Home Is Where the Hearts At
"Welcome to the Migrant Fleet" said a voice.
"Shepard, this is Captain Kar' Danna vas Rayya", Tali replied. "He was my captain before I joined the Neema."
"Pleasure to meet you", said Shepard as he extended his hand out. Kar' Danna acknowledge him and shook his hand. "I'd like to thank you for allowing Tali and I access to your ship. I hope we can settle this mess out."
"About that… Tali I think it is only fair for you to know why you are being charged with treason. They say you… I am sorry but Admiral Raan would like to see Tali by the courtyard as soon as possible."
"Captain, can you please tell me what they are accusing me off?"
"I'm sorry Tali but Raan might kill me if I make her wait any longer than she has."
"… I understand. Shepard, we should probably get going." Tali and Shepard made their way down the halls and overheard other Quarians talking, but stopped as soon as they saw them walking by. Shepard wasn't quite sure but he swore he heard them talking about Tali being guilty of something. He decided it was best to ignore them and not cause any confrontation while being the only human aboard. The two finally reached the courtyard and a Quarian turned towards them.
"Tali, I'm glad to see you are alright", said the Quarian.
"Auntie Raan… Shepard this is Admiral Raan."
Shepard extended his hand out to Raan, "Pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise Captain Shepard"
"Actually I never made it to the rank of captain and technically I'm not a part of the Alliance anymore"
"You lead the Normandy and its crew, and among our people that qualifies you as captain", explained Raan.
"Raan, can you please tell me why I am being charged with treason?"
"Tali… they are saying that you sent back active Geth to the fleet."
"What! The parts I sent back couldn't have been active I checked them."
"What do you mean you were sending Geth parts back to the fleet?" asked a stunned Shepard.
"I am telling you it's not like the pieces I sent back could be reactivated or turn themselves back on. Keelah… my father must be beside himself."
"We can talk about that later. We must go, we've stalled this trial as long we could", interrupted Raan.
"Wait", Shepard shouted, "who will be representing Tali in this trial?"
"As her captain…"
Shepard turned to Tali and she finished Raan's statement, "You would be my defense."
"Tali, I am no lawyer! Hell, most people believe I am working for Cerberus!" Shepard let out a sigh and finished, "I guess I don't have a choice… I'll help prove your innocence Tali. We better get going."
The three headed into the courtyard and Raan headed up to the stage as Shepard and Tali walked down the steps to the defendant's area. As Raan stepped up to the podium, other Quarians gathered around the courtyard to watch the trail. Raan gave the blessing concluding in a united Keelah Se' Lai.
"We are here today to prosecute Tali' Zorah vas Normandy for the crime of treason. Tali you are accused of sending active Geth back to the fleet…what say you?"
Shepard heard Tali say under her breath, "They have stripped me off my ship name… they might as well have decided my fate already."
Shepard was furious seeing Tali so upset but he knew had to control himself so he didn't make the situation worse. He stepped up and said, "Tali's aid in helping me stop Saren and the Geth should be all the proof you need to see that she would never endanger the fleet."
"I object!" said one of the Admirals. "A human has no right to be involved in such a sensitive Quarian matter."
"Well then Admiral Koris… maybe you shouldn't have stripped Tali of her name because by Shepard being her captain, he has the right to defend her."
"Point taken Admiral Gerrel… I withdraw my previous objection."
"I never sent back any parts that could come back online or be reactivated. I gave up many key finds because I figured they were too risky to send back to the fleet", Tali explained.
"Then explain how Geth seized the ship your father was serving on", exclaimed Admiral Koris.
"What are you talking about? What happened?"
"As far as we know Tali, the Geth have overtaken the Alarei and killed all aboard including your father", Raan explained.
"Keelah…"
Shepard couldn't hold himself back and began shouting, "I thought Quarians valued family! How do you justify springing this on Tali in the middle of a damned trial!"
"Shepard, we have to take back the Alarei."
"If you are looking for an honorable death…"
"I'm looking for my father you bosh'tet!"
"It is settled, Shepard and Tali will attempt to retake the Alarei and if should fail you will be pardoned posthumously", said Raan. "We will adjourn until either you return or it is decided that you were killed in combat."
