Unseen: Mass Effect FanFiction (ReWritten)

Chapter 23

"You gave me this mark," Mina finally replied, pouring herself more coffee. "Solana said you must have been affected by some pheremones, otherwise you would have never done it."

"When?" Garrus asked in a tight voice.

Garrus's mandibles twitched, a sign of deep unease she'd come to recognize intimately.

"The night you broke into my apartment," Mina continued, not meeting his gaze. "I found it when I was treating the marks you left on my body. I didn't think much of it at the time."

Mina shifted uncomfortably, the silence stretching thin. She hadn't meant to say anything, but they couldn't afford for him to be suspicious of her.

"It was you, Garrus," she repeated the words hanging in the air. "

Garrus stood rigid in the kitchen. He looked utterly stunned. Mina could tell his brain was trying to process everything. "What? That's... impossible. I've only been with Aster, and I wouldn't have..."

"The diagnostics don't lie, Garrus. It's faint, but it's there. A turian male, and the profile matches you. Solana confirmed it."

The usually unflappable turian just stared. He ran a hand over his faceplates, the rasp of his chitinous fingers the only sound in the room. He looked genuinely horrified. "Mina - Aster, I... I don't understand. I have absolutely no memory of that. None."

"It was never my intention," he continued. "We were strangers at that time and - I'm sorry, Aster. It was a mistake."

"I know it was," Mina said. "I don't expect anything from you. I need your help to clear my name."

The words were barely out of her mouth before Garrus was moving. He closed the distance between them in two strides, enveloping her in a cautious, careful hug. She could feel the tremor that ran through him as his mandibles brushed against her hair.

Mina stiffened, unsure how to react. His hug was comforting, familiar, but the information she'd just delivered turned it all sideways. Was this the embrace of a friend, a comrade, or something... else? A shudder ran through her, and she wasn't sure if it was from fear or something closer to... anticipation?

"I would never do anything to hurt you, Aster," he whispered, his voice rough. "You have to believe me. I... I don't know how this happened."

She leaned back slightly, breaking the hug. "I do believe you, Garrus. You're not the type. But... that doesn't change the fact that it's there. And I don't know... I don't know what to think about it."

"Solana thinks it's a pheromone that affected you," she added softly. "The clinic is trying to figure out its origins. This is not the first case they've encountered."

"That doesn't matter anymore," Garrus said, shaking his head. "I'll do whatever I can to help you clear your name.

If it's alright with you, we can decide what to do afterwards."

Mina nodded, "I can work with that."

"Tell me," Garrus hesitantly began. "On Omega, you were Vicki, and you were also Dr Lang"

Mina chuckled and nodded, "I was posing as Vicki when you and Nihlus showed up. I kept my identity hidden until I knew you weren't going to kill me. Even now, no one can know my real identity.

The conspiracy behind this, the whole A.I thing it's bigger than anything I've ever seen."

"What have you found?" Garrus asked ouring himself some coffee as well.

Mina grabbed her cup and went to sit on the couch. Garrus followed behind her.

"After I left the Citadel, I found that there was another hidden player behind the creation of the A.I., one that was supporting Alec from the shadows.