Chapter 1: New Favors
Tom, Garrus, and Miranda returned to the Nos Astra bar after getting Oriana relocated and beyond her real father's reach. With Miranda's personal favor out of the way, the trio went back to focusing on recruiting the last two candidates for the team: the drell assassin, Thane Krios, and the asari justicar, Samara. As they are about to leave the lounge, Garrus received an incoming transmission from his omni-tool.
"You two go on ahead." Garrus said. "I got to take this call."
"Is everything alright?" Tom asked worriedly.
"Yeah, everything is fine." The turian answered. "Just a lead I'm following on that personal matter I have."
"Looking for the turian who betrayed you?" Miranda asked.
"Yeah." Garrus answered with a nod. "This will only take a minute."
"Understood, we'll give you some privacy." Miranda said with a she nod. "While Shepard and I wait for you, we are going to go see what that asari and quarian are arguing about. That's where we'll be."
"Understood." Garrus replied. "Like I said, I'll only be a minute."
As Tom and Miranda left the lounge to go help the asari and quarian with their problem, Garrus answered the transmission.
"Hello?" Garrus asked.
"Mr. Vakarian?" the caller asked.
"This is." The turian replied.
"I've been looking into that problem you were having." The caller said. "I may have a good lead on that person you're looking for. Lantar Sidonis?"
"That's correct." Garrus replied with a nod. "What did you find?"
"A couple of my agents have informed me that he was last seen here on the Citadel, meeting with someone named Fade." The caller explained. "If you want, I can have all the information, I have on both Sidonis and Fade, sent to your mailbox?"
"Please do. I could use whatever help you can give me." Garrus said.
"Very well, I'll have everything sent to your mailbox." The caller replied back. "I hope the information, I'm sending you right now, helps you find what you're after."
"I'm sure it will." Garrus replied. "And, for what it's worth, thank you for all your help."
"The pleasure was all mine, Mr. Vakarian." The caller said and ended the transmission.
Just as Garrus was about to leave the lounge, he received another transmission. This time, it was from Yeomen Kelly Chambers.
"Garrus, it's Kelly." The Yeomen said.
"Ms. Chambers. What can I do for you?" The turian asked.
"Could you please have Shepard come back to the Normandy? I've been trying to get of hold of him and Operative Lawson, but neither of them is responding." The Yeomen asked.
"What seems to be the problem?" Garrus asked.
"It's about Grunt." Kelly answered.
Garrus, nervously, paused for a moment. "He's not trying to kill anyone on board the ship, is he?" he asked worriedly.
"Oh no, he's not trying to kill anybody." Kelly answered calmly. "For the past hour, he's been pacing back and forth restlessly and every few minutes, he punches a container. I ask him what's wrong and he says he doesn't know and wants to talk to Shepard about it."
"Understood. I'll make sure Shepard gets the message." Garrus said.
"Appreciate it, Garrus. I'll let Grunt know Shepard will be with him soon." Kelly replied gratefully and ended the call.
After talking with Kelly Chambers, Garrus left the lounge and walked over to Tom and Miranda, who have just finished helping the asari slave broker and the quarian slave with a problem they were having.
"How did everything go?" the turian asked.
"Good." Miranda said and continued, "The asari slave broker was having a hard time trying to get a Synthetic Insights representative to purchase the quarian slave. Sadly, the representative refused to purchase the quarian due to the geth attack on the Citadel. After informing the slave broker about this, Shepard got her to release the quarian due to health reasons."
"Good to hear." Garrus said as he nodded at Miranda. After commenting on how the situation between the asari slave broker and the quarian slave was handled, Garrus turned his attention to Tom.
"Shepard," the turian said gently.
"What's up?" Tom asked.
"Yeomen Chambers just called. She says Grunt is tearing up the cargo hold. She doesn't know why, but she wants you to come back to the Normandy and see if you can get him to calm down." Garrus finished.
"Ah, crap." Tom said as he shook his head. "Okay, come on. Let's go see what's wrong with the big guy."
As they are about to leave the bar, Tom remembered the little job he received from Liara. "Hey, I just remembered something. Before we go back to the Normandy, is it okay if we go see Liara and see if she got what she was after?" he asked.
"Of course," Miranda said as she nodded. "I'm sure she got what she was after. But we can still go check if you like."
