Chapter 3: An unexpected mission…

XXXXX

Shepard's group got back to their vehicles, with their prior arrangement, Shepard, Garrus and Kaiden got into their vehicle, while Tali, Ashley and the Elric brothers boarded their vehicle and followed after the others. Edward noted that there were emergency vehicles rushing to the site of explosion, with sirens and flashing lights.

In the vehicle, the group remained passive in silence, with Alphonse sitting next to Ashley, inquiring about stuff every so often, while Edward remained with Tali. Edward was a little unsure of how to strike up conversation with the alien, but he decided to try.
"So, I'm just wondering but why do you wear a mask?" Ed asked curiously.

Tali having been asked the question quite a few times replied. "Oh, well it's a necessity for my species; we don't have a strong immune system to survive outside of our suits, the environment we usually reside within it very sterile, so our bodies have been unable to adapt to any other environment, coupled with weak immune system, it'd be hazardous if not fatal for us to expose ourselves to any foreign environment."

"I see, that sounds problematic." Edward said in comprehension.

"It is, seeing as we can't really expose ourselves unless in a clean room and even then there's a slight risk." Tali said dismissively.

It was then Tali asked him. "How did you manage to make the air ignite like you did before? That strange light which came from your hands."

"Oh, right, you don't know what alchemy is." He said as he recalled that this world possessed nothing like alchemy at least not from what he had seen.

"Alchemy? Is that some form of new scientific principle?" Tali asked as she thought over what she had witnessed at the alley.

He scratched his head a little uncertain of where to begin explaining. "Sort of, it's complicated, to say the least, if you aren't familiar with our natural laws, then it's a bit of a pain in the neck to give you a more detailed explanation, to put it simply it is the understanding our environment, and the universe through the study of science and the application of it through alchemy. In a way, we study the compositions of elements and understand how they interact with one another and how they form." He said trying to recall the definitions; there were a few separate interpretations of alchemy around.

"And then we apply it to the universe as we understand, though your mileage may vary, it takes a certain number of factors to keep into account, one being the availability of energy and having all the correct compositions required for successful construction or constitution." He said as he recalled the general purpose.

"That sound very complicated." Tali remarked.

"Yeah I can imagine how difficult that'd be." Ashley said while rolling her eyes. "It sounds way more complicated than learning about just physics and general relatively through mass effect fields."

"Simply putting it, as long as we know what we are shaping, and how much effort or energy is required to altering its state and knowing what to shape it into. We could alter the state of matter as necessary, though compounds unfamiliar to us, or materials mixed with a wide variety of different compounds can delay the effect of transmutation, it is still applicable."

"The trouble is knowing exactly how much energy to use and where to get it. Normally we'd use thermal energies generated by a planet, and other times someone even tried using solar energy, though it had some success. Our other methods of trying to use energy can differ greatly, some more ethically questionable or morally empty." Edward said a little darkly.

The way he worded his last sentence definitely caught the attention of Ashley and Tali, but Alphonse was quick to end this topic.
"We just made sure that the water we diffused was enough to cover the area around the assassins, it wasn't that complicated, as water is rather basic in components. As for the pipes in the area, all I did was slightly rupture one so that it would cover the immediate area around the assassins."

"Impressive work, though I'm not sure how practical it would be in the field, I mean we're not going to be around where water is readily available." Ashley pointed out.

Alphonse acknowledged this issue before adding. "We know that. But we can help in environments in other ways, like building obstacles or helping to cover you when you need to move, Edward is the more martial than I am though, not like I wouldn't fight when needed, though I'd prefer not to fight."

"Hey guys we're making final approach, better buckle in." Ashley advised.

The two vehicles approached the Citadel Tower, their objective completed, their main concern now was the evidence provided by Tali to the Council, which might be an easy task. The nature of the Quarians is something of suspect due to their past history, and the social stigma which has arisen over the years since their exodus from their homeworld.

It can be said that this stigma had unfortunately festered into unwarranted amounts of bigotry and racism towards Quarians due to their circumstances, for the most part, the Systems Alliance had little to no contact with the Quarians Migrant Fleet, the fleet comprised of thousands of ships and had a population in the millions.

The Alliance's colonies hadn't encountered them, but many Citadel races claim that when they do come, it'll be a very difficult time getting them to leave quickly due to the amount of garbage and refuse they leave behind. In any event, nothing has yet happened, but this imagery formed by the Council has made way to the Alliance's opinion being rather skewered by the Council's races.

