see that./

Thank you, Atteran.

/Anytime./

She smiled softly. He was right. Even if she felt out of place, she wasn’t alone. Reaching over, she took Thane’s hand and gave it a squeeze. The drell glanced over and gave her a smile back before he leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead.

She looked up at him, blinking before she leaned against him, feeling better than she had earlier. More at ease knowing that she had people who cared, she once more tuned into the conversations about their mission which had slowly turned into thoughts on what was to come. Neither she nor Thane moved from their position side by side as they listened to the others, occasionally chiming in a thought or two, but overall just content to watch in silence.

Chapter Text

Nyra followed Shepard and her two human squadmates to the Council chambers. Ashley and Kaidan were discussing what they hoped would happen during the meeting and how they were glad the Council was finally doing something. Nyra glanced at them but remained silent.

She had filled out a resignation form to C-Sec on the way to the Citadel and had already sent it along. They had yet to confirm her resignation, but she knew it was only a matter of time. Not that she was in a rush, but she wasn’t intending to stay on the Citadel for long after Saren was defeated. She knew it would be a challenge to find a way to remove Atteran from her and help him gain a full body, but a part of her was looking forward to it, and she knew Atteran was as well.

As they approached the podium, Udina looked at Shepard. “Good job, Shepard. Thanks to you, the Council’s finally taking action against Saren!”

The Asari, Tevos, nodded. “The ambassador is correct. If Saren is foolish enough to attack the Citadel -- as you believe -- we will be ready for him.”

The group of four all shared a look. They really think Saren is going to make a full frontal assault? Nyra wondered, frowning and crossing her arms.

The Turian, Sparatus, turned his attention from Tevos to look at the group. “Patrols are stationed at every mass relay linking Citadel space to the Terminus Systems.”

Shepard crossed her arms. “You think a blockade’s going to stop him? He’s on Ilos looking for the Conduit right now! What are you doing about that?”

The Salarian, Valern finally spoke. “Ilos is only accessible through the Mu Relay, deep inside the Terminus Systems, Commander. If we send a fleet in there, the only possible outcome is full-scale war.”

Udina then turned to Shepard. “Now is the time for discretion, Commander. Saren’s greatest weapon was secrecy. Exposed, he is no longer a threat. This is over.”

Nyra felt her lip curl from where she stood at the back of the group and she tightened her grip on her arms. These guys were fools. They were willing to ignore a threat, one that had wiped out countless civilizations.

“One ship going into the Terminus Systems won’t start a war. I can be discreet,” Shepard reasoned.

“You detonated a nuclear device on Virmire. I wouldn’t call that discreet!” Sparatus pointed out.

“Your style served you well in the Traverse, Commander,” Tevos cut in. “We recognize that. But Ilos requires a deft touch. We have the situation under control.”

“Sovereign’s the real threat. Saren’s just a servant of the Reapers.”

Tevos looked at Shepard. “Only you have seen the Reapers. And then, only in visions. We won’t invade the Terminus Systems because of a dream.”

Nyra finally had enough and she spoke up. “With all due respect, councilor, you’re wrong.”

Everyone paused and turned to look at her. The purple skinned woman lifted her head and stepped forward. “I have seen the Reapers first hand. I saw them destroy an entire civilization. I watched as they killed my family and everyone I knew.”

Everyone but Shepard and the crew looked confused before Udina spoke up. “And who are you?” he practically sneered.

Nyra cut him a cold glance and folded her hands behind her back. “I am Nyralyn Kolith. One of the C-Sec officers that joined Shepard on her hunt. I was captured by Saren’s men and taken aboard Sovereign where the ship then proceeded to try worming its way into my mind. I first hand felt the power of the ship, and I can guarantee that Shepard is telling the truth.”

“A ship cannot exert control over living beings, they are only machines. And Sovereign was designed by the geth,” Valern said.

Nyra’s eyes narrowed. “Are you so blind as to ignore the threats in front of you?”

“You must understand, we are in charge of the safety of all those in Citadel space. One false move could endanger everyone. Unless you have evidence of your claims, this case is closed.”

“I am a prothean!” she shouted, throwing her hands out in annoyance.

“The protheans died over 50,000 years ago. There is no way you could have survived this long,” Udina cut in.

Nyra rolled her eyes. “There are ways, this cycle just hasn’t invented them yet. I don’t expect you to believe me, but at the very least, don’t discredit what Shepard is saying. She was right about Saren and you didn’t believe her. Don’t make the same mistake now.” Then she stepped back while the council watched her. Then they focused back on Shepard as she spoke up.

“If Saren finds the Conduit, we’re all screwed. We have to go to Ilos!”

Sparatus focused his attention on the human ambassador. “Ambassador Udina, I get the sense that Commander Shepard and her crew aren’t willing to let this go.”

“There are serious political implications here, Shepard. Humanity’s made great gains thanks to you. But now you’re becoming more trouble than you’re worth.”

Nyra noticed how Shepard clenched her jaw and balled her hands into fists at his words. She herself was considering punching him and the rest of the council.

“You bastard, you’re selling us out!” Ashley shouted.

Udina then stepped closer to the Council. “It’s just politics, Commander. You’ve done your job, now let me do mine. We’ve locked out all of Normandy’s primary systems. Until further notice, you are grounded.”

Shepard glared at Udina. “Nobody stabs me in the back, Udina. Nobody.”

He looked back at her with contempt. “I think it’s time for you and your team to leave, Commander. This no longer concerns you. The Council can handle this. With my help of course.”

Shepard cast one last glare at Udina before she spun on her heel and began to make her way out of the Citadel tower. Once they were out of earshot of the council, Kaidan addressed Nyra. “Why didn’t you tell them about your DNA? I thought you had it tested.”

