Luna Shanks heads the security detail of Andromeda Initiative founder Jien Garson. Her portly appearance and gruff demeanor belies prodigious physical and biotic strength (and a surprisingly diplomatic side) she puts to good use in order to achieve her goals.
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“I have so many questions.” — Spoilers for Mass Effect: Discovery follow. |
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When a rally staged right outside the Initiative's headquarters on Earth turns violent, Shanks steps out to subdue and disperse the crowd with her biotics. She helps a turian beaten by the crowd up to his feet thinking he's a long way away from Palaven, but the turian claims to be there on purpose looking to sign up with the Initiative. Shanks brusquely tells him to get on the wait list, but he claims although his background disqualified him from it his skill set might still be of use. Shanks is unconvinced and brushes him off, but Garson overhears their conversation and directs Shanks to escort the turian up to her office.
The turian introduces himself as Sanjin Vinnick although Shanks is uninterested in the matter. She knows Garson is an excellent judge of character and says so when the Initiative's leader asks about it, when Garson accepts Vinnick into the fold on the provision he retrieve the quarian scientist Shio'Leth vas Novarra for them. Shanks accompanies Vinnick to accomplish the mission, and they start their search at the Citadel.
Shanks uses her biotics and brawn to "ask" around the seedy underbelly of the Citadel. One duct rat she headlocks points them to the lower ward flophouses, but she and Vinnick find a blasted hovel when they arrive. Surveying the wreck, she determines that someone else is also looking for the quarian. Vinnick sees an encrypted datapad among the ruins and tells Shanks the Migrant Fleet may be able to assist them in opening it.
Vinnick is able to obtain the coordinates of the Novarra through his military contacts. Shanks grows suspicious when he used an encrypted channel to do so, musing that for someone trying to earn the Initiative's trust he isn't helping his case. Vinnick claims his contacts' lives could be jeopardized for even talking to him, warranting the caution, but before the argument could go further one of the Novarra crew notices them lurking around their strip-mining operation and brings them to the office of ship captain Jakin.
Shanks gets to the point and asks about Shio after introducing themselves. Viegle, the quarian who found them, quickly asks if he's still alive on learning they where looking for Shio, but meekly claims they were just friends when queried by Shanks.
Upon learning about Shio's expulsion from the fleet Shanks thinks he could've come to the Initiative shortly afterward, then she tries to give the encrypted datapad to Jakin to get him to open it. When Jakin declines she swiftly moves her hand away when he tries to reach for it. Vinnick grows impatient and confronts Jakin, but Shanks tries to get him to cool down and steer the negotiations to a mutually acceptable compromise. However, a biotic salarian arrives at the mining camp and proceeds to lay waste to everything in his path while asking for Viegle.
Shanks grabs Viegle's arm and marches off to the back door, but the salarian destroys the very office they are on. She uses her bulk to shield Viegle from much of the blast, then hands him over to Vinnick and orders them to escape as she prepares to match the salarian with her own biotic might.
During the battle she questions the salarian why he wants Viegle but the salarian thinks they are following him. He gains the upper hand and blasts Shanks off a cliff, but Shanks has managed to grab hold of a jutting metal bar. Vinnick comes back and helps her climb, but by the time they reach the top the salarian has already slaughtered Jakin and his crew. She sees Viegle's body being biotically crushed by the salarian and tries to reenter the fray, but Vinnick tells her it's already too late.
Rushing over to Viegle's side, Shanks props his head up and comforts him in his dying moments. Viegle divulges that Shio's his husband, prompting Shanks to ask where he is so they can protect him. Viegle sent him to Omega, but the salarian has already tortured the information out of him. When he expires, Shanks solemnly puts his hands over Shio's datapad.
On Omega, Shanks discovers Vinnick's true identity when his cousin Nyreen Kandros inadvertently blurts out his real name, Tiran Kandros, in her presence. Already watchful of Vinnick's furtive behavior and unwilling to hear explanations, Shanks draws her Shuriken on the turians and gets herself in a brief scuffle before being subdued by the cousins.
Once she's calmed down and heard Tiran's side of things, Shanks tells him the story of how she ended up working for Garson. Her father owned a construction company but lacked a male heir to take over the business. Luna worked for him as just a biotically handy laborer. Garson met with her father for a construction bid and got a tour of ongoing projects. The bid didn't work out, but Garson saw Luna's talents on the field and gave her a job offer. Shanks thinks Garson's read on people faltered for the first time in Tiran. The turian doesn't think so and muses their boss may know something more than they both do.
Going back to the mission, Shanks helps herself to an Eviscerator as the turian cousins and Nyreen's lackeys prepare for a fight against the biotic salarian Agent Zeta. Despite backing Agent Zeta and Shio into a corner the motley group's weapons are unable to penetrate the salarian's Barrier. Shanks produces a Throw and orders another biotic in the group to produce a Pull for a biotic explosion that knocks Zeta and the quarian off their feet. While Shanks helps Shio back up, Zeta impales her from the back with a metal bar. Shanks retaliates by unloading her shotgun in the salarian's face, which only enrages him to the point of expending a lot of biotic energy to send everyone else flying.
In the aftermath of the skirmish, Zeta has escaped, Shio has been rescued, and Shanks lies incapacitated on a stretcher. The bar missed vital organs and although Shanks would experience some loss of feeling, she'll live. She pleads with Tiran to get the quarian back to Earth, but Shio divulges that Zeta is headed to the Kholas Array and should be stopped. Shanks tries to warn Tiran against pursuit, but the turian already made up his mind.
After Tiran's adventures in the Kholas Array, Shanks receives a cordial visit from him as she lies recuperating at a medical facility on Earth.