"I do." Tom said as he nodded.
"Alright then, let's head over there." Miranda said.
After deciding to go see Liara at her office, Tom, Garrus, and Miranda left the bar and went down the stairs to the trading floor. As they walked down the trading floor and approached the stairs leading up to Liara's office, Tom remembered the locket he found at the cargo transport. Before going up the stairs, the Commander turned around and walked over to the asari, who was looking for the locket, standing by the dockside entrance.
"Pardon me." The asari said. "I'm dealing with damn Illium travel bureaucracy."
"Sorry to bother you ma'am." Tom replied. "I was at one of the cargo transport stations and I came across this locket with a picture of a human male and an asari, who looks just like you."
The asari calmly took the locket from the Commander's hand and smiled tearfully. "Oh, Steven." She said. "Thank you so much. My daughter was young when he died. This is the last memento she has left of him."
Tom nodded. "I'm glad I could help, ma'am." He proudly said.
The asari, nodded back at the Commander, and then happily walked away.
After delivering the lost locket to the asari, Tom, Garrus, and Miranda returned to the stairs leading up to T'Soni's office. After climbing up the stairs, Tom nodded at Nyxeris, who was working at her desk, and then turned his attention to Liara's office door. Before opening the door, the Commander turned his attention to Garrus and Miranda.
"Hey. If it's alright with you guys, I want to talk to her in private." Tom said.
"Is everything okay?" Garrus asked out of curiosity.
"Yeah, everything's cool." Tom answered. "I just want it to be me and her alone."
Garrus nodded. "Okay, that's fine. Miranda and I will wait for you downstairs when you're done." The turian said.
"You got it. Like I said, this won't take long. I promise." Tom said.
As Garrus and Miranda walked back downstairs, Tom entered T'Soni's office to talk with the asari in private.
Chapter 2: A Guilty Confession
Liara was sitting at her desk and working on her computer. When her office door opened, she shifted her eyes away from the computer screen to the opened door to see Tom approaching her desk.
"Shepard." Liara said and continued, "It's good to see you again."
Tom nodded and sat down on a chair facing Liara's desk.
"The other suspects have gone underground. Damn it, I was so close." Liara said and continued. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to sound ungrateful. It's just… the vorcha, you had me kill, was not the Observer. And now, I probably won't be able to get a second chance in finding the real Observer." She finished.
"So what's the next step?" Tom asked.
"Now I gather information, peel away layers of lies, and shine light in the shadows." Liara said and continued, "And when I find the Shadow Broker, I hit him with a biotic field so strong that what's left of his body will fit in a coffee cup." She finished.
Tom started to get annoyed with the asari acting like a tough cookie. "This hostile relationship of yours with the Shadow Broker can't just be about you losing a friend. What else happened between you two?" he asked.
Liara stood up from her chair, and looked out the window. "Did Cerberus ever tell you how they recovered your body?" the asari asked.
"The Illusive Man telling me how he got his power-hungry hands on me?" Tom asked. "No. I guess he decided to keep that information to himself."
"I gave it to them." Liara answered painfully. "I gave you to them, Shepard… Because they said they could rebuild you." The asari turned around and continued, "And to do that, I had to take your body from the Shadow Broker, who was going to sell you to the Collectors." Liara finished as she sat back down in her chair.
Tom was shocked to learn how he ended up with Cerberus. "Well… If you knew about Cerberus plan to bring me back to life, why didn't you tell the others? Kaidan, Anderson?" he asked.
"I couldn't." Liara answered calmly. "I feared that if I told everyone that I was the one who put you in this traitorous position, they would hate me forever."
Disgusted to hear this, Tom looked away from Liara. 'Now it all makes sense.' He thought as he put the Illusive Man telling him that Liara was working "for" the Shadow Broker and Liara's hatred for the mysterious information broker together. After a moment of silence, Tom looked back at Liara. "You mean to tell me that you trusted a terrorist organization, devoted in making humanity rule the galaxy, to bring me back to life, and didn't bother telling Kaidan, Anderson, Garrus, Tali, Wrex, and my mother, my own mother, about it because you were too afraid of how they would react to this?! " he angrily asked.