Admiral Koris said something under his breath but with all the commotion no one caught it. Shepard and Tali headed back up the stairs and Shepard could see Tali was worried about her father.
"Are you alright? That was a lot of fire they threw at you even before telling you about your father."
Before Tali could answer, Raan told them that the shuttle to take them to the Alarei was waiting for them in the docking bay on the other side of the courtyard. Before they left they talked with the other Admirals to see if they could find out anything about the Alarei; however, in doing so they realized that this trial was nothing more than a farce to tip the balance in whether or not to go to war with the Geth. Admiral Koris was one who wanted the Quarians to make peace with the Geth, Admiral Gerrel wanted them wiped out from the galaxy, and Raan was pretty much undecided. The other admiral who didn't say anything during the trial, Xen, wasn't interested in trial but wouldn't recuse herself because she was more about returning the Geth to be under control by the Quarians as they once were. Both Tali and Shepard seemed to think she was a little bit crazy so they decided to leave her alone.
After talking to the admirals, they decided to get to the shuttle and head for the Alarei. As they walked to the shuttle, they overheard more Quarians except this time they didn't just stop when they walked by. Shepard's previous assumption was correct as they were talking bad about Tali and they thought she was guilty. They ignored them and got into the shuttle and flew off to the Alarei.
"I can't believe those bosh'tets. I didn't think they would be so quick to judge me."
"Forget about them Tali, we need to focus on finding your father and finding evidence proving your innocence."
"You're right Shepard. Thank you for helping me with this. It really means a lot to me."
"No problem Tali. I am happy to help and I hope we can get the bottom of this. I hate seeing you so upset."
"Thank you… Shepard."
"Is there anything you can tell me about the Alarei?"
"It is mostly a research lab which is where we will most likely find my father."
"Alright… it looks like we are getting close. Make sure you got your thermal clips ready and loaded. By the way how do you like that M-22 Eviscerator shotgun?"
"It is much better than that awful Katana I use to use."
"That's good… too bad you can't handle this M-300 Claymore. This baby has so much kickback it would throw you off your feet."
Tali let out a little chuckle and just as she was about to say something back the shuttle came to a stop and the doors began to open. They stepped out of the shuttle and pulled their weapons out of their holsters. They waited as the decontamination process carried on and as soon as the doors opened they were greeted with the horrifying image of a Quarian with her guts spilled out on the floor. The two jumped back and realized it was only going to get worse as they progressed forward. They began searching the room when they saw the door was opening and that there were Geth on the other side! Before the door could open all the way, both Tali and Shepard opened fire and blasted them with a joined shotgun blast. Tali still had two more rounds to fire before she had to insert another clip but Shepard's weapon had so much power he would have to reload after every shot. He decided it would be best to use his M-12 Locust he recovered while helping Katsumi retrieve during the Hock heist. He began unloaded rounds into the Geth and watched their oil spill all over the floor. As Tali was reloading her gun, Shepard noticed a cloak field and used a biotic charge to knock the unknown enemy off its feet. Tali stepped on the Geth's chest and shot it right in the head. The Geth's head exploded from the impact of the weapon and its oil splattered all over.
Shepard took point to ensure there were no Geth left in the next room. He waived her in and then she noticed something on a table in a nearby Med-Bay. Tali opened the door and looked at the object on the table.
"This is the repair unit I sent to father."
"How did you manage to get this to your father?"
"These suits have more pockets then you think. We aren't Vorcha but we learned how to pack things together. With big finds I send a message to father and he would send a squad to pick them up."
"Is there anything here that we can use as evidence?"
"I don't think so I think we best move on."
"Wait what about this terminal? It looks like there is something recorded."
Tali walked over to the terminal and played the recording. It was a recording of some of the Quarians Tali's father worked with and they were screaming about how more Geth were coming online and that they needed to shut down the servers. The Quarians were horrified as two hunters uncloaked behind them and blasted them away. The message cut out after that and there was a moment of silence in the room.
"Keelah… what were they doing here?"
"Come on Tali, let's keep moving."
"Right… let's go Shepard."
The two continued down the corridors of the ship and were surprised at the lack of hostiles they had encountered. They walked into a room and saw yet another Quarian blown apart.
