Sooooooo. Yeah. This chapter might be a little…lame and short. It comprises mostly fluff and simple stuff, which I'm admittedly TERRIBLE at working out. So bear with me on this and hopefully this will only be one of a couple.
Shepard woke up alone in her and Liara's bed. With all that had happened recently, Shepard panicked. No! Did they take her?! She was about to contact C-Sec when she heard the shower running and breathed a sigh of relief. She got out of bed and stretched, realizing she was still naked from her…jaunt, last night. She thought about telling Liara about last night, but decided against it. She still didn't want to worry Liara more than she had to. Instead, she decided a little breakfast was in order. She threw on a white tank top and some shorts before walking down the stairs into the kitchen. As she walked, she looked over at the Broker's office. I think I like that room much more now, she thought as a smirk formed on her lips. Pleasant memories running through her head, Shepard opened the fridge to get breakfast supplies.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much in there and Shepard scrunched up her face in annoyance. Eventually, she settled on some fried eggs and bacon. Not my favorite thing to cook, but what the hell, she thought as she broke out a skillet. She washed her hands and began putting some bacon in the skillet. As it heated up, Shepard stood back and watched the bacon cook. Slowly, she started humming a song in her head. After a moment, she started flipping the bacon, wincing at the slight sting as the grease popped and droplets hit her skin. Once the bacon was ready, she put it aside to drain and broke an egg into the skillet. As it cooked, she grabbed the spatula and got ready. Okay, you can do this. You saved the galaxy, you can flip an egg, she thought as she slipped the spatula under the egg.
The yolk promptly broke and spilled into the skillet, making Shepard groan. "You never were very good at that." Shepard jumped and looked at the speaker. Liara was leaning against the wall watching Shepard cook. She was dressed in a black silk robe that left very little to Shepard's imagination. Shepard could feel her jaw hanging open. Liara looked at her with a slight blush on her face before smiling. "Ummmm. Shepard…your eggs." The smell of her egg burning snapped Shepard back to reality and she quickly scooped out the now partially singed egg. "Ah! Shit." She heard Liara give a light laugh and gave her a slightly petulant stare. "Not fair. You distracted me." All this did was make Liara laugh even more. She walked up to Shepard's side, wrapped her arms around her, and gave her an affectionate kiss on the cheek. "Maybe. So, you're trying fried eggs again? Didn't you dent the counter last time in frustration?" Shepard blushed. She had tried to forget that particular memory, but considering they had yet to fix said dent, it was easier said than done.
"I just need to practice. Work at any task long enough and you're bound to get better." she said enthusiastically while cracking an egg. Liara smiled and slowly shifted behind her bondmate. "Or maybe…you just need some help." She then pressed her body against Shepard and looped an arm around her stomach. Slowly, her arm traced down Shepard's arm and she wrapped her hand around the spatula as well. Shepard wanted to say something about how, even though it was lovely, that such a distraction wouldn't help much. Instead she just kept her mouth shut and enjoyed the feeling of Liara pressed against her as they cooked. When it was time to flip the eggs, Liara moved the spatula close. A small biotic field formed at the bottom of the egg and lifted it just enough for Shepard to fit the utensil under it and flip it. Liara smiled, "There we go." Shepard rubbed her cheek against Liara's and thanked her. After a few more biotic fields, breakfast was ready.
Once they had eaten, Liara had to excuse herself to the Broker office stating that it was almost time for her agents to report in and that she had to prepare to collate the data. Shepard wanted to join her, but felt that she might be more of a hindrance than a help. Shepard sat down and started flipping channels on their television. Nothing much was on and the news was nothing but Shepard and Liara's kidnapping attempt. Not wanting to hear baseless conjecture when she was about to have real facts, Shepard switched it off. I hate waiting. Maybe a movie, she thought with a sigh. Opening up her Omni-tool, she began surfing through a collection of movies she had saved. Alright, let's see. Blasto: Eternity is Forever, Fleet and Flotilla, The Huntress in the Night, Alien, True- The list vanished from her Omni-tool and was replaced with a call screen. Shepard took one look at it and felt her face light up immediately. Answering the call, she was greeted by a face scarred by rocket fire almost 4 years ago. "Garrus! How are you?"
