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Description
Title:  First Impressions Ch.5  Politics and Approaches
Universe:  Mass Effect
Characters:  Tiberius Shepard, Liara T'Soni, Urdnot Wrex, Joker, Captain James Winslow, Rear Admiral Charles Beard, Specialist Jessalyn Laurent

"Arcturus Control this is Flight Lieutenant Moreau of the SSV Normandy requesting permission to dock at bay Echo Niner."  The cockpit fell silent except for the buzz of static emitting from the comm speakers.  Joker held the Normandy steady orienting her towards the opening in the band of docking bays surrounding Arcturus station.

"SSV Normandy, this is Arcturus Control you have permission to dock at umbilical four please follow your assigned flight path.  A Decontamination team will meet you at the airlock."

"Well that's great Commander wouldn't want to bring any Prothean dust into the station would you."  Joker quipped keeping his focus forward at the rapidly growing station.  Tiberius stood a few feet behind the pilots chair in the center of the cockpit and let out a muted chuckle.  Besides him stood Liara, the last six days had done wonders for her beauty.  She no longer needed crutches to move around although she still required an air cast on her leg and the grey pallor that had tinged her skin when they had first picked her up from Therum had disappeared replaced by a vibrant shade of turquoise that seemed to change color with the changing light on the ship.  A steadily enforced diet by Dr. Chakwas had filled out cheeks that had been hollowed by days without sustenance spent stuck in a Prothean trap. She looked more beautiful than ever and Tiberius wished that she would leave her room more.  Other than trips to the restroom she almost never left her room taking most of her meals there insisting that Shepard had provided her with too much new data to analyze and that she would be most efficient if she weren't disturbed.  Although she had made an exception for Tiberius he wasn't sure if she was asking for him out of scientific inquiry for what the beacon had imprinted on his brain or because she genuinely enjoyed his company.  He felt that he was picking up hints the longer he spent with her but for all he knew this was just how Asari acted.

Tiberius turned his gaze towards her, a soft smile played across his features softening the severe look his dress uniform afforded him.

It Feels Right
His mind raced to catch up to his emotions.  Telling him No you can't do this.  He longed to hold her and yet his mind was still there telling him No It would compromise the mission and yet....

An image sprang into his mind unbidden, her head resting gently on his shoulder as they watched the stars, his arm wrapped around her shoulder gently squeezing her body into his.  Her returning the gesture by nuzzling her head a little deeper into the crook of his neck.
It just feels right

Liara could feel Tiberius' gaze on her she had felt it many times over the past week in the time they had spent together working out the meaning of the cipher.  The gentle attention made her body temperature spike ever so slightly.  Normally she would return the gaze but she couldn't tear her eyes at the wonder the Alliance had constructed past the viewports.  Since they had arrived in system she had been riveted by the myriad shapes that made up the system, there were half finished shells of cruisers and carriers connected to long black bars hovering above the cold blue planet Eunomia.  A man made belt of asteroids was silhouetted against the backdrop of the star's light.  Placed in front of the belt far removed from any of the planets was Arcturus Station, the pride of the Alliance Fleet.  Arrayed around the shipyards and the station was a buzzing shell of ships.  Cruisers and Dreadnoughts from the 1st and 5th Fleets stood silently in a honeycomb pattern blocking the relay and settlements from any unwanted danger sprouting from the relay while Frigates and fighters buzzed around them in interweaving patrols.  As the Normandy moved closer through the shell Liara could see thousands of shuttles moving in a constant stream between the station, asteroids, and shipyards. Tenders and cargo carriers weaving in and out of the lanes dropping off supplies to the gathered fleets.

Liara was in total awe of what humanity had accomplished the sheer amount of manpower and discipline required to make all of this in so little time was amazing.  As the shape of the station drew closer in the viewports she gasped at its enormity.  While not even close to half the size of the Citadel the station was as large if not larger than any space station the asari had ever constructed.  It held the shape of two cones connected by a large sphere a long band ran around the middle of the construct breaking only for a small gap allowing small ships easier access to the interior docking bays.

