This'll be my first time writing a fic in a REALLY long time. So, let's see if people like it.
Based on the characters and world from Mass Effect 2, but not the story line. I DON'T OWN THEM!

Call Me V

Too much noise. There was way too much noise. That constant clicking and beeping felt like the sound of thousands of engines all turning on at once. Fuck. "Shhhhhh! Keep it down!" Asher Shepard cracked an eye open and hissed as the light seared her brain. It felt like someone had stabbed a spoon behind her damn eye. She groaned, putting her hands on either side of her face and rubbed vigorously. The beeping was still going, but not as loud as before. "Hey, didn't you hear what I said? Stop with that damn noise!" she spat out again, sitting up slowly. When she received no answer, Asher opened both eyes all the way and squinted around. Alleyway, cold metal floors and walls, low red light, papers on the ground, and that stupid beeping. And directly next to her was a Keeper, going about its duty on a monitor.

Asher let out a short laugh and shook her head slowly. A Keeper. Of course it wouldn't stop whatever the hell it was doing much less talk to her. She sighed, ran her fingers through her thick blonde hair, and opened up her omni tool. It was 1078 GST. Perfect. And her interview was at 1100. "Way to screw things up again, Asher," she muttered to herself, pushing up off the ground and dusting her dress off. The long, dark green dress was fine for an interview, she mused, even if it was a bit dusty for passing out in an alley. She was never trying out an asari drink on a weekday ever again.

Wobbling on her favorite high heels, Asher emerged from the alley into Zakera Level 28. At least she hadn't gone far from the Dark Star. Good thing Keepers didn't have a libido either. She smirked at her own joke and headed for the nearest Rapid Transit. She had a solid twenty minutes to get to Level 27. Not bad, but it would be a close call with how the Transit could be at this time of the day. As Asher waited for the next taxi, a human couple came up behind her, completely engrossed in each other. The man's hands were in rather suggestive places for being out in public but that didn't stop him, and the girl's giggles obviously were not objections. Asher rolled her eyes and cleared her throat. They didn't even look up.

Thankfully, her taxi showed up before they started removing clothing. She climbed in and selected Level 27 from the pad, waving her credit chit over the meter. "Thank you for using Citadel Rapid Transit, Asher Shepard. We will be arriving at Level 27 in approximately 10 minutes GST," chirped a female pre recorded voice, the voice changing to a male computerized voice on her name and the time.

Settling back into her seat, Asher opened her omni tool again, heading straight for her contacts list, browsing through it to see if she had any new entries. She had a tendency to add anyone she liked when she was drunk. Never seemed to remember them afterwards though. After a quick look through, only one came up that she didn't recognize. V. The entry just showed up as V. She frowned, selected the name and saw the number was unlisted. "Of course," she muttered to herself, "I must have scared the crap out of this guy. He didn't even leave me a number I can call." No picture went with it, no address either. Odd.

The taxi came to an abrupt stop, jerking her forward in the seat. Asher let out a curse, shutting off her omni tool and stepped out of the taxi. "Thank you for using Citadel Rapid Transit. Have a nice day," the female voice called out. Stupid voice cut through her head like a hot blade in butter. Her headache was never going to go away. With long strides, she made her way across the floor, dodging a volus with a tray of drinks and an asari trying to put her arm through his. The C-Sec head office was filled with people today. Apparently she wasn't the only one looking for a job. A nice long line went from Bailey's desk out and around almost to the stairs to the next floor. With a grumble, Asher stalked up to the desk, nudging a male human out of the way, despite his protests, and stared down at Bailey. "Hey there," she said, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "I believe I specifically remember you telling me yesterday that this job opening was being kept under the table and I would be the only human apply for it."

Bailey sighed and pushed his chair back from his desk. "Yeah, I know, Shepard. But I wasn't the only one in C-Sec that knew about it. Obviously they don't know how to keep their mouth closed." He ran a hand over his short hair and eyed her with the look of a disapproving father. "What's with the outfit? You're not getting an interview at a club." Her snort and flat glare made him laugh. "Okay, okay. Don't worry. None of these people are going to be allowed to get an interview. We've got a list. And you're on it. Just go ahead and sit over there. I'll call you when it's your turn."

"Thanks, Bailey. I owe you one," Asher said, ruffling his hair and turning around to take a seat on the far wall. The turian at his desk gave her an odd look and then went back to doing some paper work. The human she'd pushed aside earlier began raising his voice, waving his hands above his head. Bailey just pointed at the exit and waved his hand at the man. She chuckled to herself as the man stormed out, talking to himself and glaring at her. Ah, how nice it was to have connections in this place. It was a big improvement from Earth at least. The crime was no different, but the people were. Drug dealers, selling stolen goods, duct rats stealing credit chits. Her foot work on Earth would make it a lot easier to settle down with a nice job here. She just had to make sure the interview went well.

