Part One, Chapter Three: Finale

...

Thankfully it was only a short elevator ride to the main lobby of C-Sec Academy, because I was feeling pretty giddy right now and being stuck in a small room definitely wasn't helping. We filed out towards C-Sec's central chamber, heading for the elevator that would bring us to the docks. I was happy to see that Tali, Garrus, and Wrex were already waiting for us where we got there. Garrus nodded at me, Wrex seemed to smirk, and Tali, uh, at least looked happy to see me. As Shepard approached the team, Wrex was the first to speak.

"I kind of figured you'd gone to see the whelp. I take it this means we're bringing him along."

I'm starting to wonder why everyone calls me 'kid' or 'whelp'. I mean, Wrex I can understand because he has centuries under his belt, but come on I'm twenty years old.

Shepard nodded. "I'll explain everything once we get on the Normandy. Everyone, meet Benjamin Smith, our newest crew member."

He looked at me, eyebrow cocked. "But I'm sure you don't need any introductions."

I smiled as I rattled off the names. "Tali, Garrus, Wrex, Kaidan, Ashley. Good to see everyone together."

Shepard nodded, turning towards his team. "I assume you're all prepared to leave?"

They all voiced affirmation, so we crammed into the C-Sec elevator and began our long ascent to the docks. It was pretty uncomfortable, but then I was squished against Tali, so I guess it could have been worse. Wrex was the only one who had any elbowroom, but no one was feeling brave enough to cuddle with a krogan. We rode in a bit of an awkward silence, everyone a little too intimate for anyone's liking, all privately wishing to get out of the room as soon as possible.

When we finally did reach the docks, everyone surged forward, eager to get out of the claustrophobic elevator car. I was carried out for a few steps before I managed to separate from the crowd. I stepped up to the railing, gazing in awe at the sight before me.

The Normandy was amazing. Its spotless white hull brightly gleamed, reflecting the glowing lights of the docks. It's stream-lined form, the black and white contrast of its hull and engines, the slash of red at the bow, the sharp blades protruding from its nose; it was all faintly reminiscent of some sort of ancient predator, like an orca. It was more than just a frigate; it was a piece of art, a true marvel of engineering.

"Keelah… she's beautiful." I turned to see Tali had joined me in staring in awe at the Normandy.

I smiled. "I take it you like ships then."

"Of course! It comes from living on them your entire life. I've seen thousands of ships in my lifetime, but never anything like this. I still can't believe that Shepard is letting me join his crew. I wonder if it as amazing inside?"

I looked at her. "Say, you're an engineer right?"

She turned towards me, surprised. "How did you know that?"

I shrugged, not really caring to explain my story since Shepard seemed intent on doing so already. "Call it a hunch. You should ask Shepard to see if you can help the engineering team on board."

Her head lowered and she began fidgeting with her hands, a dead give away that she was nervous again. "I don't know. The Normandy is an incredibly advanced Alliance ship. Its design must be classified material. I'm not sure Shepard would even be allowed to let me help even if he wanted to. I mean, I am a quarian, and we don't… I mean, people generally think we're just…"

"Thieves and vagrants?" I offered.

She nodded morosely, apparently not wanting to talk about it.

"Don't worry. Shepard's a good man. He doesn't put up with all that xenophobic bull about the quarians or anybody else. If you asked him, I'm sure he'd be happy to let you help."

She looked up at me cautiously, "Well, okay. I'll ask him."

Pleased, I looked back at the ship.

"And Benjamin?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. I'm… it means a lot to know you don't think of me that way."

I turned back to her and smiled. Her eyes lit up in that way that meant she was smiling too. I looked past her towards Shepard as he talked with Udina and Anderson. "It looks like they're wrapping up. Come on, let's get aboard."

...

Sure enough, Shepard had been given full control of the Normandy. After we spent a few moment's in the ship's decontamination cycle, Shepard filed us into the ship. After giving us newbies a short set of rules (crew conflicts would be brought to him, zero tolerance for xenophobia, no killing crewmates, etc.), he dismissed us to get acquainted to the ship, saying he would call us up to the comm room behind the CIC for a short meeting in a bit.