In any case, this didn't apply to Alphonse or Edward, who were both treating Tali as if she was any normal girl, aside from being stuck in a suit. Shepard was indifferent, she trusted Tali for now, as she was proving to be an asset, beyond that, and she reserved no opinion of the girl and left it at that.

As for the rest of the team, Garrus was well new, so his opinions didn't have a serious influence, he had been dealing with Quarians for years, so he had some level of respect for them, he didn't know a lot about them though, handling them as regular citizens in the Citadel. Kaiden never encountered a Quarian before, so this was new to him.

Ashley on the other hand still harboured a level of distrust towards aliens, and thanks to what happened on Eden Prime it didn't help. Though Ashley's experience with Quarians was mixed, thanks to her time garrisoned at various outposts and installations, her opinion was driven by a few encounters, none of them particularly bad, but not good either.

"Hey we're coming up on the Citadel Tower…" Ashley said as they made their final approach.

The brothers along with their new Quarian friend stared out at the tower, the long pristine tower extruded many meters above the presidium. Alphonse asked excitedly.
"Brother, how big do you think that tower is?"

"I dunno, it's bigger than the Eiffel tower, we saw in Paris, I don't think there are many which can remotely match it in terms of scale." Edward remarked as he drew comparisons in his head.

"This is the first time I've seen this tower, it's impressive to say the least, I've only heard stories from other people about how far that tower extends, and the rest from holographic images." Tali commented as they made their approach.

"Alright, buckle up; we're going to be entering from one of the internal transit bays." Ashley said as their vehicle began to slow down and approach a wide opening bay which extended from the side of the tower.

XXXXX

The pair of hover cars landed at the Citadel Tower's internal transit bay, after waving their IDs and confirming their appointment, they were granted parking at the first row inside, where ease of access was made for people who had important sessions or meetings with the Council. That said the express access had the tightest security as well.

They had to pass through a security checkpoint before being permitted access, and then take a secure elevator up to the floors above where they were greeted by a waiting pair of men, Captain Anderson and Ambassador Udina. Anderson was the first one to greet them.
"Shepard, it's good to see you, we've been hearing of quite a few reports circulating around the Citadel."

"Yeah funny story about those incidents." Shepard said with a measure of humour.

Udina didn't really bother at this point of waiting around, he interjected promptly.
"I take if you've managed to get the data on Saren's involvement?" He asked.

"Wow, antsy now aren't we?" Ashley remarked from behind Kaiden.

Shepard excused the ambassador's rude interjection, mainly because they were indeed running out of time, and their next Council session was within the next half an hour.
"Yes, this Quarian had managed to secure the data we need, and a piece of evidence to prove it as well." Shepard explained to the man.

The ambassador eyed Tali for a moment, he was incredulous about the nature of this Quarian, seeing as the past stereotypes and rumours about them weren't particularly positive. However if it helped in the goal of bringing Saren to justice then he couldn't argue. "Good, hopefully the mess that was caused by all of this will be put to good use." He said as he gestured to them.

Udina went on ahead as Anderson addressed Shepard again.
"I'm glad you made it through, for a second there, I thought you'd get into more trouble than it was worth."

"Trouble has a habit of finding me more often than not." She told Anderson promptly.

"So I can see. Who are your new friends?" Anderson gestured to the waiting Turian and Quarian.

"That is Garrus, C-Sec officer, he helped me track down Fist and get him, he's also the one who has a thing out for Saren, and he seems like someone of good integrity and good shooting."

"I aim to please." Garrus said from behind.

"And this is Tali, I've already explained it, but she's helped out quite a bit by getting us this information, she's been through quite a bit of an adventure."

"Greetings Captain Anderson." The girl said with respect.

"Nice to meet you." Captain reciprocated a curt response.

"She's handy with a gun, and she's a technical specialist, something of a complete package." Shepard remarked from their short encounter.

Anderson then looked over to Edward and Alphonse. "And how did our new guests handle themselves?" He inquired.

"Better than I could have imagined, they practically wiped the deck in terms of my expectations, blew up an entire alleyway, and allowed us to rush Fist with ease." Shepard said grinning.

"Sounds like high praise." Anderson said with a warm smile.

"We know what to do in most situations, and I've had years of experience." Edward remarked.

Alphonse nodded. "And we both trust one another when it comes to acting out a plan."