Nyra sighed. “I did. But the results came back scrambled. Like there are too many types of DNA to sort through. The tech you guys have isn’t advanced enough to pinpoint the Prothean DNA. Kali told me that with more time she could find it, but she also has to separate the DNA of Atteran. After all, he is currently a part of me, and if I don’t get him out of my head, my DNA will be rewritten.”

She vaguely recalled them taking a blood sample when she’d first arrived here, but upon asking Kali, the woman had told her she couldn’t find it. It would seem that someone might have taken it and/or destroyed it. Nyra could guess at who it was, but she didn’t think it would do any good to mention this to Shepard.

“So what you’re saying is we don’t really have any proof aside from your memories to show that you are Prothean, and we all know the Council could say those were thoughts put into your head from Saren and Sovereign,” Shepard concluded.

Nyra sighed. “Unfortunately, yes. But we all know Saren is going to come here, we need to stop him.”

“How are we going to be released?” Ashley said.

“I don’t know. Nyra, do you think you or Garrus could use your C-Sec authority?” Shepard asked.

Nyra shook her head. “No, we aren’t high enough in the chain of command to do so. Regardless, I already sent in my resignation.”

Shepard sighed. “Well, then I guess for now we should return to the Normandy and inform the crew. Perhaps they can help us figure out a way to get to our ship free and off to Ilos.”

They all nodded and followed after the Commander. Nyra was silent on the way back to the ship, her mind elsewhere as she formed a plan. Once they reached the ship, she went to look for Thane and found him in the cargo bay with Garrus, Wrex, and Tali.

The drell was standing quietly, listening to the others as they talked about what they thought was happening in the meeting. He glanced over as he spotted Nyra and he tipped his head at her in a silent question. She gave him a frown and shook her head before she came and stood beside him.

The others then began to notice her presence. “What happened?” Garrus asked.

She sighed. “They grounded the Normandy and dismissed everything about Sovereign, the Reapers, and the Conduit.”

“Typical,” Wrex growled.

Nyra couldn’t help but agree. “Shepard knows we need to get to Ilos. She’s probably trying to concoct a way to get the Normandy out of here.”

“I’ll go help,” Garrus offered eagerly. Nyra couldn’t help a small smile appearing on her face at his response before Wrex and Tali agreed and they headed up to the elevator.

Nyra made no move to head up to the elevator, and Thane hadn’t spoken, seeming to sense she wanted to speak with him without the others hearing. “You have something on your mind, Siha,” he said, turning to address her.

“I do. I have a feeling Shepard is going to find some way to get the Normandy free, but I don’t intend to go with her. The council can’t see the big picture and are willing to endanger countless lives with their ignorance and inaction.”

“You want to stay here and help.”

She nodded. “I want to help prepare people as best we can, try to prevent deaths. I know you have contacts on the Citadel, so I was wondering if perhaps you’d help me. We could find a way to protect the Citadel from within in case Saren and Sovereign are somehow able to get past Shepard and the fleets.”

He blinked his double eyelids as he considered her proposal before he nodded. “I will help.”

She smiled and hugged him. “Thank you. More than anyone else, I know what’s at stake if we don’t stop Sovereign. At least if we can prepare, we might be able to prevent some deaths, hopefully even stop the Reapers.”

He hugged her back. “Shall we go tell Shepard?” he suggested.

She pulled away and nodded. “Yeah. I’m then going to pack up my things. I don’t intend to return to the Normandy if we survive this. I have a parasite to free,” she said, tapping her head.

He nodded in response. “Would you like me to assist you, Siha?”

“Only if you are willing,”

He smiled and ran a hand along her jaw. “I would not offer if I was not willing,” he said before he leaned down and planted a soft kiss on her lips.

She smiled and took his hand, giving it a squeeze before she headed up to tell Shepard of their plans.

Chapter Text

Nyra managed to catch Shepard just as she was heading out to speak with Captain Anderson. The woman paused and looked at her.

“You’re not going to come to Ilos with us?”

She shook her head. “Sovereign's ultimate goal is to open the way for the other Reapers. I’ve seen what they can do, and I know they launched their attack from here in my cycle. I can do more good here where I can at least try to make sure we’re prepared more than just those ships that are stationed by the relays.”

Shepard sighed. “If you’re sure. It would have been nice to have your help, but I can see how having people here who actually know the threat we face is important.”

Nyra nodded. “I’ll try not to let you down,” she said as she shook hands with Shepard. Then the two parted ways, Nyra heading to fetch her things and Shepard going to speak with Captain Anderson.

Before she departed, she decided to wish the rest of the crew well and told them she’d do what she could to protect the people on the Citadel. All of them expressed disappointment that she wasn’t going to join them, but she wouldn’t change her mind. After wishing them luck, she and Thane set out.

[Hey, Kali, Thane and I need to stop at the apartment. We have an urgent mission, we might need your help.] She messaged as they stepped into the elevator leading away from the docking bay.

It took a few minutes before Nyra’s omnitool pinged and she read the message. [You’re lucky it’s my day off. What do you need?]

[We’ll explain when we get there.] she responded as they stepped out and began to head to where her apartment was.

When they arrived, Kali was waiting for them. Upon their entry, she poured them both a cup of tea. Thane took his and thanked her while Nyra set her things down and then came over.

“So, what’s the mission?” the asari asked, glancing between the two.

Nyra grabbed her cup and took a sip of her tea to give her time to contemplate. “It’s a long story, but I know that Saren’s ultimate goal is to come here. Sovereign is a Reaper, and in order for its kind to invade and begin a cycle of extinction, it needs to be able to access the station. 50,000 years ago, when the Protheans fought the Reapers, they hit the Citadel first. And from there, they were able to spread throughout the galaxy, hunting them down. All information about their colonies was there, as well as their seat of government. With that gone, it was chaos.”