I began following Wrex and Garrus down the ship's corridor, but stopped as I realized Tali wasn't joining us. She was still back there, wringing her hands as she looked at Shepard as he made his way to speak with Joker. She looked at me, so I mouthed 'Go on' while making nudging motions with my hands. She hesitated, then nodded sharply and walked up to Shepard. He turned towards her, seeming to be a bit surprised to find her still standing there. I couldn't hear the conversation, but judging by their expressions and body language, I wasn't at all surprised to see Tali joyfully turn to run my way. She seemed to check her enthusiasm, forcing herself to try to walk at a dignified pace as she made her way to the ship's engineering deck. I smiled, my expression saying 'I told you so', as I turned to walk with her across the Normandy's command deck down to the elevator lift. She pressed the button to call the elevator, turning to look at me questioningly as I walked around towards the crew's quarters.

"I need something to eat." I explained.

She nodded. "Oh, okay. See you later."

I turned the corner, my view of Tali abruptly cut off. I took a few steps towards the dining area, only to realize that not only was it completely empty, there was no kitchen on this deck like there would be on the SR-2. Grumbling at this setback, I turned towards the medical room, sure I could at least find one person I already knew there. Sure enough, Dr. Chakwas was in there, working diligently at her desk like usual. I smiled as she looked at me in surprise.

"Yes, may I help you?" I always liked her accent and manner. In a way she seemed like she could be my grandma, even though I was pretty sure she was too young for that.

"Dr. Chakwas I presume? I have a medical emergency to report."

She looked surprised that I knew her name. "And what is the nature of this emergency, Mr...?"

"Smith. Benjamin Smith. I'm reporting a case of severe malnutrition, and am hoping you may be able to alleviate my problem by pointing me in direction of the nearest available sustinence, stat."

A faint smile crept on her lips. "I'm afraid you've already missed the last meal time. But not to worry, I always keep some spare food in my office for extreme cases."

She opens a cabinet and pulls out a brown package. "I'm afraid these aren't terribly good."

"Trust me, they're plenty good enough for me." I still hadn't eaten dinner, and that had been at least hours ago. I ravenously began digging into the MRE. I didn't recognize what all the food was, but it tasted familiar enough that I had no problem cramming it down.

She chuckled lightly, "I don't think I've seen anyone but Shepard and Alenko dig into food like that, and they're both biotics. Then again, you are quite larger than either of them."

I filed that point about Shepard away. It would be useful to seem like I already knew about Shepard's abilities given that I was a self-proclaimed psychic now. Come to think of it, I should probably do a background check too so I know about his past. I gulped down my food. "Sorry, I haven't eaten for hours."

"Well, that's not typically my definition of severe malnutrition, but you do seem like you were in need of this."

Suddenly Shepard's voice blared over the intercom. "This is Commander Shepard speaking. We have our orders…" Shepard launched into a rousing speech about the stakes of this mission and his confidence that we would succeed. Even without any heroic music in the background, it was captivating and inspiring. By the end of it, I didn't feel like a young man in hopelessly over his head anymore, but a hero on a mission to save the galaxy.

I didn't even realize that I had stopped eating the rations Dr. Chakwas had given me, being so focused on the speech. Remembering the upcoming meeting with Shepard, I told Dr. Chakwas,

"I guess I'll be taking this to go. Thanks again Doctor."

...

I stepped into the comm room, looking for an open seat to settle into to finish my meal. Ashley gave me a look that obviously expressed her disapproval for bringing food to a debriefing, but I kept eating calmly as though I didn't notice. After Shepard's speech, I had bid a quick farewell to Chakwas and double-timed it back up the stairs. Fortunately, I wasn't the last to make it to the meeting. Unfortunately, Tali was. She muttered an apology and quickly took the last open seat besides Garrus. I glanced to my left, realizing that Wrex was sizing me up with one of his deep crimson eyes. I held up my MRE, "Want some?"

He snorted with amusement, turning his attention towards Shepard

Shepard didn't take his seat, preferring to stand as he looked over his squad. He crossed his arms, collecting his thoughts for a moment before beginning.

"I know many of you are curious as to the nature of this meeting. Similarly, I'm sure you are also curious about the presence of our young guest." He nodded towards me. Come on, again with the young thing?