"Commander, initiating final approach.  Control sent word that a shuttle will be waiting to take you up to Rear Admiral Beard...  Commander," Joker repeated turning around and letting off a sharp chuckle. "Well it looks like someone's got a crush."

The laughter broke Tiberius out of his reverie, the gentle scene he had envisaged dissipating like smoke.  He looked glanced sternly at Joker before lowering the hand that had been rising on its own accord towards Liara's shoulder.  He silently cursed his heart for having learned how to feint and distract as well as his mind and promised that he wouldn't let it get the better of him again.

The words passed through Liara's translator as "someone has been squished."  The weirdness of the statement broke her out of her thoughts as she glanced at Joker and silently asked her translator to try again.  "Someone has been ground," it rang out in her mind and she just shook her head.  "Goddess I'll never get human humor," she mumbled to herself as she saw Jokers face turn into a teasing visage, Tiberius' face stony and angry stared back at him.

The stare down lasted all of five seconds before Joker turned back towards the controls mumbling.  "I'll just go back to piloting then; jeez nobody can take a joke around here."

"That would be for the best Flight Lieutenant."  Tiberius began to laugh in spite of himself as the cool female voice issued from the comm speakers.  Liara looked as if the words had been lost in translation and she vowed at that moment to become if not fluent capable in English the language that Tiberius conversed in.

"Aye, Aye Control," Joker mumbled before hitting a switch on the board by his right hand.  "I'm always forgetting to mute that thing," he remarked flashing a grin as if this had happened hundreds of times before.

"Commander Shepard," a young Corporal was standing before Tiberius his right arm snapped in a salute.  Tiberius noticed that the man's attention seemed divided between holding the salute and the shadowy figure behind him.  A mixture of fear and awe was evident in the man's eyes and Tiberius smartly returned the salute before motioning for the Corporal to return to the waiting shuttle and warm the engines.  The young man let out a mumbled "Yes Sir" as he turned tail and tried unconvincingly to keep some semblance of decorum while hurrying to the shuttle.

"Wrex you think we can spend our stay here without you scaring every human on the station?"  Tiberius asked as he turned towards the Krogan waiting in the umbilical's open airlock.

"Not going to happen Shepard.  Its funny watching the little whelps scurry."

Tiberius let out an exasperated sigh as the Krogan's mirthful laughter filled the large bay.  "At least promise me you'll stay in the bay and keep out of trouble until i get back from meeting the Admiral,  he still hasn't agreed to give you guys free reign of the station."

"No promises Shepard."  Tiberius noticed that Wrex was staring out at some of the crew from a ship docked at one of the umbilical's opposite of them and decided that this was the best he was going to get from the Krogan and turned towards the shuttle.

Tiberius sat silently in the shuttle staring at readout on his omnitool, a bottle of Glenlivet by his side.  He was reading small bios on the station's officers seeing how much had changed since he had last been here.  Major James Winslow  A grizzled old marine who had cut his teeth in the Attican Traverse protecting colonists from pirates and slavers, was the Station Security Chief in charge of the contingent of MPs that called this place home.  Winslow had been Security Chief as far back as Tiberius wanted to remember.

Rear Admiral Charles Beard the next name on the readout was the Station's newest Commander.  A lifelong Logistics man picked from a short list distinguished officers his appointment by the Alliance Parliament was met with some controversy and disagreement especially by the more hawkish members of Parliament who saw him as nothing more than a pawn to be manipulated by the alien apologists who had also fast tracked his promotion to Rear Admiral.  So far however he had proven unexpectedly adept at handling the Station's burden streamlining most of the bureaucratic procedures that mired the supply chains and reaching new highs in efficiency for both the System's shipyards and the rate of resupply reaching the fleets and civilians gathered around the station.  The deployment and disposition of the fleets he had smartly left in the hands of their commanders, Admiral Ines Lindholm of the first fleet and Fleet Admiral Steven Hackett of the fifth fleet and the sector's most experienced officer, although as Station and Sector Commander he was allowed to order the fleets wherever he wanted.  Tiberius found himself silently approving of the man although they had never met.  He might not have been a front line soldier but it sure seemed that he knew when to draw the line when it came to interfering with their work.

