Chapter Seven

Armali, Thessia-Kaja's Apartment

Lieutenant Kaja T'Soni shows her mom and Cass what stays and what goes. Specialist Trippolis stands by the front door waiting for Lt. T'Soni. Kaja grabs the things she needs to turn in to Matriarch Jilianea. The huntress looks at the light armor hanging in the closet next to a few uniforms. She reaches up and grabs the military issued shotgun. The military still uses the Disciple. Or an updated model of the shotgun. Kaja prefers her assault rifle or sniper rifle over a shotgun anyway. Looking through her closet again, checking again to make sure she has everything. Zipping up the bag, Kaja picks it up and realizes it's might be too heavy for her to carry with the injured shoulder.

T'Soni walks over to Specialist Trippolis, saying, "I need your help, Lorrea. I had a bad habit of buying my own weapons instead of using the ones issued to me. The bag I put them in is too heavy for me to carry with my shoulder. Please, carry it for me. I very much appreciate it."

"Sure thing, LT. Anything you need," answers Trippolis.

Kaja walks back to her bedroom and shows the Specialist the bag she need the younger asari to carry. "Thank you, Lorrea." The young huntress takes the bag to the waiting car.

Dr. Mitchell is busy packing Kaja's clothes in one of two bags, Kaja bought on their way to the apartment. "At least this apartment is bigger than the one you rented on Elysium," comments Cass. She looks over her shoulder to look at Kaja with a grin on her face.

"I know. I'm going to miss this apartment. I've lived here since my promotion to Lieutenant," replies Kaja as she looks around the room. "I need to go, Cass." The asari places a soft kiss on Cass' cheek then leaves to meet with Matriarch Jilianea. The huntress walks past her mother, Liara T'Soni, saying, "I need to go, mom. Lorrea will bring me back, I think. If not, I'll arrange something." Kaja walks out the door before Liara gets a chance to respond.

Lt. T'Soni joins Specialist Trippolis in the car. "Are you ready to go, LT?" asks Trippolis as she starts the skycar.

"Yes, Trippolis, I'm ready. Again, thanks," says Kaja as she gets in the car..

Lorrea drives the car to the unit's office. "LT, don't mention it. Mind if I say something?"

"What is it, Lorrea?" asks the Lieutenant. She gives Trippolis a sideways glance with a grin on her face.

"I'm going to miss you, LT. I think the human is very much in love with you. I really hope she makes you happy, Kaja." Lorrea Trippolis parks the car in the lot next to the military police offices which includes Matriarch Jilianea. Specialist Trippolis grabs the bag containing Kaja's weapons, while Lt. T'Soni carries the extranet case.

As the door to the car closes, Kaja replies, "Thanks, Specialist. And she does." The two huntresses walk up the few steps into the building. Trippolis holds the door for Kaja. T'Soni gets a few glances to go with a few whispers from others as she walks with her partner to Jilianea's office.

When they get to the Matriarch's office, both huntresses salute Jilianea with Specialist setting down the Lieutenant's bag in a chair then leaves the office. Once Trippolis leaves the office, Matriarch says as points to a chair on the other side of her desk, "Have a seat, T'Soni." Jilianea sits in her chair, which is a rarity for the Matriarch. "First things first, Lieutenant. Again, I am sorry you are leaving. When you left two weeks ago, I'll be honest, I thought you would decide to leave."

Matriarch Jilianea looks through a few folders in a desk drawer, finding the paperwork she needs Lieutenant T'Soni to sign. She finds the equipment checklist. T'Soni turns in every item on the list. Once, done, Jilianea says, "That looks like everything, Lieutenant. I do need for you to sign these. One is your discharge papers." Matriarch Jilianea slides the paper to T'Soni. The older asari slides another piece of paper to the younger asari. "This explains your pension and disability payments. Because you served over a century but less than two, you get a small pension, but the bulk of the payment is from your shoulder injury. And it is also adjusted for your age. Another reason the amount is so small per month."

Lieutenant Kaja T'Soni reads over the paper she needs to sign first. Before signing the discharge paper, Kaja reads the break down of her monthly payments. Small amount is correct. The monthly payment barely covers the rent for the small apartment she is renting on Elysium. She chuckles a little to herself. "You're right ma'am, it is a small amount." Kaja signs the discharge paper and hands it back to Matriarch Jilianea. "Anything else you need from me, ma'am?"

"I don't think so, T'Soni. What are you going to do now?" asks Jilianea as she moves from behind her desk to shake Kaja's hand and open the door for the wounded asari.