"It's my intention to clear up any confusion on the matter, as well as explain the extenuating circumstances." He took a deep breath before continuing. "It would appear that Ben here happens to be a psychic."

'No beating around the bush with him', I thought.

Everyone in the room fell silent; only the cracking of my MRE package could be heard, obscenely loud given the circumstances. I stayed focused on my food, trying to appear as though the absurd statement didn't bother me in the slightest. The moment seemed to drag on an uncomfortably long time, as though everyone was waiting for Shepard to crack a smile, laugh; anything to show this was all a big joke.

Suddenly, Wrex let out a loud, bark like laugh of his own, apparently amused that anyone would make such a ridiculous claim. Garrus was looking at Shepard's face intently, as if still trying to determine if he was being funny. Tali just stared at me in a startled way.

Shepard however, kept his stone-faced expression. "I was skeptical myself as well. But he knows things about us that would be impossible to know any other way. He even predicted that Udina would replace Anderson and make me de facto captain of the Normandy."

Garrus crossed his arms as Wrex continued to chuckle. Tali just kept staring at me. It was starting to become a bit uncomfortable.

"With all due respect, Commander, I didn't take you for a mystic."

I smirked at Garrus's statement. "Why is it whenever someone says 'with all due respect', they really mean 'kiss my ass'?"

This managed to make Ashley smirk in spite of herself. She obviously was intent to dislike me, though I couldn't guess why.

Garrus turned towards me, narrowing his eyes. "Okay Ben, I'll play your little game. Go ahead; prove it. Prove that you have these 'psychic powers' and that will be the end of it." He threw out the challenge arrogantly, confident that I would be proven to be the liar he knew I was. I guess he was mostly right though.

I shrugged, setting down my now empty food wrappings.

"All right, if that's what you want." I close my eyes in apparent concentration, actually trying to recall some information about him I could use. After a moment, I opened my eyes, saying,

"Your father was a C-Sec officer. "Do things right or don't do them at all" he used to tell you. He was the reason you joined C-Sec instead of going through Spectre training. What do you think he'd say now that you've joined a Spectre's crew to go cavorting about the galaxy, taking down bad guys without any rules to hold you back?"

His mandibles flared and his arms dropped to his side. I wasn't done yet though. I turn my attention now to the bemused looking Wrex.

"What about you Wrex? Garrus isn't the only one with family troubles. Being betrayed by your own father has a way of changing one's priorities. Was it before or after you sunk your knife in Jarrod's chest that you believed that uniting the krogan was a lost cause?"

Wrex eyes grew wide at my words, hands squeezing the edge of his seat until it started to warp under the pressure. He seems dangerously close to losing control, something I've only seen once before. I certainly don't want to be the object of his rage should the dam of his enormous self-restraint break. But the anger the memories stir up leaks out from him almost as quickly as it came. The fire in his eyes is instantly replaced with sadness and bitterness, and he turns his gaze to the deck at his feet.

I turned towards Tali, who seemed to be nervous again as my attention switched to her.

"I know that a lot is expected of you on your pilgrimage, Tali. Having your father, Zael'Zorah, as the head of the Admiralty Board definitely isn't the life of pampered royalty."

Tali gasped at this, hand flying to her visor.

"H-how do you know about my father?"

There was no need to answer that. All of the previous skepticism they had held just moments before had vanished in the short time that I spoke.

The crew was silent, staring at me until I started to squirm with discomfort. I didn't exactly enjoy flaunting everyone's personal lives without their consent, but it had seemed like the quickest way to convince them.

"Look, I can't read minds or communicate with the dead or anything like that. I can't even control my power. All my life, I've been able to see random glimpses of the past and the future. It may have caused me some grief in my life, but I believe everything happens for a reason. It wasn't mere chance that I was given this gift, or that I would find myself in your company. I've never seen things so clearly or so detailed as I have around you guys, and I know that has to be important. This mission will affect the fate of the galaxy as we know it, and I sense you all will need my help before the end."

I fell silent, slightly embarrassed at my presumptuous statements. I'm not someone who is big on speeches, at least off the top of my head and in front of a group. Lying about this whole psychic thing was getting easier, but I wasn't sure that was a good thing. At least I was being earnest about the rest of it though; it couldn't have just been coincidence that I was brought here. If it hadn't been for me, Garrus would have never continued his investigation, and Tali might be dead. I was supposed to change things.