"Yes!" Liara boomed. "I was, and still am, afraid to tell the others that I was responsible for you being with Cerberus. If keeping them in the dark is the only way to keep them from hating me forever, I can live with it." She finished with a nod.
Tom shot another angry glare at the asari. "So what you're saying is that you allowed Cerberus to spread all those lies about me "faking" death to join them. Just so you can save your ass from being despised by the entire galaxy?" he asked.
After a few moments of silence, Liara took a deep breath. "Shepard… I screwed up, I won't lie. And I knew, the minute I handed you over to Cerberus, I ruined your life." She painfully said and continued, "When I gave you to them, I told myself I was doing it for you. For a chance to bring you back. But I knew Cerberus would use you to advance human interests. And I let it happen. Because… I couldn't let you go. I'm sorry." Liara finished as she closed her eyes in fear.
Enraged to learn Liara gave him to Cerberus out of selfishness, Tom looked down at his feet and closed his eyes. 'You treacherous piece of blueberry shit.' He thought. As his eyes remained closed, Tom remembered the hostility he received from Kaidan and Miranda, and the Illusive Man revealing what he did to get the Collectors to attack Horizon and make the galaxy view him in a negative light.
The first person to appear in Tom's mind was Kaidan. "Maybe you feel like you owe Cerberus because they saved you. Maybe you're the one who's not thinking straight." Kaidan angrily said to Tom after the Commander told him how he was letting his feelings about Cerberus blind him from seeing the Collector threat. After reprimanding Tom, Kaidan faded away.
The next person to appear in the Commander's mind was Miranda. "Only time will tell if you become an asset to our cause." Miranda menacingly said to Tom after the Commander mocked her about how displeased she was with the results of the Lazarus Project. After snarling at Tom, Miranda faded away.
The last person to appear in Tom's mind was the Illusive Man, with a smug look. "I released a few carefully disguised rumors that you might be alive and working for Cerberus." The Illusive Man proudly said to Tom after the Commander told him how he suspected the Cerberus Leader had something to do with the Collector attack on Horizon by bringing up what Kaidan said about the Alliance getting a tip about Tom and Cerberus. After bragging to Tom on how he got the Collectors to attack Horizon, the Illusive Man faded away.
After a few long moments of silence, Tom, while still looking down on the floor, opened his eyes and finally responded. "Get… Over… Here." He said slowly and quietly.
Liara opened her eyes and looked at Tom. "Excuse me?" She replied.
Tom looked up at the asari. "Get over here!" he roared.
Frightened from the Commander's loud roar, Liara, uneasily, got up from her chair and walked up to Tom, who had gotten up from his chair. As she looked into the Commander's eyes, Liara could see the anger in them burning strong.
"Shepard," she said worriedly.
Saying nothing, Tom, viciously, smacked Liara across the face. While shocked, the asari expected the Commander would do something brutal to her. As she rubbed away the pain on her cheek, Liara watched Tom walk over to the office window. "Okay, you're angry. I understand that." She said. "But what was I supposed to do? Leave you dead?"
Saying nothing, Tom looked down at the trading floor, thus, ignoring Liara's question. As the Commander continued to look down on the trading floor, Liara continued talking. "The Collectors wanted you dead." She said. "With you dead, they would've abducted every single human colony in the galaxy with no one to stop them. Don't you get that?"
Again, Tom said nothing. As the Commander remained staring out the window, Liara continued trying to convince her old friend what she did gave the galaxy hope. "With you alive again, humanity now has a chance to survive against the Collectors." As she finished speaking, Liara, quietly, stared at the Commander, hoping her encouragement has convinced him to see why she allowed the terrorist organization to resurrect him.
After a moment of silence, Tom turned around. "You told me you had sources." He said, thus, ignoring everything the asari said.
Liara was saddened to see her reasoning has failed to convince the Commander. "It was necessary." She calmly replied. "If I had told you the truth, you… the only good friend I have ever had in my entire life, would hate me forever."
Tom shook his head and turned back around as Liara continued speaking. "It's not like I forgot all the terrible things Cerberus has done." She said. "I know what kind of people they are. But when they offered to help me find you… I couldn't refuse it." The asari finished with a weak smile.
Tom looked down on his left shoulder, thus, refusing to look at Liara. "And before you knew it, you were living your own guilt-ridden hell." He snarled.