"Doing well Shepard. Still trying to get used to being Primarch Victus' advisor, but it's alright. And at least I'm not getting shot at. I got Liara's message Shepard. So how's it knowing that even after you save the whole damn galaxy, some poor bastard thinks he can kidnap you?" Shepard laughed. "Honestly, I don't know whether to be angry…or flattered that someone still thinks I'm worth it." Now, it was Garrus' turn to laugh. "It speaks volumes about your sanity if you consider kidnappings a form of flattery." He went to continue, but stopped at the look on Shepard's face. At the mention of sanity, the memory of yesterday reared its head and made Shepard give a weary sigh. "…and I've just said something poorly. Haven't I?" Garrus said after a few seconds. Shepard shook her head. "No, not really. Just reminded me of some news I found out." Shepard could practically count on one hand the times she had seen Garrus have a look of worried apprehension. Just tell him. I mean, come on, it's Garrus! There is no way he would think less of you for knowing it. And yet, still a part of her hesitated. Garrus had been with her through everything during the war, had charged headlong into it by her side. But the thought of telling him she was Indoctrinated and seeing the look of pity on the turian's face, killed her inside. Just as it had with Liara. Shepard took a ragged sigh. "Hiding it won't make it better, I guess. Garrus, I'm Indoctrinated. Dr. Chakwas says that the damage is light, but…it's still there. Heh. I guess all our trips around Reaper artifacts finally caught up with me, huh?" Garrus didn't say anything for a moment, his mandibles just twitching, and when he finally spoke, it was with sadness. "Yeah…I suppose so. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. With everything that happened during the war and those dreams you had been having, it makes sense." He then laughed, but there was little happiness. "At least now you have an excuse for doing all of the crazy things you do. Just promise to keep your fish murdering to a minimum." Despite where the conversation had gone, Garrus' statement still made Shepard laugh. "Hey now, even brainwashed I could still take you on."
"Hah. You mean like with the bottles? You may get the chance to prove that. I'm coming with you when you take on this…whatever the hell this group is. I also got in contact with Tali and she said that there is no way she would miss the opportunity to go on an adventure with you again. She and I will be traveling to the Citadel tomorrow, so you'd better not go running off into the fray without us." Shepard was ecstatic. She wished Garrus was there so she could hug him, but her face fell for a moment. "Are you sure you can? Doesn't the Primarch need you? And I thought you were happy you were no longer getting shot at?" Garrus gave a brief shrug. "The Primarch can do without me for a few days," he said before chuckling again "and just because I'm happy I'm no longer getting shot at doesn't mean I would miss the opportunity to be fighting alongside you again. Besides, it's not like a war is going on at the same time is it? So my chances of being shot around you are greatly reduced already." Shepard was about to say something back when Garrus looked off screen, and groaned. "As much as I would like to just blow it off, they're about to start a meeting and I'm apparently supposed to be in it. I'll see you soon Shepard." Shepard said farewell to him and switched off her Omni-tool, a happy smile spread on her face. She and her friends were going on a mission again. Such a simple thought made her practically burst with excitement. Tomorrow cannot come fast enough, she thought as she hopped off the couch and stretched. "Oh! I should let Liara know!" she said and practically ran to the Broker's office.
As Shepard walked in Liara was just finishing a call with one of her agents. "Excellent work. Continue observation of subject." Shepard paused for a moment, and then softly walked up behind her. She knew Liara would probably be annoyed by what she was about to do, but the news from Garrus had put her in too good of a mood. As the agent asked if he should attempt infiltration, Shepard wrapped her arms around Liara's stomach and savored the feel of the silk robe she had been wearing since breakfast. Liara's voice hitched slightly at the feeling, but was able to continue regardless. "N-no. Passive observation only. I expect Shepard to come to me for the information and don't need you caught in the inevitable crossfire." Shepard smirked evilly noticing the emphasis Liara had put on her name. Clearly it had been a warning, but when had those stopped her before? She drew the back of her nails along Liara's curves, causing the asari to shudder. "Sir, what makes you think Shepard will go after them? I thought she had retired." Liara's voice had an audible quaver to it as she answered. "She-she's a soldier. She and her wife were just attacked in their own home. She will want to go after them." Awwwww, you know me so well, Shepard thought as she smiled into Liara's shoulder. Slowly, she brought her hands down and started rubbing against Liara's sex. Liara gasped causing the agent to ask if everything was alright. When Liara didn't answer, Shepard leaned in close and whispered directly in her ear. "You gonna answer him?"
