It was a good thing they had been running because the area behind them suddenly seemed to buzz with life. Shepard glanced once over her shoulder, spotting what had to be at least a dozen rock crawlers running after them. Some of them even seemed bigger than the rest, meaning they were probably more dangerous.

"Keep running!" she said as she noticed that Thane and Garrus had glanced over their shoulders as well, startled by the low shrieks that the rock crawlers were letting out. If they could reach the ridge they could probably start shooting down the creatures, because running away from them for a long time wouldn't work. The rock crawlers ran forward in short, fast strides, dodging every tree and rock a lot better than any of them could and by the time the three humanoids had made some way up along the cliff ridge, they were already leaving the edge of the forest.

"Stop them!" Shepard ordered suddenly, her sharp voice cutting through the shrieks from the creatures. Garrus glanced briefly at Thane with a nod before he pulled out one of his weapons, letting off a concussive blast towards the left side of the creatures, scattering them and killing a few. Thane launched off his biotic attack towards the right side, throwing four rock crawlers back into the trees behind them.

"Nice," the Commander grinned, well aware that rock crawlers were still pursuing them but the attacks had at least bought them enough time to climb over the ridge's top. She had spotted the quick glimpse of an ocean not far off, realizing that they had to be getting close to the shuttle, probably just another forest patch between them.

She involuntarily paused at the sudden, familiar roar above them, turning around to look upwards, just as the Nuelthak landed at the ridge's top, its large wings spread out and shadowing the whole area. It lowered its head as it gazed at them before shrieking louder than ever.

Thane and Garrus had their weapons up, aimed at it as it turned its head to the side, red eyes watching them intently. Shepard pulled out her assault rifle, all the while working out a plan in her mind. Maybe if they were fast with shooting, they could move backwards and get in under the trees before the Nuelthak would get too close.

The Nuelthak's eyes flickered between them and particularly at the third weapon appearing, jaws trembling under the ongoing hiss. Shepard shifted her gaze from it, back to the rock crawlers that had made it up on the cliff now as well. Much to her surprise, one of the larger ones paused briefly before lunging towards the Nuelthak that had its back to them.

With its strong legs it managed to land right on the Nuelthak's back, tearing its sharp mandibles down in its little exposed flesh. The much larger carnivore reared up furiously, not having noticed the rock crawlers until now. It spun around before its tail swirled up to smack the rock crawler straight off its back, throwing it off somewhere in the foliage beyond the cliff.

The other rock crawlers had charged as well during the larger one's lunge, snapping their mandibles after the Nuelthak's feet and wings. It swiftly slammed its much larger feet down among them, crushing several rock crawlers in the process. Whether the attack from the rock crawlers was a natural one or just an act of aggression or desperation after chasing the humanoids, they didn't stand a chance against the Nuelthak and those few that lived quickly ran back down the ridge and in among the trees.

Shepard and her team hadn't been stupid enough to wait and see what happened but had moved down among the trees as well on the side facing the ocean. Taking every chance to run while the Nuelthak was fighting, they quickly made it through the foliage. By the time they reached the edge of the forest, they were all out of breath and Shepard paused, standing with her hands on her knees to catch her breath.

"Commander Shepard!" Miranda's voice reached Shepard and she looked up, spotting the other woman coming towards her, trying her best to hide her relief it seemed.

"We need to leave the surface immediately, the Nuelthak attacked us on our way here," Shepard said, as she stood up properly and caring little if she was blunt. The Nuelthak wouldn't be distracted by the rock crawlers for long.

"Right," Miranda nodded. "Everyone get inside the shuttle," she called out louder to the rest of the team, who quickly obeyed. That was what Shepard liked about recruiting people like them. They knew when to take a situation seriously and move when ordered.

She started to move herself, wondering briefly why the whole team was down here but she'd have to ask about that later. Not until everyone was inside the shuttle did she jump in herself, watching the doors close while whoever was piloting the thing brought them up in the air.

As they turned, Shepard moved in the shuttle, despite that it was pretty cramped with everyone onboard, not stopping until she could look out through one of the windows. She almost called out a warning to the pilot as she spotted the Nuelthak flying nearby, having fended off the rock crawlers with ease it seemed.

Her lack of command came from the fact that the Nuelthak wasn't really flying towards the turning shuttle. It was turning as well, carrying several limp rock crawlers in its talons. One gaze further ahead told Shepard where it was heading and a forced smile appeared in her face, as she folded her arms across her chest. At least this time the hatchlings would get their food.

It didn't take many minutes for the shuttle to return to the Normandy and Shepard in particular was very happy about being back on the ship. She stepped out first, nodding to the rest of the team as they stepped out as well to head back to their stations. Most likely she'd be asked questions later about what had really happened but for now her expression clearly spoke of wanting to get medical treatment and rest. She needed to allow herself that at least.

"Miranda, I got a question for you," she spoke up as soon as most of the others had gone for the elevator. Garrus and Thane quickly exchanged a look, being the last in line, while Miranda nodded towards Shepard.

"I was told to ask you how you managed to track me," Shepard said, folding her arms across her chest with an arched eyebrow. Now that she had time to think about everything, she could very well suspect how they had managed to do so.

"We had to take precautions, Shepard. You're very valuable and we… didn't want to risk you leaving without us know where you'd go," Miranda frowned.

"I suppose I should have seen this coming after the lack of a control chip in my brain," Shepard shook her head. "And your little precaution did save my life I'll say. That's the only reason I'm not entirely pissed off at you. I've already said I've agreed to help you with this, yet still you persist with… trying to control my life in some way."

Shepard was too tired for an argument about this and she knew Miranda well enough by now. She was only trying to do her job, although the suspicion and constant Cerberus talks in the start had been pretty annoying to the Commander herself.

"If you want me to do my job, you need to start trusting me," Shepard sighed. "Can I ask you where this tracking device is or will I have to have someone check my armor?"

Miranda put her hands on her hips, looking slightly annoyed but not downright angry at least. "It's between the back plates in the armor," she shrugged. "It's the only one too. You need to understand, Commander, it was for the best."

"I'll decide what's best, Miranda," Shepard frowned coolly. Lifesaving or not, if she was going to be tracked by anyone, it certainly wouldn't be by Miranda or Cerberus.

"I'll write the report as soon as I can, so we can get this out of the way. Dismissed," the Commander finished the conversation, as she turned and left for the elevator. Miranda and the Illusive man could be however upset they wanted to. Since they needed her, they had no choice but to do things her way.

It took her awhile to finally reach her own quarters, because she had stopped by Mordin to get some treatment for the worst of her injuries. Despite being like a hamster on coffee, he hadn't spoken much about anything outside her injuries and the fact he was glad she had survived and was back on the ship, words Shepard appreciated to hear. After all, right now she just wanted some rest and friendliness before taking on the next mission.

Well, that was the end of this one. Woah, longest fanfic I've ever done. O.o

I'm tempted to continue the "Mission file" theme, which I probably will if I get new ideas and if the interest is there.

Thanks for reading! :)