Kali set her cup down and frowned. “That is pretty serious. So, what do you intend to do with it?”

“Well, as much as I know people should be aware of this, if we tell the truth, the chaos that would come wouldn’t do much help -- if they believed us at all. What we need to do is find a way to protect the people. We also need to protect the council. I am aware of how that sounds, but right now, they are the seat of government. In order to help keep the peace and not cause chaos, we must make sure they don’t come to harm.”

“How do you propose we do that?” Thane asked.

Nyra ran a hand through her hair and let out a breath. “I’m thinking Thane and I should find a way into the council chambers. I would prefer an upper balcony so I can snipe from above. Thane, I’ll let you decide where you think is best.”

Thane nodded.

“And what should I do?”

“I’ve seen your memories. I know you have some combat skills, even if you mostly spend your time in the hospital now as a doctor. Protect the council. You should probably wait until things get dicey as we don’t know exactly what Saren is planning. Think you can do that?”

Kali looked down at the mug in her hands before meeting Nyra’s gaze, a determined look in her eyes. “I can. We wont let Saren win,” she said.

“Agreed,” Nyra said.

“How long do you think it will be before Saren arrives?” Thane asked.

“Well, first he has to go to Ilos to get the conduit. It may take him some searching to find both. When we left Shepard, she was going to see Anderson. She was going to find some way to get them off the ship. I’d assume we have at most a day. At least, a few hours.”

“Shall we prepare in the meantime?” Kali looked at Nyra.

The eamonic bit lightly on her thumbnail. “There’s not much we can really do. I messaged Garrus and asked him to keep me informed on their progress and to send me any updates on Saren. We could go ahead and head out now, but I’d rather not wait forever as sometimes waiting could cause us to lose focus or become complacent. At the very least, we need to prepare for the battle ahead in case Shepard and her team aren’t able to stop him and Sovereign.”

The two nodded. Then they fell into silence for a moment while they each sipped their drinks. Nyra leaned her head on Thane’s shoulder, her thoughts going to the potential battle ahead. If they didn’t stop Sovereign, the Reapers would come again, and she doubted she’d escape them a second time. She recalled back to her brothers, wondering if they had somehow survived, but she doubted it. She was snapped out of her thoughts once Kali spoke up.

“You two seem much closer than you were the last time I saw you. Did you guys get together?” she asked.

Nyra blinked and focused on the asari, also noting how Thane had taken one of her hands in his and was lightly running his thumb along her hand. He didn’t respond to Kali, seeming lost in his own thoughts as well.

“In a way. I told you I found out I was part Prothean, right?” She paused and glanced at Thane who was now paying attention. “Well, the other part of me is a race called the Eamonic. Each eamonic has something we call a Dae’an ori, a Soulmate if you will. These soulmates are our other halves. Once we discover our soulmate, we can reproduce, of course only with our soulmate do our offspring come out healthy.”

She shifted and pulled from Thane, feeling embarrassed. She didn’t know how he’d take this news about her. Even explaining it to others made her feel awkward. “There’s also a thing called a Dae’an navei. The best translation I can think of is a soulmate bond, it allows us to sense each other or give out a warning if we are in danger.”

Both of them were staring at her and she suddenly wanted to find a hole to climb in. She stared down at her cup, feeling her face warm, and she knew that her skin had taken on a slightly darker color. It wasn’t as noticeable on her skin as it was humans, but she knew she was blushing.

“That explains the vision I saw. It was part of why I joined Shepard, I had a feeling you were in danger,” Thane finally replied.

She glanced at him as he spoke. He didn’t seem angry, but rather contemplative.

“Fascinating,” Kali said. “I am going to assume that your other half is Thane?”

Nyra exhaled and nodded. “Yeah...although I know the soulmate part works differently for our other half if they are not also of the same race. Obviously, they can still reproduce normally, even if they have an eamonic ‘soulmate’. We just won’t be able to reproduce healthy offspring.

“Some eamonic’s had romantic relationships with their soulmates, others didn’t. Just because we have that bond, doesn’t mean either party has to be together, although usually they are. Probably because most of my kind had soulmates with others of our kind, it made explaining these kinds of things practically non-existent. Plus there wasn’t any worry about a cultural difference.”

It was hard to put it into words and explain it to them, but based on their expressions, she assumed they understood. She still kept her distance from Thane until she felt his hand reach out for hers again. “Whatever it was that brought us together, I am grateful. We both know that our time together is going to be limited due to our circumstances, but I wouldn’t have it any other way, Siha,” he said.

She searched his gaze for a moment before she smiled, lightly squeezing his hands in return. She was grateful that he didn’t find her racial traits repulsive, like she’d witnessed with some interspecies couplings. He brought her hands to his lips and gently kissed her fingers, his eyes closing for a brief second as he did so.

When he lowered her hands, she leaned in and kissed him, keeping one hand in his while the other one moved to gently stroke his frills. He didn’t hesitate to return the kiss, letting go of her hands to twirl one in her loose locks of hair and the other resting at the small of her back. She eventually pulled away to catch her breath and she pressed her forehead against his, staring into his eyes. His gaze met hers, warm and inviting.

“Thane,” she breathed. “I don’t know what the future has in store for us, but if you’re willing, I...I want to be alive with you tonight.”

He said nothing for a moment before a soft smile graced his lips.  “I do as well, Nyra,” he responded.

She smiled back and interlocked one of her hands with his, standing. “Then let’s take this somewhere private,” she said. She glanced towards where Kali had been to see the Asari had taken her tea and walked to the living room to give them privacy. She smiled at her thoughtfulness before she gently tugged on Thane’s hand and brought him to her room.

Chapter Text

“Thane, are you in position?” Nyralyn’s voice crackled over his comms.

“Yes. All clear here, no signs of suspicious activity,” Thane responded from where he leaned against a wall in the presidium. “What about you?”