"At least to the extent of getting it done, albeit it doesn't always work out as well as we hope." Edward stated. "Results can vary."

"Back on the matter at hand, if I might be so blunt." Udina interjected.

Anderson nodded, he knew time was short. "The Council's prepared; they're not pleased with the amount of controlled chaos you've managed to inflict, though, that'll have to be addressed later."

"Understood." Shepard replied.

"What's the game plan?" Shepard asked.

Anderson gave his response. "With the evidence in our possession and the fact Saren's unavailable we still have the capacity to turn things around."

The ambassador feeling a little impatient but eager interrupted. "Yes, with this evidence, it might be enough to sway support in our favour, and maybe push the Council to allow us to pursue Saren; in that event, you might become our first candidate for Spectre."

"If that's the case, then this'll be one momentous occasion to remember." Shepard remarked.

"I'm not going to lie to you Shepard, the shoes you're going to be stepping into won't be as easily defined with good or evil, whatever choice you make, you do so following your judgement. Know when to act, and when to stay your hand, or it might cost you more than your position." Anderson warned her.

He then said with some measure of enthusiasm. "You've got the makings of a great Spectre; I can't give you more than assurances, what happens after this you better be prepared. For better or worse, I most certainly hope you can do better."

The commander nodded appreciatively, she knew that this was going to be a momentous day, assuming that they managed to pull through this and convince the Council to permit her entry into the Spectres. It was quite a time for her to feel excited, nervous, but also confident, there was no going back and she knew it, the path was set.

As the Council chamber began to fill once more, Udina got their group moving, they were first in through the large double wide doors of the Council chamber. The group was beholden to the sight of the inner Council chamber, multi storey tall section with an open view of the Citadel and the Serpent Nebula beyond, a large dais like stage held over the lip of a circular pit garden which was used as a sort of decorative reservation.

The young brothers looked around at their surroundings quite enticed by the wondrous sight of the Council chamber that grabbed their attention. This place was quite beautiful; the lighting from above illuminated the interior well, while giving it the vibe of prominence, such as the planted vegetation and balconies which surrounded the chamber.

It was strange to see so much greenery within the confines of a building, that and the number of representatives and those of various offices who participated in the Council's sessions. This scenery

The chambers soon became hushed as the session began; the Councillors stepped in one by one. From a short distance Edward heard Ashley mutter.
"Here comes the fun part."

XXXXX

The Council had been assembled, the Councillors, representatives of their respective governments and races, each was an embodiment of their people's will, each following the principles of their duty and carrying it out. Of course they did this in the political arena with the intention to benefit their people, though this has changed through time.

In reality the image of the Council was supposed to represent the greater galaxy, but was fraught with contention, internal conflict and politicking which caused a great deal of deadlocks, and tension. It was one reason why the Terminus Systems ended up being formed, though most were anarchist system ruled by dictators or rogue states, all born thanks to the Citadel Council.

But it was here that mankind had opted to support, despite the ongoing issues which were being continuously disputed throughout human space. Of course Shepard wasn't the best voiced individual when it came to Council politics; she was however smart enough to know that the Alliance was determined to gain further support in establishing a position of power.

For both economic and political gain, one would voice that this seems extremely short sighted, which to be perfectly frank, this wasn't an unfair observation.

"This meeting of the Council is now in session, continuing on from the agenda the day prior, regarding the investigation of the Spectre Saren Arterius, and the suspect attack on the colony of Eden Prime by the Geth."

"Councillors, we have managed to procure new evidence in light of the investigation, which implicates Saren Arterius in the attack on Eden Prime by the Geth."

This news certainly surprised the Councillors.
"New evidence, from where?"

"A Quarian." Udina said promptly.

"A Quarian, what sort of joke is this?" Sparatus said incredulously.

"Shows how much the Council respects the values of sentient life…" Tali muttered in anger.

"We assure you, the information provided is solid, and the evidence is there, our guest has even the solid evidence to prove that this attack was perpetrated by Saren Arterius."

"Oh come now-." He didn't finish belittling the Quarian.

"Any and all evidence must be considered Sparatus, that is due process, and as much as the Quarians are no longer part of the Council races, I do remind you that they are still inhabitants of our space. Regardless of whether they have a homeworld or not." Tevos said sternly to the Turian councillor. "The word of an individual has the right to be heard."

"I agree." Valern commented.