Somehow, Liara recovered enough to answer with a hint of steel to it. "There is no need for concern. Return to your mission." The window with the agent's voice sig closed and Liara groaned, pressing herself against Shepard's hand.
"Not. Fair. Shepard," she said with a hint of false anger, making Shepard chuckle. "I'm sorry. If I had known it would affect you this much, I wouldn't have done it." Liara looked over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes. "A likely story. So what's put you in such a mood?" Shepard laughed and planted a kiss on her wife's neck before telling her to go first.
"I will, but you are making it rather...difficult to concentrate." Liara's voice was husky with desire, but Shepard stopped while giving a mock pout. Liara gave a small laugh and turned to face her bondmate. "You're lucky you're so adorable, otherwise I might have had to slap you in stasis. The transmission you so...wonderfully interrupted was about the group that came for us. They tried to recruit one of my Agents and gave him an invitation to a gathering they are having one week from now on Benning. It seems to be open invite. Of course, it's obviously a trap. The information fell far too conveniently into my lap."
Shepard gave a whistle. "My, my, that's impressive work Ms. Shadow Broker. Then I guess we should play along." Liara did a double take, making Shepard laugh. It wasn't often she got to pull the wool over the eyes of the most powerful information broker in the Galaxy, but seeing the look on Liara's face when she did was priceless. "Garrus called. He and Tali will both be joining us. We may even be able to make a trap of our own." "Hmmmm, it's a start to be sure, but I would feel better with more people. Hopefully everyone else responds soon." Liara said before walking away lost in thought. Shepard folded her arms and sat on the Broker console, careful not to press anything, and watched her pace and mutter to herself. Honestly Shepard thought to herself that she hadn't seen Liara like this since the end of the war. Most of the time, when her bondmate was thinking she would clasp her hands together and just stare off into the distance. It was only when she was having to really think on something that she started pacing. "Look, if you think it's too much trouble we can find another way. Maybe try and track them to their base?" She said, snapping Liara from her concentration. "What? Oh! No it's not too much trouble; we just have to handle this correctly." She thought for a few more moments and then walked over to Shepard. "Alright, if we are going to do this, we'll have to make it look authentic. I suspect that they will probably have someone following us, so you will have to go speak with one of my agents, Barla Von I think should do. I'll let him know to offer the info at a discount. I wish I could tell him to do it for free, but that's too suspicious. While you are doing that, I'll contact Garrus and Tali and have them meet us by the Milky Way relay and we'll pick up whoever else can come on the way. If we can get Ashley on board we might even be able to use the Normandy. From there, it shouldn't be difficult to find the meeting and set up for a trap of our own."
At this, Shepard really was impressed. "Wow. Did you really come up with that just now?" Liara just smiled. "As I said before, I'm a very good information broker. And an even better Shadow Broker."
"And certainly better looking than the last one." Shepard said while quirking an eyebrow. Liara just rolled her eyes, but kissed her all the same. "As much as I love your compliments, we had better get started on this." Shepard stood up and wrapped her arms around Liara again. She started to ask Liara if it could wait a bit, but before she could Liara placed a finger on her lips. "And before you ask, we should get it done quickly. There will be time for that later. I promise." Shepard let loose a pained sigh and agreed with Liara. She then went upstairs, changed into a white tee, jeans and her N7 Leather Jacket and left to meet with one of her wife's best agents.
The Presidium looked pretty much unchanged. Much of the damage from Cerberus and the Reapers had been repaired, and a few new shops had even opened up. Shepard wanted to spend some time looking around, but she had her part to play. She didn't know if she was being followed, as Liara said she would, but she didn't want to risk it otherwise. Barla Von had relocated since the war back to his old office near the Emporium which had nearly tripled since Shepard had been there last. The Emporium was packed and Shepard could hear all sorts buying and selling various wares. Maybe after this is done, I can look to see if they have anything new for sale, she thought as she walked into Barla Von's office. The office was as plain as always with little more than a desk, some chairs, and a computer server along the back wall. It certainly didn't seem like it belonged to the galaxies foremost financial genius and Shadow Broker agent. "*HKSSSSHK*Ah, Commander Shepard. It has been too long. *KSSSSHK* How can I help you?" the volus said as he looked up from his console and Shepard pulled up a chair. "Oh come on Barla. There is no need to play dumb here. I know you work for the Shadow Broker. I don't know if you've heard, but my wife and I were attacked recently in our home. The attackers could only be identified by a symbol on one of their necks so I have come to you to find out who they are." Normally it was difficult for Shepard to read volus, but even she could see that Barla Von was annoyed by her attitude.