Infuriated with Tom insulting her feelings, Liara exploded. "I had no choice!" she roared. "It was a silver of hope, I refused to turn down. The Illusive Man was willing to sacrifice a fortune to bring you back to life!"
Liara continued in a calmer tone. "It was either Cerberus or the Collectors. Cerberus was the best choice I could make." She said. "And honestly… I was shocked to learn their plan was to revive you. At first, I refused, because I wanted you to rest in peace because I believed that's what you'd have wanted. But, after a while, I chose to give Cerberus a chance to bring you back. Because, like I said, I couldn't let you go." The asari finished.
Tom turned around and walked up to Liara. "Who gave you the right to play God?" he asked as he shoved his left index finger in the asari's face.
Liara knocked Tom's finger out of her sight. "Someone, who was willing to risk her own life for the sake of her Commander." She answered defensively. "When the Illusive Man told me that the Shadow Broker was going to sell you to the Collectors, I refused to let that happen. That's why I decided to leave your lifeless body with Cerberus. Because I knew that as long as you were in their hands, you would be safe from the Shadow Broker and the Collectors."
"Cerberus will never leave me alone." Tom said. "I'll always be a puppet, doing they're pro-human bidding."
"But a well-cared for puppet." Liara countered. "At least you'd still be alive."
Angered to hear this, Tom showed Liara the glowing orange scars on his face. "Look at these scars, Liara." He said. "Cerberus implanted cybernetics in me. I will forever be a monster."
For a long moment, Liara stared painfully at the scars on the Commander's face. At last, the asari looked away from the Commander. "It doesn't matter." She replied coldly.
"Doesn't matter?" Tom echoed in disgust.
"The cybernetics, Cerberus implanted in you, might make you feel like you're a monster. But you should at least be happy they're keeping you alive." Liara answered selfishly.
Tom gazed at Liara for a long moment. "So you'll sacrifice my happiness, for your own selfish desires?" He angrily asked.
After a long moment of letting the Commander's words sink in, Liara looked at Tom and shook her head in regret, thus, finally admitting to him what she did when she handed his damaged body over to Cerberus was the most selfish decision of her entire life. "Shepard." Liara sadly responded. "What I did to you was unfair, I will admit that. And if I lost you again, I don't know what I'd do to myself." After a moment of silence, Liara continued, "But like it or not, I'm still going to keep my alliance with Cerberus a secret. And even if they are my friends, I am not telling Kaidan, Garrus, Wrex, and Tali what I did to you. I'm sorry, Shepard, but that is my final decision."
Tom shook his head. "You're responsible for this." He snarled. "Kaidan, Anderson, and this entire galaxy sees me as a traitor because of you." After a moment of silence, Tom continued. "I should never have allowed you to join the Normandy family. I should've left you to rot on Therum. No, on second thought, I should've kicked you off the Normandy after learning the Conduit was on Ilos. No, even better, I should've kicked you off the ship after completing our investigation into Saren on Noveria. But I didn't. Why? Because after you lost your mother, I showed you pity and allowed you to remain with us."
After reprimanding the asari, Tom sat back down in his chair and looked down on the floor in frustration. A few seconds later, Liara sat down in the chair next to the Commander's. After silently gazing at the Commander for a moment, Liara finally responded. "Shepard. Listen to me." She said in a gentle tone. "I understand your feelings, I really do. But you're forgetting the fact that the Shadow Broker was going to give you to the Collectors. And you're letting your hatred for Cerberus get in the way of it."
Tom looked at the asari. "Maybe. Or maybe you feel like you owe Cerberus because they gave you back happiness by bringing me back to life. Maybe it's you who's not thinking clearly." He said, thus, echoing the same words Kaidan shot at him back on Horizon.
Ashamed, Liara looked down on the floor. She could see Tom's point. In a way, the asari does feel like she owes Cerberus for giving the Commander a second chance at life. After a moment of silence, Tom got up from his chair and looked down at Liara. "You know what, Liara?" he asked. "As far as I'm concerned, you are no better than the Illusive Man." After reprimanding the asari one last time, Tom turned his attention to the door.
After a few seconds of silence, Liara called out to Tom. "Shepard, wait!" She shouted as she got up from her chair and walked up to the Commander.