Sparatus realised that he had overstepped his place and made himself look like a fool, but he was stubborn in his attitude, he conceded. "Very well, present your findings."

"Tali you're up." Shepard said to the young girl. "Do you best, and don't worry too much about anything else besides the evidence." She tried to encourage the young girl.

Tali nodded before she stepped up to the podium set out before the councillors.
"Councillors, this is a Geth data storage module, an intact one which I had carefully salvaged while on a research operation in the Terminus Systems, it was part of a strike force being built within a system near the relay heading to the Attican Traverse. This Geth was damaged by accident and left in the open where I removed the core unit's module." She told them as she brought the small module up.

"Is that even possible? From our own researchers, the Geth modules recovered from Eden Prime were all fried." Valern said with a quizzical look.

"This was by accident, not by deliberate damage, the Geth have very specific functions for scenarios, this one was still active, and hence didn't completely erase the data, it took great deal of care, but I managed to recover the necessary data before the unit realised the intrusion. The unit fried some of the data, but not all of it. I was able to salvage data information regarding Saren's involvement, and a few other pieces of information."

"Then present it to us." Tevos said curtly.

The image of Saren's face appeared; he looked content, and quite determined.
"-now the way is open, with the Alliance outposts tied down with our pre-emptive attacks, this will buy us an opening to attack Eden Prime. From there, we will recover the ci-"

"There's still more to this." Tali said as she then brought up another snippet of information.

"Your aim is to wipe out the Alliance colonies in the region, after our first strike upon Eden Prime; I will wash this galaxy in the blood of those humans." Saren said with a deep sense of contempt echoing in his voice.

Throughout the chamber the evidence was laid clear, from the balconies above, the people murmured at this new development, there was quite a bit that they hadn't expected, and this most certainly brought a harsh light unto the Councillors and the Spectres. The distinct chatter amongst the crowds of observers dropped as the Councillor Tevos gestured for silence.

This new information was fairly incriminating, there was no two ways about it, and the Councillors looked to each other, Sparatus clearly having nothing to add.
"This new information is troubling for us as a whole…" Tevos paused before she then stated.
"With this incident and string of attacks by Geth, it cannot be ignored that the actions of Saren Arterius cannot be condoned, and his status of Spectre called into suspect. However, this will require a moment of deliberation; the Council will enter into a momentary recess." Tevos announced promptly.

The Council chamber emptied as the sound of a bell tolled, ending the current session, the crowds of observers on the balconies began to exit from the chamber, many were talking amongst themselves about this new development, no doubt something had to change.

"So what do you think will happen?" Shepard asked the ambassador.

"Hopefully his status is revoked and the galaxy is put on alert for the bastard, meanwhile there is still an opportunity for us to salvage something from all of this. Our position is stronger than before, and the Council had made mistakes, we have leverage." The man stated confidently.

"They won't risk attempting to alienate the human race as is, with support from this new piece of evidence, the situation is in our favour. We will probably have the chance to press for another chance to elect a Spectre, assuming we could push for it, the Council knows that your involvement

It was about an hour later when the session resumed, the Councillors looked tense, but they were resolute, things had seemed to have changed, seeing as how Sparatus prostrated himself rather unhappily. His stance prior was fairly opposed, but it seemed as though Tevos and Valern had managed to pull the argument onto their side.

Tevos began.
"In light of the new evidence, and circumstances, the Council has determined that Spectre Saren Arterius status be revoked, and will be apprehended with any all force necessary, though in light of circumstances, this will prove difficult."

"Commander Shepard, in light of your actions, and by extension the Systems Alliance, you had performed exemplary under the circumstances. It is with this Council that you be granted status as Spectre." Tevos declared.

A deep murmur ran through the Council chambers, those seated atop the balconies looking down watched eagerly as Shepard stepped forward. The redhead woman was gestured by her comrades and superiors.
"Go forward." Anderson smiled to her.

Shepard stepped onto the podium before the Council, each Councillor eying her intently, they heled themselves accordingly.
"Commander Shepard, on this day it has been decided by this Council that you be granted the title of Spectre. This is a great burden to bear, and an obligation which entitles a great deal of risk, but Spectres are chosen, for their courage in the face of adversity."

Sparatus continued aloud. "They represent the best within the Council, the dutiful, willing and able minded, capable of undertaking great risks and great pains to ensure the safety and security of the Council."

