Chapter 98: Points for Style

=== Summary ===
Garrus tells Khalisah that their itinerary is to be confirmed going forward. Khalisah is worried about the PR repercussions, but Garrus is unmoved. She also denies telling the techs to program destroyers,
Shepard wakes late in the day, momentarily confused about her location. Garrus expresses hurt and frustration in his subvocals, and accuses Shepard of having a death wish. Confused, Shepard says that she was only knocked out. Garrus corrects her: “You flatlined.”
We flashback to the moment after Shepard fired the Blackstar and Garrus’ view of the aftermath. He is momentarily blind with rage and anguish before he is forced to take command of the situation. Underneath all of it is a deep guilt- he knew how Shepard fought and he had demanded they face Reaper troops due to his pride. After getting her to Chakwas and trying to decontaminate, Garrus hears her heart on the monitor stop.
Garrus explains that while Chakwas got her heart restarted and Shepard is alive, her nanotech is badly damaged and her recovery is going to be slow. Shepard protests that the Blackstar had never done that before, and that it shouldn’t have done that now. Garrus asks Shepard why she keeps sacrificing herself and she replies that she doesn’t know, it’s just always what she has done. Garrus tells her that she doesn’t have to anymore- that there is more to their lives now.
The next morning Shepard reads about “Aqilis and Adrasteia” and turian nicknames. Dr. Chawas comes in and tells her about the game plan she and Dr. Ivanova created for replacing her nanobots. Afterwards, Shepard feeds Viatrix while she and Garrus talk. Garrus is afraid of losing her, and Shepard says that while the reality of their lives means danger, she can’t have a death wish anymore because Viatrix needs them,
That afternoon, the doctors use a repurposed dialysis to remove the damaged nanobots and replace them. The process makes Shepard feel lightheaded and a little like she is floating. The process reminds her of something familiar, though a presence is missing. She wanders deep into her subconscious into something else until the presence returns. Then the coms quiet, the static clears, the lights tops flickering, and the Austerlitz’s drive core smooths out. CORI sends the recording of the phenomena to Dr. Bryson.
On board Pinnacle Station both captains of the Normandy introduce the crew to the mission simulations, based on missions completed by the crews of both Normandys. Five days later Shepard notes that she feels more like herself again, and while the crew loves her, Garrus has come into his own as a leader. So screw you, former Shadow Broker.
=== Title Meaning ===
=== Easter Eggs ===
==== Discord Server Highlights ====
Turian-human bilingualism and developmental milestones, theorizing with wine, and the remote possibility of a spinoff featuring Aelianus and Evadne.