The shuttle slowed to a stop in a small atrium and the Commander grabbed the bottle and hopped out.  He thanked the Corporal before heading to a secretary's desk manned by a pretty young auburn haired specialist with striking emerald eyes and an infectious smile named Jessalyn Laurent.  "Hello Commander the Admiral is expecting you," She said in a high singsong voice the smile never leaving her tan freckled face.

"Thank you Specialist," Tiberius replied fixing a smile onto his face and as he entered the office he could feel the secretary's eyes following his departure.

"Permission to come aboard, Admiral?"  Tiberius asked shifting his grip slightly on the bottle as he snapped a salute.  The question was a time honored courtesy that sailors offered each other when boarding another's ship.  While other branches of the military might find the line let alone the courtesy laughable and archaic It had become so ingrained in naval lore that no officer in their right mind would dare risk becoming ostracized by their peers for ignoring it.

"Permission granted Commander," Rear Admiral Beard replied returning the salute and motioning for the Commander towards two chairs and a small table that had been tucked into the corner of the office.

"For you Admiral," Tiberius said offering the man the bottle of scotch he had been carrying.  Now that he was standing in front of him Tiberius could gain a real measure of the man,  Rear Admiral Charles Beard was short around 5'6'  and while he was fit, he wasn't as fit as a front line soldier the years of sitting behind a desk had resulted in a small paunch protruding from his waistband.  The man's eyes were large and brown matching his hair which had been kept high and tight and looked like it had just been trimmed this morning.  His uniform fit snuggly and was crisp around the edges.  All in all minus the belly he had the look of a model officer.  That look didn't often bode well.  It was hard to trust a man who looked like that, who played at being a soldier. The soldiers, the real ones always looked different old beyond their years from what they'd seen their bodies often showed it through added lines and scars.  Missing or distorted features, the result of a bomb that exploded to close, a bullet that just missed, tearing a hole in an ear where an eye had been a moment before.  But Tiberius matched his appearance against what he had done as Station Commander so far and reserved his judgment till their business together was finished.

"Thank you Commander, join me for a drink?"  Although issued as a question there was no mistaking the underlying demand in his voice.

Tiberius answered in the affirmative and stood by the chairs waiting for the Admiral who now had two snifters in his hand to take a seat.  The Admiral walked over and placed the glasses on the table before working the top off of the bottle as he sat.  Tiberius joined him and took one of the now full glasses from the table as Admiral Beard raised his and said "To the Alliance."  Tiberius echoed the sentiment before taking a sip.  He looked over to the Admiral and saw that he was already refilling his glass.  "Come now Commander you won't let a paper pusher like myself out drink one of you mudslingers, would you?"  The man opposite Tiberius grinned and then added as an afterthought, "be careful how you answer that soldier."

Tiberius couldn't help but smile at the Admiral and drained his glass before holding it out for more.  "Good Answer" the Admiral replied, refilling the proffered glass before relaxing into a more comfortable position in the chair.  "Now Commander, as honored as I would be if Humanity's first Spectre had come here solely to honor me with a drink we both know that isn't the case."

"Well Admiral, we just came inbound from Therum and we'll need to resupply as well as have someone go over the outer hull. We received some pretty bad scorching while we were down there.  I can send the chief quartermaster our requisition manifest with your permission."

"Permission granted, Commander.  We've been notified of your mission against Saren and whatever the Normandy needs will be prioritized."  Their glasses both rose again as they took measurable smaller gulps than last time.

"There is one other request sir.  We have several non-Alliance crew members on board and a few of them need training up.  It would be a great favor if you can allow them the same reign of the station that the soldiers stationed here enjoy."  Tiberius fell silent and took another gulp from the snifter as he awaited an answer.

"Commander you realize what you're asking me to do.  You're asking me to potentially compromise this stations security.  If I allow this it will make me very unpopular with several elements in the Navy and Parliament."  Admiral Beard made to refill his snifter as he settled into silence giving the commander an appraising look as if asking What else can you offer me?