A sigh. “Nothing yet. Kali? What’s your status?”

“I’m near the council’s rooms. Nothing of not so f-” she broke off as there was a sudden rumble which sent Thane stumbling a bit away from the wall. It was then that he also noticed a sudden glow coming from the mass relay statue in the presidium.

“Okay, what in the hells was that?” Nyra shouted over comms.

“I just got an incoming message, we have to evacuate the council. Nyra, Thane, good luck.”

“You as well,” Nyra responded.

“May Arashu watch over you,” Thane replied.

“Thank you. I’ll keep in radio contact as best I can.”

“Good.”

Then there was silence over the line just as an explosion caused the ground beneath Thane’s feet to shake once more. “Fesuth!” He heard Nyra swear over the line.

“Nyra?” he questioned softly.

“Sovereign’s here. I can feel it. Saren probably isn’t too far behin-” then the line was reduced to static as Saren appeared through the relay with a squad of geth. The geth began firing at the few citizens who were still wandering around. Thane rushed forward, his gun in hand as he began firing at them.

A few of the geth went down, but Saren barely even glanced at him as the turian headed up to the elevator with a few of the geth following. The geth that were still on the presidium began shooting at Thane, but the drell was quick, ducking into shadows and then firing off more shots.

It was while Thane was letting his gun cool down that he suddenly heard the sound of the relay monument firing up again. He glanced towards the relay, hoping to the gods that it wasn’t more geth. He was pleasantly surprised when he spotted the Mako shooting out of the monument before it crashed into the geth that had been shooting at him.

Stepping out from behind his cover, he headed over to them, glancing around for danger as he did so. Upon determining that there was no immediate danger, he turned to look at Shepard as she and her squad emerged from the upside-down tank.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

She blinked as she looked up at him before she stood. “Yeah...we’re good. Where’s Nyralyn?” she asked.

Thane turned and pointed to the entrance to the elevator Saren and some of his army had taken. “She is in the council chambers. I lost contact with her shortly before Saren arrived. She was saying Soverign was here,” he told the commander.

“Shit, well, we knew this was probably the case. Come on guys, we need to go after him,” she said before she began jogging towards the elevator with her squad following behind.

Thane followed, holstering his guns as he did so. “I will accompany you, if you will allow it.”

She glanced at him before nodding, her expression grim as the elevator began its assent. Before they could get to the top, their progress was halted. Shepard looked at Thane and her team. “Gear up guys, looks like we’ll be heading outside,” she said as she took out her helmet and put it on her head, making sure it was secure.

Once the others had their helmets or masks on, she shot at the glass of the elevator and activated her magboots as she headed out to walk up the side of the tower. Thane, Garrus, and Liara followed wordlessly.

Now walking on the outside of the tower, the four of them began to push their way up the tower, fighting through geth, krogan, and a geth ship. Meanwhile Sovereign sat perched above them, its mechanical legs lifting up and down with a mechanical WHIRRR.

“Damn, that thing is huge,” Garrus remarked as they ducked into cover while a krogan approached

“And there are millions more just like it,” Liara commented before she ducked out of cover and used her biotics to toss the krogan into open space.

The commander shot a bullet through its optic for good measure before she looked at Liara. “That’s just one more reason to destroy it and stop Sovereign and Saren from calling the rest of the Reapers from Dark Space.”

It was as they were coming around the next corner when Thane’s vision went dark for a moment as it seemed he was once again seeing from Nyralyn’s eyes. But this time, he couldn’t just see and hear, he could feel.

She had a wound in her left thigh which she held a hand over as she hid behind a wall, the growling of geth coming from the other side. She panted and poked out of her cover with her head, shooting a shot at one of the geth, causing it to lose some armor, but it otherwise was unfazed. She clenched her teeth and continued to press a hand to her wound. She was too weak to cast another spell, and she’d already used up her medigel on other wounds.

Her gaze then focused on the wall in front of her.

“THANE LOOK OUT!”

Thane jerked out from the vision as he was pulled back behind cover with such force he stumbled. Blinking and coming to his own surroundings, he noticed the Commander was yelling at him about paying attention in combat. Shortly after that he realized that they were being fired at by geth and hostile turrets.

“Forgive me, Commander. But we must hurry. I feel as if Nyralyn is in life-threatening danger.”

“Yeah, we’re working on it. According to the map, the entrance to the chamber should be just past these turrets, so mind giving us a hand?”

“O-of course,” Thane responded. Part of him wanted to dash ahead and race to Nyra, but another part of him knew that if he did that, he wouldn’t even make it half way before he was killed by the rockets.

While he, Shepard, Garrus, and Liara shot down the geth and the turrets, Thane prayed to Arashu to watch over Nyralyn. He didn’t know how long she would be able to hold out, but he had to hope she would last long enough for them to get to her.

After what seemed like a lifetime of them trying to take down the turrets and geth, they managed to move past them and Thane couldn’t help but sprint towards the hatch as fast as he could. I’m coming, Siha . He thought as the hatch was pried open and the four of them slipped inside the council chambers.

Much like the base of the tower, the chambers were damaged and filled with fire. As the four of them headed away from the elevator and towards the main area, a few geth appeared, only to either be shot down or hurtled into the air by a biotic blast.

As they got over the first set of stairs, Shepard, Garrus and Liara fired on the remaining geth while Thane looked around. Spotting what looked like the familiar landscape of the area from his earlier vision, he rushed over while also being careful of any nearby geth. “Nyralyn?” he called out.

After a moment, he spotted her head peeking out from behind the wall and her eyes locked onto his. She seemed to relax just a bit as he slid over to her and he set his gun down as he began to apply medigel to her wound.

When she spoke, her voice shook with what he assumed was fear and relief. “You made it just in time. I don’t know how much longer I could have-”

He didn’t let her finish as he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. “I was almost too late. I am sorry.”