Valren then picked up after Sparatus. "The Spectres are diligent and ingenuous, displaying a mindset to overcome obstacles and complete their mission overall, they represent the brightest and most determined of the Council. And uphold their obligations."

"Commander Shepard, do you swear upon to the Council, to uphold these obligations and responsibilities with which the Spectres demand?"

"I do." Shepard responded confidently.

"Then place your hand on the pedestal." Tevos said as she illuminated it.

"Commander Shepard, it is with great honour that this Council grants you the status of Special Weapons and Tactics Reconnaissance, with this oath you have sworn, you shall uphold the values and duties to the Council." Tevos declared as the pedestal glowed.

"You may remove your hand." She indicated as the official status was signified.

Ashley and Kaiden were all looking quite impressed with how things were going, as for Edward and Alphonse, their curiosity was only further increased by their desire to know what was happening.

"That settles that then." Udina said curtly as they looked around.

Crowds were clapping in applause at this momentous occasion, today heralded the beginning of a new chapter, for the galaxy at large.

"Commander Shepard, as your first assignment by this Council, you are given the task of apprehending the renegade Spectre or eliminating him." Tevos said to her seriously.

"I understand." Shepard replied, understanding the severity of what was being demanded of her.

"Very well, this session of the Council is ended, however formal proceedings regarding the initiation of a new Spectre will commence shortly.

"Is this a fully formal event?"

"It is, however as the needs of your assignment do take precedence, this will take only a short period." Tevos explained.

"Very well."

XXXXX

Shepard and company were dismissed once formalities were completed, Shepard got a nice little badge marking her status as Spectre, as for the rest of the details, they'd be handled later, right now Anderson and Udina were going over matters for the future, mostly Udina trying to secure a position with the Council.

Anderson was going around and formalising the transfer of the Normandy to Shepard, seeing as how she would need a ship, Normandy was the best there was, and with the danger Saren represented, it was highly unlikely that the Alliance would deny the request. This made things much easier for Shepard now, though support was expected to be limited.

The knowledge that Saren had effectively escaped their grasp had gotten a lot of attention, news of the renegade Spectre had yet to be publicised, though plans were being drawn up by the Council to disseminate the information around, they determined that Saren's status would remain normal for a little over 48 hours before they made the switch.

It was also to allow them the chance to prepare a response to whatever might come from the general public throughout the galaxy. In any event, this was the time in which they also knew that they owed the Systems Alliance more credit, with the evidence proving Saren's guilt, they had to make an apology of sorts to the Alliance or be publically condemned for making such a massive mistake in criticising the human race for trying to prove their innocence.

In any case politics running as usual, Shepard took her new crew back to the ship, they parked their vehicles by the wards near the docks, from there Shepard and gang were heading back to the Normandy, mostly for setting up billets for Garrus and Tali and the two Elric brothers. There were still plenty of things to handle, but it seemed another interesting development lay ahead.

Upon their trip down to the wards, the team was greeted by a very large fellow, one which Shepard recalled.
"Hello, I don't believe we've met." She said, though she had spotted him in Chora's Den before the raid she launched.

"Urdnot Wrex, I was a merc who was hired to deal with Fist, it seems you got to him first. My congratulations, and also this payment." The Krogan greeted her.

"Payment?" She said perplexed.

"I don't like getting paid for something I haven't done, you earned this by dealing with Fist, so to the victors. I'm just pissed I didn't get the chance to go and kick the shit out of Fist myself." Wrex said with a grin.

She took that compliment well and made her own remark. "Thanks, and yeah, Fist is quite the pain in the ass, he put up quite a fight, but we managed to take him."

"In any case, I hear you've gotten into the position as Spectre, at least that's what the whole buzz around the Citadel is, and whole galaxy's going to know it in a week."

"News travels fast, I'll give em that." Shepard remarked. "Are you looking for employment?"

"Depends, I heard about Saren, the rogue Spectre now, you going to go and hunt him down?" The battle worn looking Krogan asked.

"How did you hear that?" Shepard asked.

"I've got a few old contacts around the Citadel, I've lived long enough to get around, and I was under his employment once."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, once, but I got out before something bad happened, a really smart move on my part."

"Sounds like an interesting proposition, and it wouldn't help if I did get some extra muscle, considering my new position as Spectre." Shepard said with a shrug. "Besides we're not going to be getting a lot of support, we're getting whatever the Alliance can afford to give us; requisitions will probably be a pain on top of that." Shepard said as she thought about what the Spectres manual stated about securing individual equipment and personnel for assignments.