"I'm not sure yet. I think it depends on how the shoulder heals, ma'am," answer Kaja. The newly discharged huntress grabs her now lighter bag. The bag is still contains the weapon cases, but not the weapons. She slings it over her right shoulder and leaves her former boss' office.

The office is empty except for Specialist Lorrea Trippolis. Kaja walks over to her desk, grabs the picture and stuffs it into her bag, then picks up a paper weight she bought on one of her shore leaves. She looks at the oval-shaped weight with the planet name of Cyone etched into it. T'Soni hands the paper weight to her former partner. "Here, Lorrea, I want you to have this. I got it on one of my shore leaves back when I would actually take one."

"Thank you, LT. Let me check in with Jilianea and then I can take you back to your apartment." Specialist Trippolis puts the paper weight on her desk and goes to check in with the Matriarch.

Kaja sets the bag on a chair and looks around the one last time. She thought she would feel something when she walked back in to the office, but she doesn't feel anything. She thinks it's odd, but in a good way. Maybe this is the first of a few things she needs to let go. To let go of things that are beyond her control. Kaja looks at the door to Matriarch Jilianea's office, grins when she sees the door open and Trippolis exiting the office alone. "I'm ready if you are."

"I'm ready, but I can only drop you off, LT. I have a case to work." Trippolis grabs Kaja's bag and they walk together out of the building so the Specialist can drop her former partner off. When they get into the car, Lorrea says, "Kaja, we've been partners for a couple of decades. I know there is something going on and you've not said anything about it." The young huntress places her hand on Kaja's arm, "If you need someone to talk to, call me. And don't be a stranger. You never know, I might have another trip to Elysium soon."

The skycar lifts into the air, heading towards Kaja's apartment. "I'm not ready to talk about it, Lorrea. Leave it there. I'll keep in touch. And if you happen to return to Elysium, I'm staying at my mom's. Feel free to stop by. Just call first," comments Kaja with a huge grin on her face.

"I will. But remember, LT, the Matriarch did try to contact you before I left," replies the young huntress.

"I know she did, but my mother didn't know that. I'm looking at it from her point of view. Not mine," comments Kaja.

Specialist Lorrea Trippolis parks the car in front of the apartment. Cass is carrying a box full of kitchen items to the shuttle. Kaja thanks Lorrea for her help and waves the huntress off. Dr. Mitchell joins Kaja and takes the bag from the asari, "Everything good, Kaja?"

"What to do now?" Kaja has a smile on her face. "You do realize, my dear, you are seeing someone with no job and physically unable to work a job at the moment, right?" The asari wraps her arm around Cass' waist as they walk to the apartment together.

As they walk, Cass responds, "We need to finish taking the last few items to the shuttle, so I can get to Feros. I know, sweetie. How long do you see yourself unemployed?"

Kaja's jaw drops. He apartment is empty except for the stuff that stays with the apartment. "I wasn't gone that long, was I?" asks Kaja as she looks around.

Liara is sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for her daughter to return. "No, Kaja, you were not gone for very long and you don't have much stuff. The only thing you have to pack is all of your weapons. And I have them all laid out on your bed."

"Thanks, mom," replies the younger T'Soni as she walks into her bedroom to start putting each weapon in its own case. Kaja puts each case into her bad. Again with the weapons in their cases, the bag is too heavy for Kaja to carry with her wounded shoulder. "Ah, mom. I could use your help with this bag,"

Dr. Mitchell joins Kaja in the bedroom, "Your mom went to get the shuttle ready. We need to go soon. How long did you think it would take to pack four plates, five glasses, and 3 full sets of silverware plus an extra fork. Not including a sauce pan and one skillet. You had more clothes than other things to pack." The archeologist grabs the bag. "Kaja, how many guns are in here?"

"Ah, hmm. Five. Let me grab one. It should make the bag lighter." Kaja takes out the biggest case. Which is the case with the sniper rifle. Kaja slings the bag over her right shoulder and hands Cass the case with the sniper rifle.

They couple walk to the shuttle, Kaja drops off the bag then heads to the office to turn in her apartment key. She fills out one form for the apartment. Now, the young asari is able to leave Thessia. Take her bondmate to Feros, then head home with her mother to Elysium. As she makes her way to the shuttle, Kaja starts thinking about what she needs to do when she gets home. First thing she needs is to find a mental health professional who can help her through her problems.