She shook her head and reached up to caress his cheek. “Don’t be. I’m still alive. Anyway, the fight’s not over yet. I can feel Sovereign right above us and I know Saren is higher up in the chambers. We need to take him out.”

As she spoke, she indicated where the former spectre was. Thane turned to look in that direction, noting how Shepard and the others had finally finished destroying the geth. His gaze glanced from where the Commander and the others were to the turian. “It seems the Commander is trying to talk him down.”

Nyra sighed. “He won’t be able to be saved. He’s already too far gone under Sovereign’s control. Trying to stop him is pointless,” she said as she pushed herself to her feet. Just then, the sound of a single gun shot rang out throughout the chamber and both Nyra and Thane burst out from behind the wall, only to see Saren’s body plummet through the glass. “Well...I guess that’s a solution,” she muttered.

Thane glanced at her as the two of them made their way over to the others, although both were scanning the room for any further threats.

Shepard herself approached the holographic console Saren had been messing with and observed it for a moment before she pushed a few buttons. As soon as she did, a message came in from Joker telling her about the human fleets who were waiting on her order, followed quickly by an Asari from the Destiny Ascension asking for backup.

At the same time, the comms between Kali, Nyra, and Thane revived.

“Nyra? Thane? You guys there?”

Nyra glanced at Thane as she put a hand to her ear. “We read you loud and clear. What’s your status?”

“I’m still alive. The council and I tried to evacuate but we’re stuck hiding in the docking bay. That reaper closed the arms of the Citadel, so I didn’t think it smart to bring them to one of the ships.”

“Smart. Just hang in there then, we’ll help you as soon as we can.”

“Got it,” Kali responded before the comm ended and Nyralyn stepped up to stand closer to Shepard while Thane and the others watched while also checking the area for any possible surprise attacks.

The two women glanced at each other, the Commander seeming to be struggling with a decision. “The other fleets are being annihilated out there,” she said.

“Yes, they are. This is what the Reapers do, Shepard. We can’t save everyone, but we can take out the leader of the enemy.”

Shepard nodded in understanding and stepped towards the console once more. “Joker, tell Admiral Hackett to hold back the fleets. We need to focus our fire power on the biggest threat.”

“Roger that, Commander,” came the response.

Shepard then glanced at the others and indicated the unmoving form of Saren. “Make sure he’s dead.”

Garrus glanced at Liara for a moment before the two of them headed down to the turian’s body. Shortly after their departure there was a gunshot and Thane glanced down toward the sound for a moment before once more looking around the room.

Suddenly the air began to thicken, the area around them shaking. Slippery fingers brushed against Thane’s mind for a brief moment, before red sparks shot into the air and the platform beneath Thane and the two women broke, sending the three of them tumbling down towards where Saren had fallen.

Chapter Text

Nyralyn hissed as her knees smacked into some of the debris, causing her bones to sting slightly with the impact. Her head pounded and she was aware that she stumbled up to her feet, just as the remnants of Saren declared, “I AM SOVEREIGN”.

She watched with a sort of disconnect as her body got to its feet with the help of Thane and they stumbled over behind some cover. She felt herself growing numb of her surroundings, even while she was vaguely aware of Shepard shouting, guns firing, and explosions shooting at their hiding places.

Then without warning, everything came into hyper focus, her senses once more tuning into her surroundings as she stood to her feet, turning toward where the skeletal Saren was perched, prepping an attack.

Words that were not her own flowed from her mouth, her voice taking on an echoey quality. “Go back to where you came from, machine,” she said as her body was suddenly engulfed in golden flames of energy that reminded her a lot of biotics.

/Forgive me Nyra./ Up until now, Atteran had been silent, and she came to the realization that he’d been spiraling down into his powers. It also occurred to her that he was a biotic.

What are you doing? She panicked as it clicked that this action of his could forever tie them together, if not kill her.

/Saving our friends/ was his response as his orange flames began to coat Saren, spreading much like a fire until he was surrounded by them. The creature made no noise, even as it’s body began to tear itself apart. With wires sparking and plating torn, what remained of Saren finally dropped to the ground with an unceremonial thud.

As soon as the flames coating Nyra’s body faded, she felt like all of her strength was siphoned out of her, causing her legs to collapse from under her. She would have hit the ground if not for steady hands who grabbed her by the arms, keeping her upright. She rolled her head to look at who had caught her to meet the concerned emerald gaze of Thane.

“Siha, what was that?” he asked, his voice a mix of shock, awe, and perhaps even fear.

“Atteran,” she responded, her throat burning to the point where she began to cough violently enough that her entire body shook. Daggers of pain sliced through her skull, causing her vision to darken. Once her coughing finally ceased, her vision returned just enough for her to notice red flecks of blood on the ground. It was then that whatever consciousness she’d been clinging to finally fled, and she once more slipped into nothingness.

. . .

When next she awoke, she opened her eyes to white light and she knew immediately she wasn’t in the council chambers any more. It took her a moment for her eyes to adjust, but when they did, she noticed she was in a hospital room almost identical to the one she’d met Kali in.

As she examined her environment, she became aware of a warm presence on her left. Turning towards it, she realized it was Thane. He had his arms crossed and his head was laying on top as he leaned his upper half on her hospital bed. A soft smile touched her lips and she reached a hand out to gently brush against his frills.

At her touch, he bolted upright, blinking for a moment in confusion before he seemed to remember where he was. There was another moment before he turned his head and his gaze locked onto Nyra’s. A relieved expression spread across his face.

“Siha, you’re finally awake. How are you feeling?” he asked, his hand moving to intertwine their fingers.

“Doing much better than before. What happened? Where are the others? I’m going to assume Sovereign is no more considering no one seems to be panicking and the station isn’t overrun by reaper monsters.”

