For this you get The Cookie tm, I like the direction you are taking this tale. one of the more interesting view of the Mass Effect story. I will be watching for more. Vote for Tali for she is Waifu and adorable.

This is an interesting story, I've never actually played the game but, I do like stories that have been written about it that are well-written which this is.

I think by 'grand purpose' you mean a purpose that isn't blatantly right-wing authoritarian (collecting, taking, living in the void, being nothing, insuring galactic stasis). Oh wait, Evil is petty therefore can't be grand, merely garish and vulgar. So you specified, using metaphor, a non-Evil purpose and I suppose that's entirely correct if not up to the standards of bluntness I expect from you.

"Disarmed and disarmoured, Kaidan was now chasing it down and attempting to hack it, all while it was attempting to perform self-repairs." - Why does it read like this should be played to Yakity Sax?

"what do you mean geth in the cargo bay?" - I really hope this was said with an appropriate shriek of panic. (Don't worry, Tali, the Mako's VI will run it over if the geth gets troublesome.)

... Ugh, let's not get started on the Catalyst. Personally, I think it didn't actually wake up from sleep mode until Harbinger showed up to swipe the Citadel and was trying to BS Shepard all the way around.

"What do you think I'm going to use this ship for, picking up hot alien chicks?" - Well ... yeah.
But why is Hackett there? He should be running things from Arcturus? If anything, someone like Kahoku should be the one on-scene. Or the douche who shows up for an unannounced inspection.

The impression I got was the Spectres were chosen because of the skills they already possessed, and the Council was there to give them carte blanche to go out and deal with scumbags however they wanted.

"Some suspected a trap" I've thought since ME2 that part of the reason the Council are such obstructionish jackasses is because the Citadel very slowly indoctrinates people in the Tower. Where they spend all their time.

"I was wearing armour!"
"Against something that literally eats tanks for breakfast?" - Oh geez, this almost makes me wish for FShep for shipping instead. I'm going to assume your Shep is going for Liara or Tali? Ah, ending author note. My advice is go for Tali, as Liara becomes kind of a bitch in ME2.

"nobody in the ME universe uses prosthetics. Yes, Mass Effect isn't anything like Ghost in the Shell, but I'd expect at least the salarians to be really into it. " Actually, there's one reference to a renegade/exiled branch of the salarians called the Lystheni who do use prosthetics.

As for the geth, if you believe all the info you get from doing the mission for Legion, then the geth might well have kept a basic humanoid shape out of nostalgia or a desire to remain close to their creators.

Really well done. Much more personal than other ME stories. I also like Vanguard Shepard, it's a nice departure from the standard soldier. Your explainations for some of the more confusing subjects in the story, like Cerberus, are also welcome additions, and fit in with the feel of the original canon. Overall, well done, and please continue making more.

In ME1 the missions from Admiral Kohaku reveal that Cerberus were originally an Alliance Black-Ops/Research division, who then 'went rogue'. While The Illusive Man is mentioned in connection to Cerberus in the Codex files, it is not made clear when he joined forces with Cerberus - it is entirely possible that his 'secret identity' had had a semi-legitimate role in the management of Cerberus whilst it was still Alliance controlled

I feel that perhaps the explanation of biotics was a bit unclear as to whether natural biotics used amps at all "a natural biotic can manipulate biotic fields much more efficiently than one of the same species using implants"
I think I understand what you mean. Natural biotics probably manifest their biotics at some point through some kind of increased emotional response or focused training to get the same result, while other biotics need cybernetic implants to even access the smallest sliver of their potential, they could perhaps be called latent biotics, and there's some kind of standardized test to scout them, probably even before birth when they do DNA scanning or perhaps some sci fi style brain mapping.
And unless you go against what I remember from Mass Effect 1 they both use amps to, well amplify those abilities. That last point should probably be made clear for those less versed in canon or who perhaps has never played the game however unlikely that might seem.

Another excellent chapter!
I've got to say, I really love your rendition of Vasir, she's really amusing to read.
I hope you're able to update again soon.
Keep up the good work!

Interesting update, one thing I will say, is that it's possible that the prothens that disabled the switch, did so physically as in removed hardwired links that the AI couldn't replace or that couldn't be fabricated out of onboard resources.

Another great chapter, and I'm liking some of the changes you are making. Some things I'm a bit confused by, such as the indestructible citadel-will make things interesting to difficult for some of the plots in the three, also almost puts keepers out of a job. Either way, I definitely like the byplay in the convos (little things like Shepard using his ME fields naturally to dampen impact, Tali's breathing and hiding, etc. It's a lot of good, interesting thought added in, and I find it as a whole very enjoyable. I'm definitely looking forward to the next chapters and to see how you continually change and reshape things. Will also be interesting to see how a relationship develops, if any, and when. I'm still rooting for Tali, though. :D

As a random thought, when reading the scenes I was going to ask for a tali romance, for a few, self-serving reasons, but still. 1) you write very well and have good attention to details (sut intake, etc.) 2) It's a very interesting mechanic you can have the two discuss if/when they get intimate (adjusting to other's bacteria, etc.) 3) Tali is a very good character and 4) Quarien culture and differences could make for some very interesting intimate moments (such as pre-endgame), should you end up writing them. And I could probably keep going, but if you are taking suggestions, I'd suggest that. Personally I went along with Miranda the first time (after learning you can do stuff with the convos with crew), though I did start the series on ME2. *shrugs* Time to continue reading. I was ambivalent on this story, but "vanguards charge" really got to me and had to pick it up again.

This looks really good; I can tell you're focusing on tying threads through the saga.