Tiberius looked at the Admiral and silently admonished himself for thinking this might have been as simple as sharing a drink.  Politics always had their place with men like him.  "Sir,  I understand the why you would be reluctant to allow this,  I realize that there is a large number in the Alliance both in the military and without that  to be blunt think it would be better if we just slagged every alien we see.  But I can assure you that there won't be benefits to you allowing this.  The council for one would look very kindly upon you for willingly assisting one of their Spectres.  It would also elevate you in the eyes of several of the Senior Officers who believe you were gifted this appointment because of politics and not your own abilities as a leader."

"How could you insure that Commander."

"Well, I know for one that Admiral Hackett would be more than willing to support you in this and many of the officers will follow his lead.  As for the Council I said earlier that they would look kindly upon this and with the right words a position in the Citadel Fleet could be in your future."  Those last words were a bluff Tiberius knew he had no say in how the Citadel fleet was run and he had no illusions after his last talk with the Council that they would heed his recommendations.  But Rear Admiral Beard didn't and for a political climber like him the bait was juicy enough for him to bite.

It took a minute of looking at the reflection in his glass before Admiral Beard looked back up.  "Ok they can have access to the station on the condition that they keep their personnel badges in plain view…"

"And they won't be harassed by station security."  Tiberius interjected.

"… and they won't be harassed by station security any more than you were when you were here for the N7 program."

Tiberius gave a small knowing smile, "I wouldn't exactly say they harassed me it was more the other way around sir."

"I know Commander I read your file hopefully they or you won't cause any more trouble."

"I'll do my best sir."  Shepard raised his glass in a mock toast before draining it.  As the liquid burned a track down his throat he relaxed knowing that the worst of what he had to do in the next week was over with.

Liara sat in her cabin gathering her belongings.  As he had left Tiberius had warned her and the others that during their stay on the station the ship would most likely be searched and if there was anything they possessed that was of a sensitive or personal nature that it should be locked away.  She sighed as her omnitool beeped.  It was a ship wide message from Tiberius that he was coming back and that the crew should assemble.   She looked around the room she hadn't looked to secure anything most of her possessions belonged to the depths of Therum now and what she had that might have been sensitive,  notes on the Protheans including what she had been able to garner from Tiberius' experience with the beacon were all stored safely on an encrypted drive in her computer.  She rose and took one last look at the computer on her wall before leaving to meet Tiberius along with the rest of the crew.

Tiberius walked onto the Normandy's main deck and turned straight towards the raised dais that served as the ship's command center.  His left hand clutched a packet of thin plastic wafers.  The assembled crew moved aside as he neared presenting a clear path to his destination.  He glanced towards over the deck where he noticed that some parts of the crew had segregated themselves from the motley squad he had assembled, although what remained of the Normandy's Marine Contingent as well as the Engineers had placed themselves close to the aliens and several of them seemed to be in a deep animated conversation about kill counts with Garrus or engine lines with Tali.  Tiberius couldn't help but smile and shake his head, soldiers will be soldiers.  The sight was a welcome relief from the meeting he had just come from.  As he mounted the dais he turned towards the crew and quickly returned their salutes before saying "At ease soldiers."  He cleared his throat and waited for the shuffling of feet to cease before continuing.   "Each and every one of you has worked immeasurably hard for our mission over the past few weeks and while you haven't all adopted the attitude I would've liked towards some of our new crew," Tiberius paused and for the first time he noticed that Liara and Dr. Chakwas were both absent from the meeting.  "I fully expect that will change in the coming weeks as we continue onwards.  All I can say for now is that I'm proud of all of you, I couldn't have asked for a better, more professional group of soldiers to work with and all of you have earned a little R&R.  As long as I don't have to dig you out of the station's brig consider yourselves all on leave for the next week.  I expect all of you back on board and ready to continue by 0800 next Friday.  Dismissed,"  at that the crew offered Tiberius one last salute before shuffling off to their bunks and stations to make stow away any loose gear and do away with any last second duties.  "Garrus, Wrex, Tali, and," Tiberius paused and couldn't help but smile as he noticed Liara had appeared besides the rest of them sometime during his speech, "Liara if you could meet me down in the conference room."