He was silent for a moment as his hand tightened on hers and he looked down. Her gaze followed his and she blinked as she noticed an odd patchwork of turquoise scales on her hand, almost reminiscent of Atteran. “What do you remember?”

Nyra looked away and tilted her head. “Let’s see...I remember being in the council chambers and fighting some sort of warped version of Saren. I remember being coated in orange biotics and then...then...,” she trailed off, scrunching up her face as she tried to remember. “It gets kind of fuzzy after that.”

Thane nodded in silence for a moment before responding. “Those biotics tore Saren apart. Shortly after you collapsed and then passed out. I…” he paused as he reached a hand up to cup her face. “I thought I almost lost you.”

Nyra took a deep breath. She felt as if she’d almost lost herself, and it didn’t help that she was still seeing the patchy scales of Atteran on her hand. “I’m sorry...for making you worry.”

“I am just glad I didn’t lose you,” he said as he stroked her cheek. Then he sat up and leaned over the bed to place a kiss on her lips.

Her lashes fluttered and she tilted her head to kiss him back, her free hand moving to run along his frills. He growled slightly which sent a spark of warmth straight to her core before pulling away enough to press his forehead into hers. “Siha, we’d better stop before we end up tangled with each other in the hospital.”

Nyra sighed but didn’t protest, knowing he was right. “Tempting as that is, I would have to agree. The hospital isn’t the right place for intimacy.”

He chuckled. “Another time then,” he said, placing one of his hands on her cheek as he moved back so he could give her some more space.

“I’ll hold you to that,” she said with a smirk. After a moment, her smile faded as she recalled more about the battle. “What about the others? Where are they? Is everyone okay?”

He nodded. “Yes. Garrus, Liara and Shepard were discharged from the hospital two days ago. Shepard and the others have been discussing the aftermath of the battle with the Council. I’m sure the others will want to know you’re doing okay,” he said as he pulled up his omnitool and began to type.

“And Kali, what about her?”

The drell assassin paused for a moment and met her gaze. “She is doing fine. After the battle was over, she and I brought you to Huerta where she began to treat you. She’ll be in here in just a moment.”

Nyra let out a breath of relief. “That’s good. I’m glad we made it out alive.”

Thane said nothing to that, but then shut off his omnitool. “I let the others know. They should be on their way.”

She smiled and took his hand in hers, squeezing it. “Thank you.”

“It is my pleasure, Siha,” he said, lifting her hand to his lips to give it a soft kiss.

The two of them then looked up at the sound of the door hissing open and Kali walked in. “It’s good to see you’re finally awake. How are you feeling?” The asari asked as she walked over, looking her friend up and down.

“Better than I was during the battle...although,” Nyra paused and glanced over at Thane a moment before focusing back on Kali. “I’m concerned about these scales.”

Kali’s gaze shifted to look at said scales and concern flickered over her expression. “That worries me as well, but from what I’ve been able to gather, it’s the result of you using too much of the parasite’s power.”

Nyra nodded. “I suspected as much. But...I don’t feel any other adverse effects at the moment. No tentacles or headaches. I’m not feeling woozy or sick either -- which is strange considering all the times I’ve used his power, both before and after winding up here.”

Kali didn’t respond right away, but instead focused her attention on the data screens containing Nyra’s vitals. “From the tests we ran, I didn’t notice anything too adverse, although the parasite seems to have blended more with your system than before. I’m afraid that with the technology this cycle has won’t be enough to separate you from the parasite without killing you.”

The purple skinned woman looked down and closed her eyes. “I suspected as much. There wasn’t anyone back in Faerûn who could remove it either….but I’m not ready to give up.”

“What about your people’s technology?” Thane asked, drawing the attention of both women.

Nyra tipped her head for a moment as she considered. “That might work. I’d have to do a lot of research and travel to several different planets and solar systems...but now that I’m not C-Sec, that shouldn’t cause any problems for the Council.”

Kali nodded. “That sounds like a plan,” she said before she began to shut down the machines nearby and helped Nyra get out of all of her tubes and wires. “I believe there’s nothing else we can do for you here, so you’re free to go. I’ll prescribe you some medicine for your headaches though to hopefully help with any pain your parasite might cause.”

“Thank you Kali,” Nyra said as she twisted her body to slip off of the medical bed. “Also, the parasite’s name is Atteran.”

Kali glanced at her for a name before giving a small smile. “Thank you for telling me,” she paused and Nyra heard Kali’s voice in her head.

He already told me while you were out. I ended up peering into your mind while you were unconscious to see what I could do to keep you alive. He was very helpful.

Nyra blinked at this kernel of information before smiling. She gave Kali a nod. “We’ll head out, see you after your shift is over?” Nyra asked.

“Definitely,” Kali responded before she returned to cleaning up the room for the next patient. “Make sure to check yourself out before you leave.”

“Will do,” Nyra said with a wave before she and Thane walked out of the hospital together.

Chapter Text

As the two of them stood in line at the reception in order to sign Nyra out, there was an excited squeal before someone threw themselves on Nyra, wrapping her in a hug. The purple skinned woman stumbled a bit before she turned her gaze and smiled upon noticing the quarian, Tali, hugging her.

Once the shock wore off, Nyra returned the hug for a brief moment. She let go once she noticed the big looming figure of Wrex standing behind the quarian. “It’s good to see you’re still kicking. Everyone thought you were going to kick the bucket, but I had a feeling you’d survive. You’re a tough one,” he laughed, as he clapped a hand on her shoulder.

Nyra chuckled. “Well, I’m glad someone had faith in me.”

“We were told to send you to the council. And when you’re done there, head down to flux at 8, we’re celebrating,” Wrex said with a grunt.

“Ah, so you’re the messengers then.”