"Shepard look, another terminal. Maybe there is something of value on it."
As Tali walked towards the terminal, Shepard noticed something in the corner of the room.
"Tali look out!"
She turned her head and saw Geth Hunter uncloak. She was startled and fell to the floor. Just as the hunter unlocked its weapon, there was a flash of light. Shepard had unloaded a concussive blast and it made direct contact with the hunter causing it to collapse to the floor. Tali pulled out her shotgun and shot it before it could regain its footing.
"Thank you Shepard. A moment longer and I would have been dead."
"It's ok. Are you alright?"
"I'll be fine. Let's check out this terminal."
She began playing the message and it was just a message from a one of the scientist asking her son Jona to be good for daddy. Just as the message came to a close, the same hunter they had just killed shot her at point blank range in the stomach. The two look at the Quarian on the floor and saw that it was the same one from the video. Tali looked around the room for something and she came back with a fire blanket. She placed the blanket over the dead Quarians body.
"I am sorry Tali."
"You never get used to seeing your own people dead, especially in such a grim manner." After a moment of silence, Tali looked up and said, "Let's get moving. We still have to find my father."
The two made their way up the stairs into a big room.
"Ready up Tali, I don't think our luck of avoiding the Geth will hold much longer."
"Alright"
"Take cover over their by the counter and I'll be right behind you."
"Moving out"
As they moved into cover, a couple of doors opened and Geth began pouring out of them. Geth pulse rifles and shotguns began going off and began ripping into their cover. Shepard returned fire unloaded Locust rounds into troopers and threw a few warp fields to disorient the Geth.
"Tali, I need you to send out your combat drone to distract some of the Geth!"
"Yes Shepard."
She dispatched her combat drone and some of the Geth began attacking it. Little did they know that Tali had upgraded her drone to explode at its moment of destruction. So when the Geth had drained its shields, the drone exploded casing several Geth to go with it. The two held their ground but the Geth kept coming and they both knew if they didn't do something fast that they would surely be killed. Tali looked over at Shepard and saw he was conjuring up a power biotic attack.
"We only get one shot at this. When I unleashed this throw, I need you to start shooting the downed enemies."
"Ok Shepard. Let's do this."
Shepard then stood up and unleashed a powerful throw that knocked down every Geth in the room. Tali then jumped over the counter can began unloading shotgun rounds into the heads of the fallen enemy. Shepard was right behind her taking care of the ones she either missed or when she was reloading her thermal clip. They checked the room to make sure none had survived and the ones they did find they put them down.
"You need Medi-gel Tali?"
"No, they only grazed my shields. How are your barriers?"
"They are alright. Let's keep moving."
They entered the next room and saw a console on the wall. Tali walked over to the console to see if there was any reliable information on it. She started working her way through the data, hoping to find anything that would help clear her name. While Tali searched through the data, Shepard searched around the last room for any Medi-gel or any unused thermal clips. After picking up a pack of Medi-gel and some thermal clips, he returned to Tali.
"Is there anything useful on the console?"
"No, this all just researched data but it seems as if father was deliberately reactivating Geth."
"Did you know your father was running weapons test on the Geth?"
"Well I figured he was testing something on the parts I'd send back, but it seems that he was creating his own Geth. Before you say anything, it's not like he was testing weapons on organic creatures. Geth are machines and there is nothing wrong with testing weapons on machines. What was all for father? You promised me you would build me a house on the home world."
"Don't you think it's time for the Quarians to look for a new home world? This war between the two of you is costing the Migrant Fleet lives."
"That's easy for you to say Shepard! You have a world to go back to. My people have been drifting through the stars for centuries! And with our weakened immune systems…" Tali paused for a moment and Shepard could feel the sadness of her words. She continued, "All those sensations you can feel like feeling sand between your toes, your hair blowing in the breeze, or the smell of a rose we can't enjoy."
"I'm sorry Tali. I didn't mean to upset you."
"It's ok Shepard. I don't expect you to understand how it feels to be in one of these suits. Come on; let's get going before none of this searching matters."