Tom stopped by the door, and turned around to face the asari. As the Commander gazed at her, Liara continued. "I'm asking you as a dear friend. Please… Please, don't tell anyone about my alliance with Cerberus." She begged. "Imagine what the galaxy, even my own people, would think of me if they knew I helped the pro-human terrorist organization. Don't tell anybody… Please."
Tom was infuriated to hear this. Liara wanted him to continue plunging his name into the filth, just so she can continue to keep hers clean. After a moment of silence, the Commander finally responded. "I'll keep your alliance with Cerberus a secret. But…"
Before continuing, Tom punched Liara in the stomach, thus, causing the asari to drop to her knees. While on her knees, Liara, as she coughed violently, had one hand rubbing her stomach and the other hand pressing on the ground. As the asari continued to ease away the pain, Tom continued. "You're a coward and you're selfish." He snarled. "The only reason I'm not going to put a bullet in your head is because your friend, the one you thought dead, is still alive. I would hate for him to lose any hope he might have at being a free man."
When Tom revealed that her friend, the one who helped recover the Commander's body from the Shadow Broker, is still alive, Liara looked up at the Commander in shock. "Feron… is still alive?" she asked.
As he stared down at the asari, Tom pulled out the datapad, containing information on the Shadow Broker, Cerberus sent him, and threw it in Liara's face. "Liara…" He said. "While you're searching for this elusive broker, you better damn make sure the hurt, that I'm feeling right now… was worth the happiness you regained."
After punching Liara in the stomach and handing her the datapad Cerberus sent him on the Shadow Broker, Tom turned around and faced the door. After opening the door, the Commander looked back at Liara, who had picked herself up and was holding the Shadow Broker datapad in her right hand and had her left hand rubbing her stomach. "You want to stay friends?" he asked the asari.
Liara smiled weakly and nodded in approval.
"Let's never see each other again." Tom said coldly.
Liara's smile became a frown. The asari, saddened to hear what the Commander had just said, didn't know what to say. Part of her wanted to oppose the Commander's offer, and the other wanted to accept it. After a moment of silence, Liara decided, at least for Tom, to accept his offer. "You'll never see me again, Shepard… I promise." She sadly said.
"I sure, as hell, hope not." Tom replied.
After agreeing to never see each other again if they're to remain friends, Tom and Liara turned around and walked away from each other without the second thought of turning around to look at each other one last time.
Chapter 3: Miranda's Thanks
After leaving Liara's office, Tom walked down the stairs to the trading floor and went over to sit at the table where he ran into Gianna Parasini. Over by the balcony, the Commander could see Garrus and Miranda having a couple of drinks. When she saw Tom sitting at the table in front of her, Miranda, after asking Garrus to take her empty glass back to the bar, walked over to the Commander.
"Hey. How did everything go?" Miranda asked as she sat down next to the Commander.
"Honestly." Tom said as he gazed at the setting sun. "I have severed all ties with somebody I used to know, Captain. Nothing more."
Miranda was disappointed to hear this. "I'm sorry to hear that." She said as she slowly nodded. After a few moments of silence, Miranda continued, "Shepard… I just want to thank you."
Baffled, Tom looked at Miranda with an eyebrow raised. "For what?" he asked.
Miranda smiled as she gazed at the sunset. "For taking the time to help me with my sister." The Cerberus operative said and then shook her head in amazement. "I wouldn't have reached Oriana in time without her help." She finished.
Tom smiled and crossed his arms. "Having second thoughts about me, Ms. Lawson?" he asked teasingly.
Miranda looked at Tom. "Honestly. You opened my eyes, Commander. I didn't think you would help me after the way I treated you in the beginning and for not telling you the whole truth about my sister." She said.
"Let me guess… something changed?" Tom asked.
Miranda continued, "When you told me that you were going to walk away and make me save Oriana all by myself, for not being honest with you, I really thought you were going to do it. But you chose not to. Why? Because you knew, I didn't take Oriana from my father out of petty revenge. I did it to make sure she got what I could never have - a normal life. And that's what got me to see you for who you really are - someone who gives a damn about his family and friends and is willing to jump in and help out whenever they have a problem." She finished.