The krogan chuckled while Tali responded. “Well, we also came to see you. We got Thane’s message. The others would have come too if they weren’t busy.”

Nyralyn nodded. “I see. Thank you. We’ll see you guys later then,” she said before it was her turn to sign out.

Tali and Wrex nodded, Wrex giving both Thane and Nyra a pat on the back as they left. Thane watched after them and glanced at Nyra as she finally stepped away from the counter. “You get along well with them,” he observed.

“I suppose. I spent a good amount of time with them when I wasn’t being kidnapped getting to know them. I learned a lot about their species then I would have if I hadn’t joined Shepard.”

“That is good then.”

She smiled and nodded as they stepped into the elevator. “Anyway, I wonder what the council wants with me? I’m no longer C-Sec.”

“True, but you did them a great service by helping to destroy Saren and save their lives.”

“But it wasn’t me who did either of those in the end. Atteran destroyed Saren and Kali kept them safe.”

“Maybe so, but it was your plan to have us stay here and protect them that allowed for those things to happen. And they don’t know about Atteran.”

“I….I supposed you’re correct about that.”

He nodded and offered her a smile as he took her hand. She smiled back and the two of them then headed to where the council was staying while the tower and council chambers were being repaired.

When they reached where the council was staying, Thane told her he’d see her after the meeting and stayed outside the room. She glanced at him and gave him a kiss on the cheek before she headed inside, both curious and a little nervous.

Upon entering, she spotted all four of the councilors and Shepard in conversation. As Nyra approached, the conversation stopped and Shepard gave her a nod.

“Kolith, good, now you’re here...” Sparatus started.

“We wanted to thank you for what you did to save us from Saren and the Geth. Without your help, we probably would have lost not just our lives, but the lives of countless others,” Tevos continued.

Nyralyn glanced between the councilors, confused at why they’d needed to call her just for a simple thank you. “Anyone would have done the same in my shoes, councilors,” she replied after a moment.

The newly appointed human councilor, former Captain Anderson, spoke up with a light shake of his head. “No, not anyone. You went above and beyond, and even faced Saren yourself, putting yourself in harm's way when you didn’t have to.”

“It is for this reason, we’d like to appoint you as a spectre,” Valern commented.

Nyra blinked and then looked between them all before glancing at Shepard who was giving her a small grin. “I….but…” she trailed off and glanced away for a moment. They didn’t even believe she was anything more than a drow. How could she in good consciousness accept it when they didn’t want to acknowledge that? That’s when an idea came to her as she felt a whisper of Atteran in her mind.

“I’ll accept this honor...but only if Tevos will use her abilities to mind link with my own. Before you get upset about this, it’s because I don’t want you to accept me under the false pretenses that were caused due to amnesia.”

All four councillors shared a look, although Anderson seemed to be the least upset about it while the others discussed her offer. Finally, Tevos fixed her gaze on Nyra. “Very well,” she said before she stepped forward.

The asari closed her eyes for a moment as she put her hands on Nyra’s shoulders. Then she opened them while saying “Embrace Eternity!” and the two of them were thrust into Nyra’s mind.

When they finally emerged, Tevos looked a little dazed and shocked. Nyra blinked to clear her head, but otherwise didn’t react. With her own strength of mind accompanied by the trails of power from Atteran, she was able to steer Tevos down the paths she needed to to explain to the councilor everything she deemed was relevant.

She was Eamonic, she was from the cycle before this one. She’d fought against the Reapers. She left out any parts pertaining to Atteran as there were still too many unknowns about him, besides, it wasn’t important at this point in time.

“By the Goddess,” Tevos exclaimed softly. “Those...machines, and you’re people.”

Nyra nodded. “I tried to explain to you before Shepard went to Ilos, but we didn’t have the time and you three weren’t willing to listen. I am the last one of my kind, but I will do everything in my power to stop what happened to my people from happening again.”

“Then we will do what we can to assist. I think now you are even more deserving of the title Spectre. With this, you’ll be able to go and do things we can’t, and help protect the galaxy better than we can from here.”

Nyra dipped her head in acknowledgement. “Then I accept.”

Tevos smiled and stepped back. “Then It is the decision of the Council that you be granted all the powers and privileges of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel.”

“Spectres are not trained, but chosen. Individuals forged in the fires of service and battle; those whose actions elevate them above rank and file,” Valern continued.

“Spectres are an ideal, a symbol. The embodiment of courage, determination, and self-reliance. They are the right hand of the Council, instruments of our will,” Anderson chimed in.

“Spectres bear a great burden. They are protectors of galactic peace, both our first and last lines of defense. The safety of the galaxy is theirs to uphold,” Sparatus said.

“You are the first and last Eamonic Spectre, carry this accomplishment with pride,” Tevos finished.

Nyralyn dipped her head. “Thank you.”

Tevos then looked at Shepard once more. “Since you’ve accepted the role, we’ll let you know what we were telling Shepard. While the geth are gone from the Citadel, there are still some stragglers in Council space. We want Shepard to head out and track them down. Meanwhile, with your knowledge, we would like you to begin preparing for the possible Reaper invasion.”

Nyra shared a look with Shepard. There was no if, ands, or buts, the Reapers would come. Sovereign had said so himself, but Nyra decided not to bring that up, if only because she understood that to keep the peace, the Council would have to fabricate some sort of story. Nyra just hoped that they wouldn’t start believing the lie themselves. She then focused on the council again and gave a nod. “Understood. But...I may need a ship,”

“We can help you with that,” Anderson said.

She gave another dip of her head. “Then I’ll head out as soon as I can,” she said.

“Good, you two are dismissed,” Tevos told the two women.

With that, both Shepard and Nyra headed for the exit. Once they were outside the room and the door had closed behind them, Nyra turned to Shepard. “Did you know they were going to do that?”