Shepard and Tali continued on, but the air between them seemed tenser after their last conversation. While he didn't show it, he was hurt by Tali's comments. Not because she was wrong, but that she right. He had no idea what it was like to be trapped in a suit and he couldn't believe he was so insensible to her situation. Tali, on the other hand, felt bad about blowing up on Shepard the way she did. But the two knew they had to keep pushing forward and find out what happened here. They reached a big room and armed themselves preparing for an assault. The room was silent though, but the two didn't lower their weapons in case of an ambush. They took cover by a ledge next to a staircase, and as Shepard poked his head above the ledge, he saw the doors open and Geth began coming out.
"Keep your head down Tali!"
Shepard saw that two snipers had cloaked themselves on a nearby ledge and had their sights targeted around Tali. Shepard had to think quickly because if he knew that if he didn't kill the snipers they would be surrounded by the Geth making their way up the stairs.
"Tali, I need you to deploy your drone by the stairs to distract the Geth. There are two snipers locked on your position and if you show yourself you could be seriously hurt."
"Ok Shepard."
She deployed her drone and just as Shepard predicted it stalled them long enough for him to unleash a warp field to disorient the snipers. He then fired his Locust until he saw the snipers go down.
"Alright, time to deal with the ground level forces", he thought to himself.
"Alright Tali, I think it's time to waste some Geth. What do you say?"
"I thought you'd never ask", she answered gleefully.
Tali began hacking nearby Geth making them fight each other while they took care of the ones closing in on their position. Shotgun blasts, sub-machine gun pops, and plasma rifle shots filled the air as the battle pressed on. As Shepard was clearing out the Geth coming up the stairs, a hunter knocked out his kinetic barriers and a Geth plasma shotgun blast had hit him square in the knee. He went behind cover to apply the Medi-gel to the wound, but then he heard a scream come from next to him. He looked over and saw that Tali's shields had been taken down and that she took some fire to the shoulder. He knew he only had enough Medi-gel for one, so he rolled over to Tali and applied it to her shoulder.
"Are you going to be alright Tali!"
"I think so Shepard."
Shepard, angry at seeing Tali injured, went into a blood rage and began attacking the Geth manically. His biotic powers had become much stronger and began blowing apart Geth with Throw and Warp fields, smashing them slams, and began charging into the Geth. He unloaded Claymore round after Claymore round into any Geth he saw. He looked around to see if there were any more Geth and he heard a loud bang go off and he turned and saw a Geth hunter missing its head. He turned back around and saw that Tali had shot it.
"Thanks Tali."
"I guess I had to pay you back for earlier."
Shepard let out a chuckle, "Yeah, I guess you did owe me one."
The headed for the hallway the Geth came out from and Shepard was the first to notice another dead Quarian. After a few seconds though, he had learned who that dead Quarian was.
"Father! No, this can't be happening! They're wrong you wouldn't just die like this. You can't leave me."
"Hey, come here", as Shepard pulled Tali away and hugged her.
"Damn it…Damn it. I'm sorry"
"You have nothing to be sorry for."
"Maybe he left a message… something to help us stop them."
Tali activated her father's Omni-tool and it began playing a message. The message told them how to stop the Geth from forming new neural links and shut the platform down. The message cut out with what seemed to be the Geth infiltrating his position. Just as Shepard was about to offer some sort of condolence, Tali let out the horrendous war cry and stormed up the stairs.
"Tali wait!"
But it was too late; she had stormed the server room. With her shotgun in hand, she began blowing apart troopers with blasts to the head, and the hunters fared no better receiving violent blows to the chest causing them to collapse. All that remained was a Geth Prime, but even that wasn't strong enough to withstand Tali's wrath. She began shooting it apart limb by limb until all that remained was a chest and head. She reached down to her boot and unveiled the knife she kept stored there and sank it deep into the flashlight face of the prime. She kept stabbing it over and over in its face and chest as the Prime's "blood" continued to spill all over the floor. Never before had Shepard seen this much anger in Tali, but it wasn't as if he couldn't understand why. He, himself, is still haunted by the visions of his parents being murdered by Batarians on the farming colony he grew up on. After a minute or so passed, he finally walked over to Tali. She was sitting on the Prime's chest, knife in hand, crying inside her mask. Shepard decided to let Tali decide when to come over as he walked over to the console and began looking for how to shut off the Geth. Eventually Tali came over to help.