"*HKSSSSSHK*So straight to business then? *KSSSSHK*Alright. Send me the image and I'll see." Shepard rolled her eyes and sent the financier the image of the symbol on the turian's neck. Barla Von plugged it into his console and said that she would have to wait as it could take a moment. "Take your time," she said as she opened her Omni-tool and surfed the extranet. A part of her felt this was extraneous, but she trusted that Liara knew what she was doing. Besides, this shouldn't take too long. Sure enough, within minutes Barla Von spoke up. "Ah. *HKSSSSHK*Here we are. Now normally this info would cost you *KSSSSSHK* but since you are the *KSSSSSHK* Savior of the Galaxy, the Broker has agreed to give you a discount. 80,000 credits." Shepard groaned. It had been forever since she had had to spend that much, and even though she had access to the Broker's funds, it still seemed overly expensive. Of course, it was also redundant. Most of the money would just get cycled back into the Broker's accounts, so she might as well not been paying at all. But she had her part to play, so she begrudgingly distributed the funds. Once Barla Von saw the funds had cleared, he transferred the info Liara had found earlier. "*HKSSSSSHK*They call themselves the Chosen of the Chamber. *KSSSSHK*We still don't know very much about them *KSSSSSHK* since they only appeared in the last few years. *HKSSSSHK*We only know that they are run by a Vol-clan, but his name is unknown, *KSSSSHK* and Natalie Ital is his right hand." Shepard's brow furrowed. Natalie Ital. Just hearing that woman's name made her blood boil. She would make her pay for shooting Liara. "Is that it? What about a base?" Barla Von shrugged and said that the Broker didn't have that information. "*KSSSHK*There is something else. *HKSSSSHK*They will be having some sort of gathering *KSSSHK* on Benning in one week." With that said, Shepard stood up from her chair and said goodbye. Before she could leave however, Barla Von stopped her. "*HKSSSSHK*I must admit, I am surprised Commander. This information does not seem to have phased you in the least. *KSSSHK*Why is that?" Shepard stopped dead in her tracks. She had been so busy trying to get the meeting over with she had forgotten that she wasn't supposed to know any of this. She sighed and turned back to the volus. "I'm just in a hurry. I thank you for the information, but I should go." She then turned her back on Barla Von and walked out the door.
And almost bowled Inspector Vareia over. "Whoa! Shit, watch where the hell your-Oh. Commander Shepard, fancy meeting you." Shepard stopped dead at seeing the Asari and mentally swore to herself. Dammit. Why the hell did this have to happen now? She fixed her face into a smile before addressing the Inspector. "Ah. Inspector Vareia. I was just…Ummmm…" Shepard began. "Speaking to an agent of the Shadow Broker to find out the identity of the people who attacked you?" Vareia finished for her, making Shepard groan. Vareia let out a sigh and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Dammit. And let me guess, there is no talking you out of it?" Shepard just shook her head, but didn't answer. Vareia started to answer when her Omni-tool beeped. "Wait a minute," she said as she opened up her Omni-tool. A screen popped up and from the other side Shepard could see another asari. "Hey Vare, baby! I'm sorry, but I'm not going to be able to make it to our usual lunch date, they got me working late. I'll see ya later!" the video closed out, leaving a very annoyed looking Vareia. "Crap." She then looked up at Shepard and shook her head. "Well it looks like my plans have fallen through." She was quiet for a moment, simply staring at Shepard. The look was so intense that Shepard started to fidget. What is it with this woman? Why does she unnerve me still? she thought as she crossed her arms trying to match the asari's gaze. Finally, Vareia spoke up. "Look, I don't mind what you do. If you want to go after them, fine. I'll stand out of your way while you take care of them, but I want you to do something for me first." Shepard narrowed her eyes. What was she playing at? "And what would that be?" Vareia looked away. She looked like she was trying to say something, but was having difficulty saying it. Eventually she closed her eyes and simply spoke.
"I want you to come have lunch with me."
And Chapter 4 comes to a close. Yeah…not my most well done chapter, but hopefully they will get better than this. But sadly, the next chapter will not be up until two weeks from now. So until then, I bid you all farewell! Reviews and suggestions appreciated!