"Shepard!" Asher looked up at her name and Bailey pointed a thumb at the door behind him. "Go on in." As she walked past him, he grabbed her arm, stopping her. "I'm going to warn you know. If you get this job, be ready for hell."

"Hell is my specialty, Bailey," she said, patting his should. "Don't worry about me." She straightened her back and walked into the room with a confident look. The room was small, with only a desk, a few chairs, and the single terminal. No decorations of course. A turian sat at the desk, his hands on the surface typing away at the holo keyboard. She cleared her throat loudly and he stopped, looking up at her. "I'm here for an interview," she said, putting a hand on her hip.

He raised a plated brow at her and then gestured to one of the chairs. Once she sat down, he pressed a key and the door behind her slide closed. "You must be Miss Asher Shepard. Let me introduce myself. I am Captain Nuvian." Nuvian tapped another button and the screen in front of him was filled with text instantly. "I've read your profile. You did well for yourself on Earth. But this isn't Earth, Miss Shepard. This is space. You are, by far, weaker than most races. No offence. To add to that, you are female, this makes you even weaker." His mandibles twitched, then settled down, pulled tightly against his face. "How am I to know that you are dependable, that you can get the job done?" He steepled his fingers under his chin, staring at her.

Asher felt her temper rising. Her hangover had receded a bit under the creeping fury, but not enough to remove her headache. Her mood was sour enough but this jerk was being racist and sexist, all in the same sentence. He had tossed out her entire resume just because she was a human and had breasts. "I don't see what being female has to do with any of this. If I can handle myself on Earth, I think I can handle myself here." She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Nuvian.

"These are just some things that can't be over look. You can also be a distraction to other officers here," he said, his expression remaining the same. She temper went up a notch. One more negative and she might just give him a piece of her mind. "Any kinds of relations of that sort are not allowed here." He pointedly waved a hand at her dress. "You obviously aren't trying to be modest with that on."

With a growl, Asher jumped to her feet, pointing a finger at Nuvian. "Now listen here! I won't just sit here while you trash talk me just because I've a pair of boobs." She leaned in close to the desk, pushing her breasts together to show a nice line of cleavage. Nuvian leaned back; mandibles open in what must be a turian way of showing shock. Her eyes narrowed into green slits, glinting angrily. "I have the best damn record you've probably seen in a long time Captain Nuvian and I'm not going to let you just ignore it. I deserve this job more than anyone else in that line outside. If you can't handle my feminine charm then I guess the C-Sec isn't even worth my time. I could always just go join Eclipse or something." She stepped back, crossing her arms, cocking a hip to the side and resting her angry gaze on the turian.

Nuvian burst into laughter. He pushed a button on his key board, a high pitch beep went out. "Bailey! You were right about this one. She's something else. Tell everyone outside to leave. We've found ourselves the newest member to the team." Still chuckling, he looked up at Asher, her mouth slightly open and a confused look about her. "Sorry about that, Shepard. Bailey told me that only way to get any fire out of you was to push your buttons a bit. We need someone that can handle a certain person. He is rather hard to work with."

She plopped back down into her sit, pouting. "Bailey, that asshole. Okay, so I guess I have the job. Who am I going to be working with?" she asked.

"You will get to meet him tomorrow. You can introduce yourselves then. For now, we will get you a uniform and all the needed equipment." Nuvian stood up and reached out his hand with a very tooth filled turian grin. "Welcome to C-Sec, Shepard."

Asher took his hand, a smile finally gracing her lips. "Thank you, Captian Nuvian. Though I'm going to warn you now, I will take orders, but if I catch one person that talks to my chest rather than my face, I will break their nose. If they have one, I mean."

Nuvian laughed again, nodding his head. "I'd rather you not, but from what Bailey tells me, there is no stopping you. As long as you follow orders, we will get along just fine. I'll send you a message later as to what time you need to be here tomorrow."

Yeah, she thought, we will get along just fine. Score for Asher Shepard! Asher bid the Captain goodbye and walked out of the room. Bailey was over by the entrance, shooing away what was left of the line, many of them looking pretty angry. She let out a happy sigh, stretching her arms over head and gazed around the room. It was on the small side. Just like most of the Citadel, the walls and floor were metal, unpainted and no carpet to be seen. But it felt homey to her now. She didn't have a desk, or even equipment, but she knew the C-Sec was perfect for her.

Bailey grumbled loudly as he came up to her. "Congratulations on the job, Shepard. I'll have all your gear set to your place. Should be there by tomorrow morning." She nodded, a big smile on her face. He gave her a wary look. "You're going to go celebrate now, aren't you."

"Of course!" she exclaimed, laughing. "Back the Dark Star for more drinks! You want to go?"

"Unlike you, some of us hard working people are doing our jobs. But I might take you up on that offer later. Don't get too drunk."

"Yes, father," Asher said, rolling her eyes. "Later, Bailey." She walked out the door, waving behind her.

What do you think? R&R!