Shepard looked around at his squad. "So, does anyone still have a problem believing this?"

Whether they did or not, no one was willing to say anything.

"All right then. Discussing this wasn't the only reason I brought you here. I also want to give you the sitrep on our mission. We don't have many leads to go on, but every moment we waste just gives Saren more time to find the Conduit."

"I'm setting a course for the Artemis Tau Cluster to search for Matriarch Benezia's daughter. She may be able to tell is why the Matriarch aligned with Saren and what their next plans are. The cluster we're looking at is fairly large though, so we'll be spending some time—"

"She's on Therum, Shepard."

Everyone looked at me, surprised.

I continued. "Her name is Liara T'Soni. She's currently investigating some old Prothean ruins on a volcanic planet called Therum. I didn't see anything else though."

Shepard looked surprised, but also fairly pleased. Good, I was making myself useful. "I'll put that name into the ship's systems, see what comes up. Now Ben, Ash and Kaidan stay here for a minute. The rest of you, dismissed."

Garrus and Wrex filed toward the door. Tali followed, taking one last glance back at me before exiting the room. Once the doors closed, Shepard began speaking again.

"You should recall, Ben, that I am not making you join the Alliance. Even so, as long as you're under my command, I expect you to conduct yourself as a soldier. As you have little combat or technical experience, your duty aboard the ship is to train for the upcoming missions. In addition to their regular duties, Ash will act as your combat instructor, while Kaidan will provide your tech tutoring. Once both deem you fit for active duty, you may officially join my squad on ground missions. Am I understood?"

"Crystal, sir."

"That's what I like to hear. You'll start training in the morning." He turned towards my new unofficial NCO's. "I'll make sure to get you all the training equipment you need. I want Ben prepared for action within four weeks."

Neither Kaidan nor Ashley looked happy with this news.

"You've got to be kidding me Commander."

"I agree with Ash on this one, sir. That's hardly enough time to get this kid prepared."

Shepard was impassive. "We're banking the survival of the galaxy on impossible odds. I'd say if a rogue Spectre with a massive dreadnought and legions of geth at his disposal can be stopped by an Alliance frigate and an unlikely band of brothers, you should have no trouble getting Ben up to speed." With that, he walked from the room.

Kaidan turned towards me. "Well, I guess I have a lot to get ready then. Like the Commander said, you may not be with the Alliance; but, as long as you're serving with us, you're to treat us as your superior officers."

"Aye aye, Lt."

Kaidan nodded. "I'll be sure to get you a uniform for you to change into too" he said before walking out of the door. I began to follow him, stopping as I felt a hand grab my shoulder.

"Hold on a second, kid. I want to talk with you for a bit."

I turned, inwardly cringing in fear of whatever Ashley was going to throw at me. Once Kaidan left, her expression hardened.

"Now you listen to me good, because I'm only going to say this once." Typically I would correct bad grammar in someone else's speech, but now didn't seem like the proper time. She continued in that quiet, threatening voice.

"The Commander may trust you, but that doesn't mean that I do. Now I don't care if you're a prophet of God Himself. If I even suspect you are trying to undermine this mission, or that you have other loyalties than to Shepard, I'm going to make you wish you were never born."

What the heck is it about me that makes almost every women I meet in this galaxy want to kill me?

She leaned in close, voice dropping to almost a whisper. "And if I find out this whole psychic shtick is some kind of scam, I will personally dump your ass out of the nearest airlock. Do we understand each other?"

After I shook out the willies in my spine, I must have mumbled something like, "Um, yeah, uh-sure thing sir, er, ma'am…"

She butted her shoulder into mine as she stalked out of the door.

Several moments after she left I called out lamely after her.

"Okay!"

"Sounds good!"

"We're on the same team now!"

"Saren beware!"

Lord, what did I sign up for?

...

Thus ends part one of my journey. Will Ash figure out I'm a phony? Will I ever be ready to join Shepard's team? Will Garrus ever work that pole out of his ass? Find out (or not) in part two of Psych!