The shuttle is ready and hovering the ground when Kaja boards it. She closes the shuttle door and informs her mother they are ready to go. The young asari sits next to the human and kisses the tender sensitive area behind the ear. Kaja whispers, "Thank you, Cass. For coming with me. For sticking by me."

Cass turns enough to look the asari in the eyes. As usual, Cass sees a sensitive soul in those ocean-blue eyes. She cups Kaja's cheeks with her hands. "You're welcome, Kaja." She places a tender kiss on the tip of the asari's nose.

Liara pilots the shuttle out of Thessia's atmosphere, heading towards the relay to start the trip to Feros. The Shadow Broker puts the shuttle on auto-pilot until they reach the relay. During that portion of the trip, Liara stays in the cockpit doing her broker work from the terminal in the cockpit. Kaja falls asleep shortly after the shuttle leaves the planet's atmosphere. Cass sits and reads more of the dossier sent to her by the university.

Spaceport-Zhu's Hope-Feros

Cass and Kaja are standing next to the shuttle talking, holding hands. Liara is looking over the colony when Shiala approaches the Shadow Broker. "Dr. Liara T'Soni. It has been a long time. How have you been, Liara?" asks Shiala.

Liara gives Shiala a hug. "I'm doing well, Shiala. And yourself?"

Shiala returns the hug. "Things are good, Liara. They have been since the war ended. Zhu's Hope is thriving now. You said you had a favor to ask. What do you need, Liara?"

The Shadow Broker takes a step to the left and looks over to Kaja and Cass. "See the human with Kaja?"

Shiala glances in the couple's direction. One of the things she notices besides a couple in love is the brace on Kaja's left shoulder. "Yes, I see her. What happened to Kaja?"

"Kaja was ambushed last week by a couple of Eclipse mercs. It's why I need to ask for the favor. Kaja is love with Dr. Mitchell. She is the archeologist in charge of the latest dig site. Is it possible for you to keep an eye on her and the site. Check in on them a few times a week. I'll introduce you to her. Kaja's worried about Eclipse going after to her again." Liara smiles at the older asari.

"Isn't Kaja a huntress? And of course, Liara. I can do that. I've not seen anyone from Eclipse around here lately, but I will keep an eye out," replies Shiala.

"Yes, Kaja's a huntress." Liara walks over to the couple, Shiala follows. "Kaja, you know, Shiala. Dr. Mitchell, this is an old friend, Shiala. Shiala, this is Dr. Mitchell."

Shiala offers her hand to the human. "Nice to meet you, Dr. Mitchell." She turns to Kaja, "It's good to see you, Kaja. Sorry to hear about Eclipse."

"Thanks, Shiala," replies Kaja.

"Kaja, Cassandra, I asked Shiala to check on the dig site. I hope I didn't over step my bounds. In a way, I'm surprised Kaja didn't think it already," remarks Dr. T'Soni. She rubs her daughter's arm.

The younger T'Soni looks at her mother with a grin, "What makes you think I hadn't thought about it? I never got a chance to take care of it."

Shiala stands with her hands behind her back. The eldest asari says, "I have to go. Dr. Mitchell, it was nice to meet you. And I'm sure I'll be seeing you again. Kaja, take care. It was good to see you, Liara. I'll be in touch." Shiala walks away to tend to her duties around the colony.

As the asari walks away, a human male walks towards the shuttle. He walks with no haste in his steps. Speaking as he approaches, "I'm sorry, I made you wait, Dr. Mitchell. My name is Nigel. I'm here to take you to the dig site. Some of the students are on the transport waiting. The next shuttle arrives in about twenty minutes with the rest of the students. Are these all of your bags, Doctor?"

"Yes, Nigel." Cass grabs a box of books. "Kaja, I'll be back in a bit." The archeologist follows Nigel to the waiting transport.

A few minutes later, Cass walks back to tell Kaja goodbye. Liara is in the shuttle waiting for the couple to say their final goodbye. "Kaja, I have to go. I love you." The human moves closer to kiss the asari.

Breaking away from the kiss, Kaja replies, "I know you do. I love you, Dr. Mitchell. I'll contact you when I get home." The asari reaches up and caresses Cass' cheek

Dr. Mitchell kisses the blue palm softly then turns and walks away without saying another word. Kaja enters the shuttle and closes the door. The eldest daughter joins her mother in the cockpit. "Time to head home, mom." Kaja sits in the chair with her right elbow on the arm of the chair and her hand under her chin. She looks out the shuttle's window and sees Cass walking away. "I miss her already."