“You mean grant you spectre status? Yes. I actually recommended you. You’ve done so much, probably more than you had to to help us save the galaxy. If you hadn’t been with us, who knows if we would have defeated Sovereign, Saren, and the geth?”

“I see...well, I do appreciate your confidence in me. But you are aware that I had help right? Atteran was able to shield my mind from Sovereign, and he was the one who tore Saren apart.”

“I...yes, I know. But even without his help, you still did plenty more. You deserve this, stop trying to be so humble and just accept it,” Shepard said, putting a hand on Nyra’s shoulder.

Nyra let out a huff of air. “Fine...Thank you, Shepard.”

Shepard gave her a smile. “I don’t know about you, but I consider you a friend, so please, call me Elizabeth, Liz for short.”

Nyra smiled back. “Alright, Liz...are you going to the club with the others? Wrex invited me to celebrate with them.”

The other woman nodded and removed her hand from Nyra’s shoulder as her gaze seemed to catch onto someone behind Nyra, something sparkling in her silver eyes. “Of course, I’ll see you there?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Chapter Text

As Elizabeth left, Nyra turned around and spotted Thane sitting in a nearby chair. His eyes were closed and he appeared to be meditating. The purple-skinned woman smiled and walked over, sitting nearby, but being careful not to disturb him. She didn’t feel the need or urge to meditate herself just yet, so she instead kept silent.

At first, she watched people as the walked by, but eventually, her gaze shifted to watch him. She trailed the lines and shapes of his face with her eyes, a content smile on her face. She didn’t think she would ever get tired of his face, especially when he looked so at peace.

Eventually, the drell opened his eyes, gaze sliding to meet hers and a smile appeared on his lips as he seemed to notice her appraising look. “See something you like, Siha?” he asked.

She blinked at his words, noting the slightly deeper tones in his voice as he’d spoken which shot a spark of heat straight through her. She felt the shimmering bond between them flare as he seemed to note her reaction.

She glanced away and cleared her throat. “Sorry for staring,” she said, her chest feeling a little tight.

“I don’t mind...so long as it’s you,” he said, reaching out to take her hands in his, giving them a light squeeze.

Her focus shifted back to him and their gazes met once more. She smiled at him. “Thane, why don’t we head back to my apartment and we can continue where we left off at the hospital? I believe we have some time before the party.”

His eyes narrowed a fraction as he smirked. “That sounds like a challenge,” he purred.

“Oh, you bet it is. Show me what those lips can do,” she responded.

He didn’t respond in words, but instead, leaned over and gave her a kiss. She took a deep breath in, catching his lemon and sage scent as she reached out and lightly gripped his shirt, pulling him closer to her. The two of them stayed locked like that for a little longer before Thane pulled away.

“Let’s go to the apartment before we end up doing this in public.”

She chuckled. “Yeah, that’s probably best,” she agreed before she stood. Taking his hand, the two of them then headed to the apartment.

A few hours later, Nyralyn stood in the bathroom as she was getting ready to celebrate with the others.  She’d already taken a shower, but now stood naked before the mirror, staring at the trails of turquoise scales that spread along her purple skin. She ran a hand over some of the scales, feeling their rough texture.

Seeing how many patches there were further showed how close she was to losing herself, and that thought terrified her.

As she stood transfixed at the new evidence of her slow transformation, she didn’t notice Thane until he spoke from where he stood in the doorway.

“Are the scales worrying you, Nyra?”

She jumped and blinked before she glanced over at him. She noted quietly that he’d already dressed and was watching her quietly with a soft look of concern.

Taking a deep breath, Nyra focused her attention back onto her reflection.

“Seeing them makes me realize how much I’ve pushed myself...I’m scared that I won’t be able to separate myself from Atteran. I’m scared that I’ll die,” she said softly, wrapping her arms around herself.

“I know how you feel, Siha. Any day could be our last either by the things killing us, or by falling in combat,” he said as he walked over. Gently, he placed a hand on the small of her back and turned her to face him.

As he did so, she unwrapped her arms and then placed them on his bare chest, tilting her head up to look into his eyes. His dark emerald gaze met her violet one and a smile sat on his lips. “What matters most is living every day to the fullest, spending as much time as you can with the ones you love,” he said before he leaned down to give her a quick kiss on the lips.

She smiled back, shifting her arms to pull him into a hug. “Thank you, Thane.”

“For you, anything, Siha,” he replied, his breath rustling the drying strands of her hair.

She then pulled away far enough to look him in the eyes again. “By the way, you still have to tell me what Siha means.”

“My apologies.”

Nyra shook her head with a smile. “We never really had much time to do so earlier, so I’m not blaming you.”

He nodded in response, his hands shifting along her still-naked body to lightly grab her hands. “Siha is one of the warrior angels of the Goddess Arashu. Fierce in wrath. A tenacious protector.”

She blinked and was silent for a moment as she took that kernel of information in. This whole time he’d been calling her an angel from his pantheon. She then smiled and placed a hand on his cheek. Words couldn’t really describe her feelings, but she felt blessed to be considered something with such significance to his people.

Like a firework in her mind, a phrase she remembered from her own people came to mind. “ Dae’an kir arleith, von abei, ” she said.

The drell before her blinked in slight confusion. He looked like he wanted to ask what it meant, but before he could utter a sound, she lightly tugged on that soulbond between them as she sent the meaning to him through their bond.

My soul belongs to you, my love.

He stilled for a moment as he took in the information. Then he smiled and pressed his lips to hers. As they kissed, Nyra couldn’t help but think about all she’d gone through in the past year. All the struggles and close calls, but also the few moments of peace that allowed her to catch her breath.

Since waking up on the Citadel with Atteran in her mind, it struck her how lucky she was and she was grateful that despite everything that had happened, this moment and time with him was more than just a dream.