Description
Title:  First Impressions Ch.5  Politics and Approaches
Universe:  Mass Effect
Characters:  Tiberius Shepard, Liara T'Soni, Urdnot Wrex, Joker, Captain James Winslow, Rear Admiral Charles Beard, Specialist Jessalyn Laurent

"Arcturus Control this is Flight Lieutenant Moreau of the SSV Normandy requesting permission to dock at bay Echo Niner."  The cockpit fell silent except for the buzz of static emitting from the comm speakers.  Joker held the Normandy steady orienting her towards the opening in the band of docking bays surrounding Arcturus station.

"SSV Normandy, this is Arcturus Control you have permission to dock at umbilical four please follow your assigned flight path.  A Decontamination team will meet you at the airlock."

"Well that's great Commander wouldn't want to bring any Prothean dust into the station would you."  Joker quipped keeping his focus forward at the rapidly growing station.  Tiberius stood a few feet behind the pilots chair in the center of the cockpit and let out a muted chuckle.  Besides him stood Liara, the last six days had done wonders for her beauty.  She no longer needed crutches to move around although she still required an air cast on her leg and the grey pallor that had tinged her skin when they had first picked her up from Therum had disappeared replaced by a vibrant shade of turquoise that seemed to change color with the changing light on the ship.  A steadily enforced diet by Dr. Chakwas had filled out cheeks that had been hollowed by days without sustenance spent stuck in a Prothean trap. She looked more beautiful than ever and Tiberius wished that she would leave her room more.  Other than trips to the restroom she almost never left her room taking most of her meals there insisting that Shepard had provided her with too much new data to analyze and that she would be most efficient if she weren't disturbed.  Although she had made an exception for Tiberius he wasn't sure if she was asking for him out of scientific inquiry for what the beacon had imprinted on his brain or because she genuinely enjoyed his company.  He felt that he was picking up hints the longer he spent with her but for all he knew this was just how Asari acted.

Tiberius turned his gaze towards her, a soft smile played across his features softening the severe look his dress uniform afforded him.

It Feels Right
His mind raced to catch up to his emotions.  Telling him No you can't do this.  He longed to hold her and yet his mind was still there telling him No It would compromise the mission and yet....

An image sprang into his mind unbidden, her head resting gently on his shoulder as they watched the stars, his arm wrapped around her shoulder gently squeezing her body into his.  Her returning the gesture by nuzzling her head a little deeper into the crook of his neck.
It just feels right

Liara could feel Tiberius' gaze on her she had felt it many times over the past week in the time they had spent together working out the meaning of the cipher.  The gentle attention made her body temperature spike ever so slightly.  Normally she would return the gaze but she couldn't tear her eyes at the wonder the Alliance had constructed past the viewports.  Since they had arrived in system she had been riveted by the myriad shapes that made up the system, there were half finished shells of cruisers and carriers connected to long black bars hovering above the cold blue planet Eunomia.  A man made belt of asteroids was silhouetted against the backdrop of the star's light.  Placed in front of the belt far removed from any of the planets was Arcturus Station, the pride of the Alliance Fleet.  Arrayed around the shipyards and the station was a buzzing shell of ships.  Cruisers and Dreadnoughts from the 1st and 5th Fleets stood silently in a honeycomb pattern blocking the relay and settlements from any unwanted danger sprouting from the relay while Frigates and fighters buzzed around them in interweaving patrols.  As the Normandy moved closer through the shell Liara could see thousands of shuttles moving in a constant stream between the station, asteroids, and shipyards. Tenders and cargo carriers weaving in and out of the lanes dropping off supplies to the gathered fleets.

Liara was in total awe of what humanity had accomplished the sheer amount of manpower and discipline required to make all of this in so little time was amazing.  As the shape of the station drew closer in the viewports she gasped at its enormity.  While not even close to half the size of the Citadel the station was as large if not larger than any space station the asari had ever constructed.  It held the shape of two cones connected by a large sphere a long band ran around the middle of the construct breaking only for a small gap allowing small ships easier access to the interior docking bays.

