Arashu's Gift

Chapter 23

It was strange to be on the Citadel without a target to hunt. All the memories Thane had of this space station were splattered in blood. The only exception being the last one made a few weeks back: Kolyat.

He saw Kolyat walk back towards the elevator; his afternoon shift with Bailey at C-Sec was soon to begin. The last one had been a morning shift and the previous one a night shift.

Thane had taken advantage of the last days docked at the Citadel to meet up with him and share breakfast together. Kolyat had told him about his work under the guidance of the C-Sec captain. Because he wasn't officially part of the station's police force, the drala'fa didn't perceive him as a threat. Kolyat had skillfully gained the trust of the station's abandoned kids, the so-called 'duct rats', and slowly they were being reintegrated back into the system through a program created by Captain Bailey and sponsored by Ambassador Udina. Some kids were staying in a recently-opened orphanage on the Tayseri Ward, the same neighborhood where Bailey had arranged accommodation for Kolyat – while others, the youngest ones, were being adopted by foster parents.

"Most of them are humans and have never seen a drell before, so they tend to get scared when they see me for the first time," his son had told him. "Sometimes I give them candies or the latest interactive holo game to play. Ultimately they speak to me and relax."

Thane was swelling with pride. None of this could have been possible without Shepard's intervention and help. The Kolyat of the 800 Blocks and the one he had been meeting up with for the last week were two completely different young men. Kolyat had called him 'Father' again and hugged him. Arashu was being very generous to him, his son, and all the orphan children of the Citadel. Praise be to her.

Thane had taken the opportunity to explain the reason and nature of the mission he had embarked on as part of Commander Shepard's team on the Normandy. He had tried to do so that time in the C-Sec precinct after the incident with the turian Joram Talid as well. Back then, Kolyat had still been too stressed by the situation, wearing his apathy and resentment for Thane's years-long absence as his shield and weapon. Now, however, his son understood the real consequences of the mission awaiting them on the other side of the Omega 4 relay. It was very likely Thane wouldn't return, and even if he did manage to survive, his Kepral's Syndrome would soon enter its final stage and Kalahira's tides would claim him without delay. Kolyat accepted the facts with a maturity that made Thane feel proud of him once again. He was truly becoming a man.

Thane decided to spend his shore leave in the Presidium. The station's artificial cycle showed the holo sky of mid-afternoon high above. He leaned on the rail with his forearms, looking at the passersby down below from the balcony. These days he'd noticed a lot of interspecies couples. Humans and asari, humans and turians, asari and krogan, asari and turians. He overheard an interaction between a quarian and a turian seated on a bench in his surroundings. The terraces of cafes and restaurants were filled with patrons. Many of them were interspecies couples too.

Thane had known such relationships existed in the galaxy. Because of Shepard, he only paid attention and noticed them now. Even in his conversations with Kolyat he had caught himself thinking about her, wishing to visit her in her cabin to tell her about his son.

She was still in a coma on the med bay. Nobody was allowed access, except for Officer Lawson and Doctor Solus. It had been his fault; he had known it from the very moment he had seen her reaction to his venom that night in Nos Astra. The bad omen had refused to release its grip on him since then. He knew he shouldn't have kissed her, but the strength to resist had simply failed him. Now she was the one paying the price for his weakness.

What was the reason for finding her on his path? Who had placed her there?

The Dantius Tower was meant to be the prelude to his parting to the sea. Thane had prepared to embrace Kalahira's calling, he had planned it all well in his head: he would kill Nassana and wouldn't put up a fight against her guards. It was going to be a good death. Instead, Shepard had appeared, presenting him with an impossible mission for which she needed him. Nobody had needed him for anything in years.