Chapter Text
Illium - Commander Val Shepard
Shepard gives Seryna a conformational nod and walks away towards the taxi shuttle bay, Garrus and Miranda close behind. As Shepard approaches the podium, she raises her arm to cover her eyes from the harsh golden light as the sun sets on Illium. Light refracted off the dozens of glass windows on the sprawl of skyscrapers.
“Despite its appearances, Illium is no safer than Omega” Garrus commented, his visor reflecting the evening’s glow. Miranda moved her weight to her heels and folded her arms, wondering how prepared Nassana’s mercenaries would be.
Shepard, Garrus, and Miranda slide into the shuttle taxi and it takes off with a jolt. The shuttle glided past the busy Illium city life. The shuttle slowed down and lowered itself in front of Nassana’s tower. The squad exited the shuttle, hearing the echoing of gunfire and panic nearby. Without taking a moment’s thought, they drew their weapons and sprinted towards the screams.
Through a wall of glass, the crew sees Salarian construction workers under heavy fire from engaging the FENRIS and LOKI mechs. “Cover me!” commanded Shepard, aiming her pistol at the glass. Garrus raised his scope to his visor, taking deadly aim on the LOKI mech. Miranda’s eyes narrowed, glowing a bright bionic blue - poised to launch an attack on the FENRIS mech.
Glass shattered around the crew. Shepard jumped over the debris and took cover behind exposed concrete. Sounds of gunfire and gun fire returned echoed on the construction site of the tower, a worker’s frightened yelling coming from beyond the mechs. The mechs were quickly and permanently disabled by the crew’s deadly skill.
“Everyone in one piece?” Shepard’s concerned voice taking the place of the sound of combat.
"I’m good, You Miranda?” Garrus lowers his sniper.
“I’m alright Shepard” Miranda chimed in, standing up from behind a concrete slab.
“Let’s move on, I think I heard someone ahead” Shepard motioned with her gun.
Shepard finds the construction worker - a salarian - slumped against the wall, holding his side. “You’re injured, I have some Medi-gel. It’ll help”. Shepard leaned over the panting Salarian, her omni tool glowing brilliant neon orange.
“Nassana sent the mechs to round up all the night workers, including myself and to get rid of us immediately!” the worker spoke between pained gasps.
“We’re on the right track. Thane must be close” Shepard stood up and switched to her assault rifle.
“Are we sure about this Commander?” Garrus turns to Shepard. “A lot of trouble for an assassin.”
“Shepard and I heard from the Illusive man. Thane Krios is a Drell trained from childhood as an elite assassin, proficient in both long-range sniping kills and close infiltration. He’s exactly the kind of talent we need to take down the collectors.” Miranda commented.
“Thane is worth the trouble” Shepard agreed and began moving up the tower to Nassana.
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Illium - Thane Krios
"Amonkira, Lord of Hunters. Grant that my hands be steady, my aim be true, and my feet swift. And should the worst come to pass, grant me forgiveness.”
Thane’s hands clasp in one another, head bowed. His heart beat steady in his chest, his mind ready for the final kill. His dark eyes lift to see the setting sun. The light cannot reach Thane from the shadows that conceal him. The light warms the concrete of the tower construction site. He crouches down, opening a ventilation panel. The sound of a shuttle coming to a sudden halt and a soft breeze of cool air caught his attention. His eyes darted over to a womanly figure jumping out of the shuttle. Her feet gracefully landing on the ground, she immediately ran towards the sound of gunfire. No hesitation? He wondered. A Turian and human biotic were close behind the woman leading the charge. Thane secured his weapon and climbed into the shaft.
The sound of gunfire provided an excellent distraction. Thane climbed up ladders and crawled through tight ventilation shafts. Hiding in the infrastructure of the tower, not seen or heard. His skills as a hunter have been honed to their highest potential. If killing were an art, he was its master.
Finally, he sees his target. Nassana. Breathing in slow shallow breaths that fog the shiny metal ventilation shaft, Thane silently removes the cover and positions his body near the opening. The Asari faces the woman Thane saw before.