"Commander, initiating final approach.  Control sent word that a shuttle will be waiting to take you up to Rear Admiral Beard...  Commander," Joker repeated turning around and letting off a sharp chuckle. "Well it looks like someone's got a crush."

The laughter broke Tiberius out of his reverie, the gentle scene he had envisaged dissipating like smoke.  He looked glanced sternly at Joker before lowering the hand that had been rising on its own accord towards Liara's shoulder.  He silently cursed his heart for having learned how to feint and distract as well as his mind and promised that he wouldn't let it get the better of him again.

The words passed through Liara's translator as "someone has been squished."  The weirdness of the statement broke her out of her thoughts as she glanced at Joker and silently asked her translator to try again.  "Someone has been ground," it rang out in her mind and she just shook her head.  "Goddess I'll never get human humor," she mumbled to herself as she saw Jokers face turn into a teasing visage, Tiberius' face stony and angry stared back at him.

The stare down lasted all of five seconds before Joker turned back towards the controls mumbling.  "I'll just go back to piloting then; jeez nobody can take a joke around here."

"That would be for the best Flight Lieutenant."  Tiberius began to laugh in spite of himself as the cool female voice issued from the comm speakers.  Liara looked as if the words had been lost in translation and she vowed at that moment to become if not fluent capable in English the language that Tiberius conversed in.

"Aye, Aye Control," Joker mumbled before hitting a switch on the board by his right hand.  "I'm always forgetting to mute that thing," he remarked flashing a grin as if this had happened hundreds of times before.

"Commander Shepard," a young Corporal was standing before Tiberius his right arm snapped in a salute.  Tiberius noticed that the man's attention seemed divided between holding the salute and the shadowy figure behind him.  A mixture of fear and awe was evident in the man's eyes and Tiberius smartly returned the salute before motioning for the Corporal to return to the waiting shuttle and warm the engines.  The young man let out a mumbled "Yes Sir" as he turned tail and tried unconvincingly to keep some semblance of decorum while hurrying to the shuttle.

"Wrex you think we can spend our stay here without you scaring every human on the station?"  Tiberius asked as he turned towards the Krogan waiting in the umbilical's open airlock.

"Not going to happen Shepard.  Its funny watching the little whelps scurry."

Tiberius let out an exasperated sigh as the Krogan's mirthful laughter filled the large bay.  "At least promise me you'll stay in the bay and keep out of trouble until i get back from meeting the Admiral,  he still hasn't agreed to give you guys free reign of the station."

"No promises Shepard."  Tiberius noticed that Wrex was staring out at some of the crew from a ship docked at one of the umbilical's opposite of them and decided that this was the best he was going to get from the Krogan and turned towards the shuttle.

Tiberius sat silently in the shuttle staring at readout on his omnitool, a bottle of Glenlivet by his side.  He was reading small bios on the station's officers seeing how much had changed since he had last been here.  Major James Winslow  A grizzled old marine who had cut his teeth in the Attican Traverse protecting colonists from pirates and slavers, was the Station Security Chief in charge of the contingent of MPs that called this place home.  Winslow had been Security Chief as far back as Tiberius wanted to remember.

Rear Admiral Charles Beard the next name on the readout was the Station's newest Commander.  A lifelong Logistics man picked from a short list distinguished officers his appointment by the Alliance Parliament was met with some controversy and disagreement especially by the more hawkish members of Parliament who saw him as nothing more than a pawn to be manipulated by the alien apologists who had also fast tracked his promotion to Rear Admiral.  So far however he had proven unexpectedly adept at handling the Station's burden streamlining most of the bureaucratic procedures that mired the supply chains and reaching new highs in efficiency for both the System's shipyards and the rate of resupply reaching the fleets and civilians gathered around the station.  The deployment and disposition of the fleets he had smartly left in the hands of their commanders, Admiral Ines Lindholm of the first fleet and Fleet Admiral Steven Hackett of the fifth fleet and the sector's most experienced officer, although as Station and Sector Commander he was allowed to order the fleets wherever he wanted.  Tiberius found himself silently approving of the man although they had never met.  He might not have been a front line soldier but it sure seemed that he knew when to draw the line when it came to interfering with their work.