"I'd say it's a sound decision, besides Wrex is a seasoned fighter from his appearance. Needless to say, you never know when you really need a Krogan in a firefight." Garrus said as he advised Shepard..

"Talking from experience?"

"I've tangled with more than once Krogan in my lifetime can't say that they're easy to deal with, at least when they're ready to rumble, they're as tough as they come."

"But you've never seen many battle masters of my calibre."

"True, I'll give them that, battle masters are as tough as they come."

Shepard pondered on the thought.
"Alright I'll think about your proposal, I've got to get my new crew members stowed away first though. I suppose having a veteran merc in the mix of things wouldn't hurt in the long run."

The Commander took the crew back up the elevator, making their goodbyes with Wrex, Shepard secured his contact details, but it seemed Wrex would be spending a bit of time down in the wards, so there was a good chance she could hire him then.

XXXXX

Returning back to the ship, the crew were greeted by the sight of the Normandy, Tali and Garrus seemed to take in the sleek elegance of the new frigate with great appreciation for the design put into the craft.
"She's a beauty ain't she?"

Edward and Alphonse had never seen a starship before, but they were quite encapsulated by the beauty of the vessel, Shepard urged them onwards.
"Come along, we'll have a quick gander inside, and then you can get some rest, we still have another day before departure." She said as they went to the docked vessel.

Upon entering the CIC Shepard had returned to greet Joker in the cockpit.
"How are things here?"

"About as well as you can expect, and Commander is it true we're getting a pair of German transfer students? Are they hot?"

"Well if you're into blonde haired blue eyes and being just under 6 feet and male, then they're yours." Shepard remarked as she thumbed the two young men stepping through the airlock.

Edward and Alphonse was helped by Kaiden and Ashley towards the elevators, no doubt they'd need to find quarters to allow them to stay in. As for the others, Garrus and Tali were brought in shortly afterwards, they were going to hang back somewhere else though so Shepard to speak with them.

"Ah, well that went homo pretty fast." He remarked before smirking.

"Homo-erotica aside, I'm assuming that the Normandy's nearly ready to get going?" She asked.

"Pretty much in ship shape, though I am kind of bummed that Anderson won't be with us." Joker said with a slight tone of disappointment, he seemed to appreciate having Anderson aboard.

Shepard tried to console Joker. "He's got his place right now, staying here he can help me and the Normandy out more, besides it was determined that this was going to be my mission as Spectre, Alliance figures that it wouldn't be best to hold my hand every step of the way."

Nodding in agreement he replied. "True, image apparently matters a lot to them."

"So was there anything important I needed to look through?"

"Not much, I think there are some data pads on your console by the galaxy map, requisitions and a few personal articles for you."

"Alright, we'll talk later."

"See ya Commander." Joker said with a lazy wave as Shepard turned back to the CIC.

The commander passed a few crewmen who had been filing reports and making the changes necessary for her, as she was to assume command of the Normandy. She took a minute to go over the various reports; she was rather perturbed that there were so many reports coming in. She had training as an officer, but she didn't think she'd need to go over so many details.

As she took the documents, she went down to the lower floor to take the elevator; no doubt she was going to have to deal with the immediate concerns from the newest arrivals, Garrus and Tali before she met with the requisitions officer. As she stepped into the commons area, she was greeted by Kaiden who was helping to settle their new guests in.

Garrus and Tali were down by the table, both discussing something regarding Fleet and Flotilla, apparently Garrus hadn't seen as much of the show or took a great deal of interest seeing as how he shrugged a little dismissively at a query the Quarian girl made.

"Shepard, glad you could join us."

"Garrus, Tali, I know that this will take a little bit of time to adjust, but I'm making arrangements for letting you billet aboard, thanks to Spectre privileges I can afford to take additional personnel aboard, as contractors in this situation."

"Do we get paid?"

"Not much I'm afraid, I have to use funds from my personal reserves and whatever the Council and Alliance can afford. And maybe some private business ventures." She said with a shrug.

"Well at least we'll be partaking in this great mission." Garrus remarked.

"Anyway I was about to go down now and check inventory, thanks to the Alliance seeing a need for us to hunt down Saren, I'm going to get a proper inventory of all necessary equipment and materials we will need. Also this is the best time for all of you to go and stock up on necessities, not to many things, we've got only so much space and I don't want the crew to grumble about the living quarters getting stuffed." Shepard replied as she looked over a datapad.

