During the Mass Effect games, Commander Shepard will face any danger and take on any mission as the first human Spectre to save the day. The Commander braved legions of Geth to put a stop to Saren's plan, and the Commander came back from the dead to face the deadly Collectors. Shepard also faced the Geth and a hazardous dying star just to get Tali'Zorah, his old friend, back on the team.
By 2185, the crew members of the original Normandy had gone their separate ways, and Tali was back with her people. She and some scientists had trekked to a planet named Haestrom to gather readings on its dying tar when the Geth attacked. It was time for Commander Shepard to save the day once again.
A Too-Sunny Day
Commander Shepard receives a number of dossiers from the Illusive Man, and although they don't trust the Illusive Man very much, the Commander does trust some of the familiar faces on those dossiers. One of them is Tali'Zorah, and the trail leads Shepard to the remote world of Haestrom, all the way in Geth space of all places.
The Normandy's stealth drive gets Shepard and the team planet-side without any trouble, but there's another problem: this system's star. It's dying unusually rapidly, blasting the planet with intense radiation that would compromise electronic devices and energy shields. Sticking to the shadows is the best plan going forward, and it's not long before Shepard trades fire with Geth platoons in the Quarian ruins.
The Quarian science team is in trouble. They had arrived with a marine detachment, but the Geth came in force with their dropships. The Quarians are pinned down on the other side of this ancient town. Shepard finds a Quarian communication device, joins the channel and confirms that Tali was still alive. A certain Kal'Reegar is in charge of Tali's defenses, and based on his word, the situation isn't good.
Tali has no way out, but if Shepard could join the fight, that could change. As directed, Shepard's squad fights its way to the ruined town's other side, and fights with Kal'Reegar in person to destroy a mammoth Geth colossus that stnads before the final building, where Tali is trapped. With all the Geth wiped out, Shepard steps inside to meet Tali. But their troubles aren't over yet.
Strained Relations
Tali is grateful for the rescue, but she's the only member of the science team left, and what they found here was not encouraging. Haestrom's star is dying much too fast, and an anomaly with dark matter might be responsible. The Geth were likely not responsible, but the Quarian people are concerned that this phenomenon could happen in other systems too, something that would interfere with future colonization plans. At any rate, Tali agrees to board the Normandy with Shepard rather than return to the Migrant Fleet, and Kal'Reegar accepts the plan.
Aboard the Normandy, Tali is on her guard at once. This wasn't like the previous ship, where everyone is a friendly face; instead, Tali is surrounded by Cerberus, and she did not like that. Cerberus recently destroyed a ship in the Migrant Fleet, the Idenna, and not even Jacob Taylor's warm greeting could change Tali's view on the organization.
In fact, Tali is ready to help Shepard destroy Cerberus from within as a saboteur, but for now, Shepard has no choice but to cooperate with Cerberus to take the fight to the Collectors. Tali decides to work for Shepard, not for Cerberus, and tries to avoid all the other crew members. Still, she learns to get along with Ken and Gabby down in the engineering deck, and when she needs help with a sudden accusasion of treason later, the new Normandy is ready to shuttle her to the Migrant Fleet right away.