"You know, when it comes to the battlefield, you are a genius. It seems that your tech skills are lacking though."
"Well that's why we have you Tali. Somebody needs to do all the number crunching and tech work."
After a few moments working at the console, Tali walked away.
"There all the Geth we missed should now be inactive. The Alarei is under Quarian control again."
"I think there is a message on there as well."
Tali played the massage. It was the initial recording they had made when they began the experimenting. It showed that it was her father's idea to start up the Geth. The other people he was with suggested that they bring this up with the Admiralty Board but he refused. He didn't want to sit back while the politicians argued while they were so close. One of the Quarians mentioned that it would work better if Tali would send better quality parts. He snapped at the idea and said he wanted Tali to have nothing to do with this.
"It looks like he was doing this for you."
"Keelah, I didn't want this. I don't know what it worse thinking that he didn't love me or that this was the only way he could show it."
"Your father loved you very much Tali."
"Shepard, I tried to pretend none of this pointed to him! If this comes up in the trail… Shepard we can't show this at the trial.'
"Tali your father didn't want you to become wrapped up in the politics! We need this to clear your name."
"You think I don't know that! You think I want to be exiled from my home! But if this evidence shows up in court, they will blacklist my father! His name would be stripped from every manifest of every ship he served on! His name would be a monster story among my people."
"We're not going to decide anything here alright."
"You're my captain and you're my voice but I beg you… don't destroy what my father was." There was a momentary pause before Tali concluded, "Let's go before they assume we are dead and then none of this will matter."
The two head back to shuttle and arrive at the Migrant Fleet some time later. As they walked the halls of the Migrant Fleet, they could over hear the admirals talking.
"We have to face fact, there has been no word and it has been hours."
"You don't know that Koris!"
"What I do know Gerrel, is that I decision need to made. That is why I move that Tali be exiled post humorously."
"We agreed that she wouldn't be exiled if she died."
"We agreed upon nothing Raan."
Shepard and Tali, overhearing all of this, begin sprinting to the courtyard. Just as the admirals were about to render their judgment, they stormed the courtyard.
"Sorry we're late", said Tali sarcastically.
"You didn't seem to waste time pronouncing us dead! Go get your ship", shouted Shepard.
Raan stepped up to the podium and asked if Shepard had found any evidence that would clear Tali of the charges. Shepard looked over at Tali and knew her plea was sincere. He walked up to the center of the courtyard.
"Shepard, please", Tali whispered.
Shepard took a deep breathed and announced, "We…have no new evidence that would make a difference to this trial but I again ask that her previous loyalty to the fleet be taken into consideration."
"The admirals will now render judgment," proclaimed Admiral Raan.
After a minute, the admirals had made their decision.
"Tali Zorah vas Normandy we find you guilty on the charges of treason. You will have one hour to collect anything you want from the fleet and leave. This trial is now adjourn… Keelah Se' Lai."
The courtyard began to clear out. Shepard and Tali worked their way up the stairs.
"Well… that is that."
"Just because this is what you wanted doesn't mean I like it."
"I know but this is what my father would have wanted. Doing what is best for the fleet. It almost seems right though. I always felt more at home on the Normandy and I have you… as my captain I mean."
"Ok Tali… is there anyone you wanted to talk to before we left."
"I guess I could say good bye but I doesn't matter to me."
At first Shepard thought of having her say good bye at least to Raan, but in the end he decided to let it go and get her away from this place.
"Alright Ms. Vas Normandy… lets go home."
"Right behind you… captain."
The two walked down the halls of the Fleet, and they could over hear other Quarians talking about how they knew she was guilty and others that were sad to see her go. Just as they were about to reach the shuttle, Tali's old captain, Kar Danna, chastised her as an embarrassment to the Raaya's crew.
"You better watch your tone Kar' Danna! You're talking to a member of my crew not yours and if don't step off…"
"Shepard please… it's not worth it."
"Get off my ship Tali! You too…human!"
Tali and Shepard went into the decontamination chamber and Tali looked back as the doors shut knowing this would be the last time she'd ever see the fleet. She wasn't sad though as she turned to Shepard and smiled under her helmet. She knew she was leaving a place that resented her and returning to the place she could call home.