"Alright we'll see you later Commander." Garrus said as she left to ride the elevator.

"Right, if you need special requirements for habitation ask Kaiden, he'll be able to arrange something hopefully if not then bunk as the rest of us." She said as she entered the elevator.

Once the doors closed, Shepard thought about the future of her mission, not to mention considerations she'd have to make with sticking another alien crewmate aboard. She thought about Wrex's proposition, which seemed all nice and dandy, having a Krogan battlemaster aboard would certainly improve combat capabilities.

Still adding another mouth to feed was going to take its toll sooner or later, and there were her other issues, mostly assignments which were soon to be passed in her direction and a few private matters she needed to look into.

XXXXX

Meanwhile…

Edward and Alphonse took some time to get acquainted with the ship, mostly gawking at the various pieces of technology, such as holographic interface technology, sliding automatic doors, getting a tour around the engineering section and examining the starboard and portside of the ship, it was all such a fascinating experience for both brothers.

Alphonse couldn't imagine how far humanity had come from building small aircraft and airplanes, the radio, rockets, so many inventors and visionaries who wished to touch the stars, and here they were. Mankind had rode on the wings of scientific progress and development and reached the heavens, and found life, which only raised more questions for the two brothers.

'Was this really what the future held for either of them?' Back in Germany they had learnt many things and saw the changing times.

Upheaval, depression, poverty, racism, and war, it made both of them wonder if all of that would be gone in their lifetimes should they return, it was fascinating and at the same time it was also a little disconcerting. In the grand scheme of things, what place did they have? And more importantly, why did they have their powers returned?

But the world they had gone to, there was no indication of alchemy anywhere, unless you counted Edward's unexpected return by Alphonse who transmuted himself to allow Edward the chance to come back. But in this situation, the rules still applied in that instance, so there must have been something missing clearly as they both now had access to alchemy.

Edward and Alphonse had spent a little time familiarising themselves with the Omni-tools and how networks operated, they were pleasantly surprised to learn about how telephones had shrunk down to small micro sized pieces of technology and there were Omni-tools which could interface communication devices as well.

It was all so fascinating, as much as exploring the extranet, thanks to Ashley explaining how Omni-tools worked; she let them try doing their own searches, seeing as they were able to using the local networks. Much to their surprise, they were startled with so many applications, including the one with holo-video display, which they could watch animated recordings with sound.

Ashley had to impose a few parental safety features as she didn't want them to accidently start delving into the 'other' aspect of the extranet; one culture shock at a time was fine by her. In that period, the two brothers engaged in research, searching down as many possible avenues of alchemy, and much to their surprise, there was little to nothing.

Alchemy by this world's standards fell into things of mythology and pseudo-science, as an archaic development of chemistry, rather than any officially recognised scientific principle. Regardless, they learnt that the concept of alchemy did exist, but it was just a concept not a literal development of alchemy.

Still this gave the two a lot to think about, as they were now faced with a new development, why did no one else possess alchemy? The recordings and information provided to them revealed that most were just representation of what alchemy might be, no one has actually done it before, so it gave them quite a bit to think about.

But as they discussed their situation in their small bunk room which sat across from the other crewmen, and adjacent to Tali's which had to be specially refitted to allow Tali some breathing space. They were faced with an insurmountable number of possible scenarios and more to the point, questions that had no answer.

"What do you think brother?"

"I think we're in for quite a ride, to be perfectly honest." Edward replied as he looked things over saved in his favourite's folder.

The two of them knew that there was still quite a lot ahead of them, no doubt, Shepard explained that they were staying docked for another day and then they were leaving, after they restocked on necessary supplies and also Shepard had to settle a few personal errands and file a few reports in person to Captain Anderson, who no doubt supported Shepard as much as he could.

The two brothers took a moment to get some dinner and then some shut eye, having been awake for most part of the day, they were exhausted, and it was showing, at least with Alphonse. They had a lot more ahead of them; tomorrow they were leaving the Citadel, and heading off after Saren, no doubt an abundance of adventure waited over the horizon.

XXXXX

AN: That's all I could do for now guys, sorry, things have gotten a little difficult, I'll try squeezing in some more time, but no promises, I've got a lot on my plate at the moment.