“Kill me then, I’m not playing your stupid games” Nassana turns to face the window. The Turian and the human biotic draw their weapons - and the attention of Nassana’s guards. “I’m not an assassin, Nassana. But I am looking for one.” The woman defiantly declares to Nassana. Furious, Nassana whips around and approaches the woman who stands bolding before her.“You break in here and decimate my security just to find the person’s who's in here to kill me?” Nassana exasperated. “What are you playing at, Shepard?” Nassana’s guards raise their guns. “What?!” Nassana’s voice was angry but held fear. “I heard something,” says an Asari commando. “Damn it. Check the other entrances''. The Asari commando walks away towards the door.
Thane sees his opportunity to strike and drops through the opening in the ceiling, silently landing in the room. He stays low, his eyes narrowed - focused. Lunging forward, his hands firmly grasping the guards head. A snap. He reaches for the other guard, giving no time for anyone to react. Thane wraps his hands around the guards face. Another snap. The Asari commando lunges for him, but Thane grabs her arm, removing her gun. A shot and the commando collapses. Nassana turns around but it’s too late. Thane has the gun to her gut and a hand gripping her shoulder. She can’t move. With a blast she falls into Thane’s arms that wrap around her body. He holds Nassana close and tenderly lowers her dying body to the table. He stands over her and bows his head.
“Kalahira, mistress of inscrutable depths, I ask forgiveness. Kalahira, wash the sins from this one, and set him on the distant shore of the infinite spirit.”
“I’ve been looking for you”. The woman - 'Shepard' Nassana called her - takes a step closer to him, the setting sun casts an orange glow on her pleasant face. takes a step closer to Thane. He looks up, seeing her closely for the first time. Her body has a gentle curve from her thighs to natural waist. Her arms lay loosely by her side. She has soft pink lips, complexion of small brown spots - perhaps little scales? Do humans have scales? Her green eyes fixed on him, waiting. “Thank you for waiting” He says and nods politely. He notices Shepard gently brush aside a dark strand of hair away from her brilliant green eyes. Thane suddenly felt fully present in that moment. He clenches his fist to conceal his feeling of surprise - surprise at the sensation of his battle sleep edging away, awareness entering his spirit.
“I saw you come in here. All this chaos and destruction. I wanted to see how far you would go to find me.” His voice was deep and rusty, his words directed to the woman - Shepard. “Well, here I am” He opens his arms in greeting. “I need you for a mission,” explains Shepard. “Human colonies are being abducted by the collectors. We are going to stop them”. Thane inhales sharply and turns away from Shepard to face the setting sun. “Attacking the collectors would require passing through the Omega4 relay. No ship has returned from doing so. Taking out Nassana was to be his last mission. Thane’s disease would soon overcome him. He planned on spending his dying days away from violence. But what was that back there? That sudden moment of clarity - of presence.
“They told me it was impossible to get to illos, too.” Thane nods, internally remembering the vids on Commander Shepard's victory at the Citadel. “A fair point. You have built your career on performing the impossible.” If nothing else, the woman Shepard was highly skilled. The knowledge of thousands of human colonists disturbed Thane. Retirement can wait, he isn't dead yet. “Low survival odds don’t concern me” Thane turns around slowly, locking eyes with the woman. “I’m dying”. Her face falls in genuine disappointment. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know. Is there anything I can do?” Her body moves slightly closer to him. Thane’s heartbeat quickens. “No, this opportunity is enough” He spoke with a calm voice, taking a half step closer to her. He tilts his gaze down slightly to meet her eyes. “The universe is a dark place” Thane speaks smoothly “I’m trying to make it brighter before I die”. Her eyes soften, his heart quickens and he looks away.
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Normandy - Commander Val Shepard
Shepard provides the coordinates to the bay where the Normandy is docked to Thane and returns to her quarters on the ship. Changing into her casual clothes, she wonders about him. Those dark eyes, you can’t help but lose yourself in them. His green smooth and scaly skin, those subtle ridges, his clothing cut loose but tight to his body. She had never seen such a person, she would have remembered such alluring features. And his presence? Collected, fully present, but yet holding back. Thane’s potential had her wanting to see him more. Her curiosity drove her thoughts as she zipped up her casual wear. She walks out of her captain's quarters and into the conference room where Jacob waits. Glaring at Thane who stands formally with his hands clasped behind his back. His chest pressed tightly against his low cut shirt.