The shuttle slowed to a stop in a small atrium and the Commander grabbed the bottle and hopped out.  He thanked the Corporal before heading to a secretary's desk manned by a pretty young auburn haired specialist with striking emerald eyes and an infectious smile named Jessalyn Laurent.  "Hello Commander the Admiral is expecting you," She said in a high singsong voice the smile never leaving her tan freckled face.

"Thank you Specialist," Tiberius replied fixing a smile onto his face and as he entered the office he could feel the secretary's eyes following his departure.

"Permission to come aboard, Admiral?"  Tiberius asked shifting his grip slightly on the bottle as he snapped a salute.  The question was a time honored courtesy that sailors offered each other when boarding another's ship.  While other branches of the military might find the line let alone the courtesy laughable and archaic It had become so ingrained in naval lore that no officer in their right mind would dare risk becoming ostracized by their peers for ignoring it.

"Permission granted Commander," Rear Admiral Beard replied returning the salute and motioning for the Commander towards two chairs and a small table that had been tucked into the corner of the office.

"For you Admiral," Tiberius said offering the man the bottle of scotch he had been carrying.  Now that he was standing in front of him Tiberius could gain a real measure of the man,  Rear Admiral Charles Beard was short around 5'6'  and while he was fit, he wasn't as fit as a front line soldier the years of sitting behind a desk had resulted in a small paunch protruding from his waistband.  The man's eyes were large and brown matching his hair which had been kept high and tight and looked like it had just been trimmed this morning.  His uniform fit snuggly and was crisp around the edges.  All in all minus the belly he had the look of a model officer.  That look didn't often bode well.  It was hard to trust a man who looked like that, who played at being a soldier. The soldiers, the real ones always looked different old beyond their years from what they'd seen their bodies often showed it through added lines and scars.  Missing or distorted features, the result of a bomb that exploded to close, a bullet that just missed, tearing a hole in an ear where an eye had been a moment before.  But Tiberius matched his appearance against what he had done as Station Commander so far and reserved his judgment till their business together was finished.

"Thank you Commander, join me for a drink?"  Although issued as a question there was no mistaking the underlying demand in his voice.

Tiberius answered in the affirmative and stood by the chairs waiting for the Admiral who now had two snifters in his hand to take a seat.  The Admiral walked over and placed the glasses on the table before working the top off of the bottle as he sat.  Tiberius joined him and took one of the now full glasses from the table as Admiral Beard raised his and said "To the Alliance."  Tiberius echoed the sentiment before taking a sip.  He looked over to the Admiral and saw that he was already refilling his glass.  "Come now Commander you won't let a paper pusher like myself out drink one of you mudslingers, would you?"  The man opposite Tiberius grinned and then added as an afterthought, "be careful how you answer that soldier."

Tiberius couldn't help but smile at the Admiral and drained his glass before holding it out for more.  "Good Answer" the Admiral replied, refilling the proffered glass before relaxing into a more comfortable position in the chair.  "Now Commander, as honored as I would be if Humanity's first Spectre had come here solely to honor me with a drink we both know that isn't the case."

"Well Admiral, we just came inbound from Therum and we'll need to resupply as well as have someone go over the outer hull. We received some pretty bad scorching while we were down there.  I can send the chief quartermaster our requisition manifest with your permission."

"Permission granted, Commander.  We've been notified of your mission against Saren and whatever the Normandy needs will be prioritized."  Their glasses both rose again as they took measurable smaller gulps than last time.

"There is one other request sir.  We have several non-Alliance crew members on board and a few of them need training up.  It would be a great favor if you can allow them the same reign of the station that the soldiers stationed here enjoy."  Tiberius fell silent and took another gulp from the snifter as he awaited an answer.

"Commander you realize what you're asking me to do.  You're asking me to potentially compromise this stations security.  If I allow this it will make me very unpopular with several elements in the Navy and Parliament."  Admiral Beard made to refill his snifter as he settled into silence giving the commander an appraising look as if asking What else can you offer me?