Tom was pleased to hear this. "Maybe you'll remember this the next time you question an untrustworthy ally." He replied.
Miranda nodded. "I suppose I will." She said and then looked back at the setting sun. "I'm also glad Nicket tried to redeem himself, for whatever good it did. Thank you for stopping me, Commander."
"So you did have a soft spot for Nicket. Even when he betrayed you, you still cared about him." Tom replied.
"I didn't have many friends." Miranda said. "Nicket was one of them. He never wanted anything from me. He was… safe. Comfortable. A reminder of a more innocent time, I suppose."
"What about Oriana? Now that she has been relocated, will she be safe from your father?" Tom asked.
"She has what I wanted her to have – a normal life, and the freedom to choose her own path." Miranda answered happily. "And she knows that she has an older sister. A friend."
"I'm curious. What did you two talk about?" Tom asked.
"I introduced myself. Her family was shocked. Of course, she adjusted quickly. She's as smart as I am." Miranda happily answered. "She plays the violin. Loves the adagio movement of Nielsen's Fifth, just like I do." Miranda continued, "She wants to work in colony development. Told a joke about it. She's really funny. That's something we don't share."
"Will you talk to, or see, each other again?" Tom asked curiously.
"Honestly, I don't know." Miranda answered. "For the first time, I haven't planned that far ahead." Miranda continued, "I'll deal with it after our mission. I have to stay focused, and she needs to adjust to her new home."
As Miranda finished speaking, she and Tom continued to gaze at the setting sun. After a moment of silence, Tom chuckled. "It's funny." He said.
Miranda turned her attention to the Commander. "What?" she asked curiously.
"When we first met, I saw you as a ruthless loyalist." Tom answered. "I'm glad to see a sympathetic side is under that cold personality."
Touched to hear this, Miranda smiled as she gazed at the Commander, who was still watching the sunset. When she saw Tom's right hand on the table, Miranda took her left hand and placed it on top of the Commander's hand.
When he felt his hand being touched, Tom looked down to see his hand being held in Miranda's hand. Touched, the Commander looked up at a smiling Miranda and smiled back.
"The mission is far too important to let personal feelings interfere." Miranda said gently.
Upset to hear this, Tom frowned and nodded in agreement.
"But, again, thank you Commander." Miranda continued. "My sister is safe now, thanks in large part from you. I promise you that I won't forget this."
As their conversation came to close, Garrus showed up. "Well now… it's nice to see you two are getting along." He said teasingly.
Tom and Miranda looked at each other for a few seconds and looked back at Garrus. "You could say … we're making progress." Miranda cheerfully replied.
"Glad to hear it." Garrus said with a nod. "And forgive me for barking orders to my commanding officers, but can we please get back to the Normandy. For all I know, Grunt is about ready to tear the ship apart."
Tom jumped up from his chair, having realized that he completely forgot about the situation with Grunt. "I totally forgot about the big guy." He said. "Yeah, let's get back to the ship. And I know for a fact Grunt is going to kick my ass for taking too long to come see him."
Miranda got up from her chair. "Oh, I wouldn't worry, Commander." Miranda said sarcastically. "I'm sure Grunt will understand why it took you so long to come see him."
"Oh, ha ha." Tom laughed mockingly. "Like you know how patient a krogan can be when having to wait for a long time."
Miranda smiled. "I'm just saying." She said as she shrugged her shoulders innocently.
With an eyebrow raised, Tom looked at Garrus. "Garrus, do we always have this much… excitement between us and the people we work alongside with?" he asked.
Garrus chucked. "Yeah, I believe we do." The turian answered.
"Good. Just checking." Tom replied and then shared a short laugh with Garrus and Miranda.
After messing around with each other for a bit, Tom, Garrus, and Miranda began walking back to the Normandy. However, little did the group know, Liara was watching them from her office window. The asari knew how bad she hurt Tom and can't say she blames him for not wanting to see, or talk to, her again. "I'm sorry. For everything." She tearfully said as she watched the trio walk toward the dockside entrance.
Once Tom, Garrus, and Miranda were out of her sight, Liara returned to her desk. "Alright. It's time to find the Shadow Broker and get Feron back." She said to herself as she looked through the Shadow Broker datapad, and began making preparations for her mission to kill the Shadow Broker and save her friend.