“Are you serious commander?” Jacob angrily gestured at Thane, who narrowed his eyes. “Do you really expect us to trust an assassin? He’s just like any other mercenary, looking for a paycheck!”. “I accepted a contract. My arm is Shepards.” Thane looked to Val. She felt warm in his gaze. Jacob uncrossed his hands and opened his mouth, about to speak when Shepard interrupted. “That’s enough, Jacob. We have a job to do, keep it civil. Thane is on our side. He hasn’t done anything to earn our disrespect”
“Aye, Aye Captain” Jacob sarcastically walked out the room.
“I’d like someplace to put my things. Somewhere cool and dry if it is available”. Thane turned to Shepard, his hands held behind his back politely.
“I know just the place, follow me” Shepard motioned. Thane nodded and followed close beside her, noting she changed to a casual outfit. He admired the way it hugged her curves, now more pronounced without the layers of N7 armor hiding them. He watched her lead the way, hips swaying side to side as walked. He couldn't keep himself from staring.
“Sorry about that Thane. Jacob just feels threatened by you” Shepard looked to Thane, feeling her heart skip when he looked back with open, dark eyes. He stops. “I assure you, it wasn’t my intention to harm him.” [credit: @hanaraad, deviant art]. Shepard suddenly feels her cheeks warm. “That’s not the type of threat I meant…” Jacob has expressed interest in a relationship to Shepard before but she never felt the same way towards him. Thane tilted his head, confused. A thin membrane eclipses his eyes as he blinks. “Oh, it’s a human thing”. Shepard dodges the questioning look. “Hm” The sound rumbling in his chest. “You should stop by and tell me more of these ‘human things”. Thane motions to the elevator and they step inside. Shepard selects the third floor, Crew Quarters.
Shepard eyes Thane up and down, slowly. He wore skin-tight black leather with white geometric lining. The leather had multiple cut-outs throughout exposing shades of green, scaly skin. He wore a plated silver collar necklace about where the clavicles would be on a human male. Shepard could tell by the definition of his exposed chest that he was certainly more muscular and defined than other men she had met. He also had these eyes, large, glossy and black. They held such kindness and emotion behind them. Thane turned to face her, seeing her reflection in his eyes - she blushed.
"Something on your mind, Commander?" Thane asks, his voice calm and silky like a glass of bourbon on the rocks.
"I haven't seen many Drell before," she flustered. "But I haven't met many master assassins either," she commented. He nods respectfully.
"Perfectly alright. Not many of us leave the Hanar home world".
The door to the elevator opens. Crew members walk about the halls, chatting casually. The sounds and smells of cooking fill her nose. She strides out of the elevator, Thane close behind.
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Life Support Room - Thane & Shepard
“How’s this?” Shepard motions to the Life Support room of the Normandy. The sounds of the crew could be heard faintly outside the door. The room has a desk, chair, a drinking glass, storage crates, and a cot. Thane sets his bag down and moves it under the bed. Shepard's eyes follow the steady movement of Thane’s body as he adjusts his bag.
Shepard pauses, watching his graceful confidence. He took down Nassana’s mercenaries with such ease...Even she wasn't as skilled a killer. "You don't act like a dying man." The words fall out of Shepard's mouth before she could stop herself.
"You have the advantage there, Shepard. You've already died. Perhaps later you can give me some suggestions." Thane straightened himself slowly, his arms held tightly behind his back. He was being extremely respectful, but she wished to disappear into the walls of the Normandy, embarrassed to have declared such a thing within his first hour on her vessel. So much for a warm welcome...First Jacob and now she's made things even more weird
“My thanks. I will return to my meditations now. Please stop by if you need anything”.
He sits down in the chair. Shepard gazes at him. When his eyes meet hers, she quickly breaks eye contact and moves out of the room swiftly.