Tiberius looked at the Admiral and silently admonished himself for thinking this might have been as simple as sharing a drink.  Politics always had their place with men like him.  "Sir,  I understand the why you would be reluctant to allow this,  I realize that there is a large number in the Alliance both in the military and without that  to be blunt think it would be better if we just slagged every alien we see.  But I can assure you that there won't be benefits to you allowing this.  The council for one would look very kindly upon you for willingly assisting one of their Spectres.  It would also elevate you in the eyes of several of the Senior Officers who believe you were gifted this appointment because of politics and not your own abilities as a leader."

"How could you insure that Commander."

"Well, I know for one that Admiral Hackett would be more than willing to support you in this and many of the officers will follow his lead.  As for the Council I said earlier that they would look kindly upon this and with the right words a position in the Citadel Fleet could be in your future."  Those last words were a bluff Tiberius knew he had no say in how the Citadel fleet was run and he had no illusions after his last talk with the Council that they would heed his recommendations.  But Rear Admiral Beard didn't and for a political climber like him the bait was juicy enough for him to bite.

It took a minute of looking at the reflection in his glass before Admiral Beard looked back up.  "Ok they can have access to the station on the condition that they keep their personnel badges in plain view…"

"And they won't be harassed by station security."  Tiberius interjected.

"… and they won't be harassed by station security any more than you were when you were here for the N7 program."

Tiberius gave a small knowing smile, "I wouldn't exactly say they harassed me it was more the other way around sir."

"I know Commander I read your file hopefully they or you won't cause any more trouble."

"I'll do my best sir."  Shepard raised his glass in a mock toast before draining it.  As the liquid burned a track down his throat he relaxed knowing that the worst of what he had to do in the next week was over with.

Liara sat in her cabin gathering her belongings.  As he had left Tiberius had warned her and the others that during their stay on the station the ship would most likely be searched and if there was anything they possessed that was of a sensitive or personal nature that it should be locked away.  She sighed as her omnitool beeped.  It was a ship wide message from Tiberius that he was coming back and that the crew should assemble.   She looked around the room she hadn't looked to secure anything most of her possessions belonged to the depths of Therum now and what she had that might have been sensitive,  notes on the Protheans including what she had been able to garner from Tiberius' experience with the beacon were all stored safely on an encrypted drive in her computer.  She rose and took one last look at the computer on her wall before leaving to meet Tiberius along with the rest of the crew.

Tiberius walked onto the Normandy's main deck and turned straight towards the raised dais that served as the ship's command center.  His left hand clutched a packet of thin plastic wafers.  The assembled crew moved aside as he neared presenting a clear path to his destination.  He glanced towards over the deck where he noticed that some parts of the crew had segregated themselves from the motley squad he had assembled, although what remained of the Normandy's Marine Contingent as well as the Engineers had placed themselves close to the aliens and several of them seemed to be in a deep animated conversation about kill counts with Garrus or engine lines with Tali.  Tiberius couldn't help but smile and shake his head, soldiers will be soldiers.  The sight was a welcome relief from the meeting he had just come from.  As he mounted the dais he turned towards the crew and quickly returned their salutes before saying "At ease soldiers."  He cleared his throat and waited for the shuffling of feet to cease before continuing.   "Each and every one of you has worked immeasurably hard for our mission over the past few weeks and while you haven't all adopted the attitude I would've liked towards some of our new crew," Tiberius paused and for the first time he noticed that Liara and Dr. Chakwas were both absent from the meeting.  "I fully expect that will change in the coming weeks as we continue onwards.  All I can say for now is that I'm proud of all of you, I couldn't have asked for a better, more professional group of soldiers to work with and all of you have earned a little R&R.  As long as I don't have to dig you out of the station's brig consider yourselves all on leave for the next week.  I expect all of you back on board and ready to continue by 0800 next Friday.  Dismissed,"  at that the crew offered Tiberius one last salute before shuffling off to their bunks and stations to make stow away any loose gear and do away with any last second duties.  "Garrus, Wrex, Tali, and," Tiberius paused and couldn't help but smile as he noticed Liara had appeared besides the rest of them sometime during his speech, "Liara if you could meet me down in the conference room."