The shuttle lifts off the tarmac of the spaceport. Cass turns to watch the shuttle fly away. The human tries to dries her eyes as she walks to the waiting transport. By the time she gets to the transport, she is feels the excitement for the unknown. Kaja is still on her mind, but Cass knows in order for her to do her job, she has to focus on the artifacts and teaching her students.

The Shadow Broker puts the shuttle on auto-pilot, turns in her chair to face Kaja, "I know you do. I promise, Kaja. It will be alright."

"I hope so. I am still worried though." replies the eldest daughter. "Mom, I need to ask you something."

"Yes?" Liara smiles at Kaja waiting for Kaja to tell her what's she needs.

Kaja asks, "Know any professionals to help me through my problems, mom? I asked Cass earlier and she said she didn't, but thought you might."

"I do actually. He's a turian and has very flexible hours. His name is Dr. Tattius," replies Liara. A beep is heard from the terminal. Liara turns to see what the message is and it's from Shiala. Benezia's former acolyte forgot to give Dr. Mitchell her contact information and asked Liara to pass it on. Liara turns her attention back to her daughter. "When you contact Cassandra when we get home, pass Shiala's contact info to her."

"I will. How do you know him, mom? And how do you know he can help me?" asks Kaja.

Liara notices Kaja is about to fall asleep again. "Kaja, go and lie down. Last thing you need to do is fall asleep in the chair. Kaja T'Soni starts to protest when Liara interrupts, "We'll finish this talk when we get home. Now, please, go lie down."

Kaja gets out of the chair and heads to larger area of the shuttle and locks in the small bed in place. Grabbing a pillow, Kaja lies on her right side, and closes her eyes. The young asari lies on the bed and thinks about things. I hope this turian doctor can help. I wonder if mom has used him before. She seemed very quick with the answer to my question. Or did she do what she always does. Research things as thoroughly as possible. Something she's done since our first vacation. I still think you're the Shadow Broker, mom. Now, with Cass on Feros, maybe we can discuss that too. I need to know the truth. It's been bothering since you told me about dad's first death. At times, I don't know what to think about that. To be brought back to life. Creepy science is an understatement. I'm glad it happened, but it's still creepy as hell.

The more the former huntress thinks, the more exhausted she feels mentally. Liara peeks out from the cockpit to see her eldest daughter lying on the bed with her eyes closed. The Shadow Broker isn't sure if Kaja is actually sleeping or if she is lying there thinking about things. Liara would prefer Kaja be sleeping than asking her questions she rather not answer. Liara knows there are more questions coming she doesn't want to answer in the near future.

Dr. Liara T'Soni's house-Elysium

Kaja looks at her omni-tool to check the time, 0100. She yawns and stretches her right arm above her head. Liara is busy shutting down all the shuttle systems. The elder asari looks as tired as she feels. "I'm going to bed. We'll talk more in the morning." Liara gives Kaja a hug and kiss before heading to the house and her bedroom.

"Good night, mom. Thanks." Kaja hugs her mother back then watches Liara exit the shuttle, heading towards the house. She looks around the shuttle, debating what to bring inside now and what can wait until later. Weapons can wait, kitchen stuff can wait, so Kaja grabs a bag with some of her clothes in it and slings the shoulder strap over her right shoulder. She would like to carry both bags at once, but knows that it's a bad idea. The young asari takes two trips to bring in her bags full of clothes, leaving the rest until later.

Kaja turns on the terminal in the study and tries to call Cass. The human answers the call, but Kaja can tell she woke Cass. Cass mumbles half awake when she says, "Hello."

"I guess I woke you, my dear. I'm sorry, but you did want me to contact you when I go home," replies Kaja. She leans her head to the left with a grin on her face.

The look Kaja is portraying makes Cass smile. She yawns and rubs her eyes. "Hi, sweetie. I'm not sorry you called. I didn't realize how late we got to Feros until we got to the dig site and it was getting dark outside. Thank your mother again for me please."

"I will. I'm uploading Shiala's contact information. She forgot to give it to you at the spaceport. You see anything suspicious, contact her. Please." Kaja gives Cass a pleading look.

Cass saves the information she received from Kaja. "Got it. I will, I promise. I hate to cut this short, but I need to get back to sleep. I'll call back later tonight. I love you, Kaja."

Kaja nods, knowing it's late. "I love you too, Cass. Talk to you soon." She disconnects the call. The next thing she does is do a search on the turian doctor her mother told her about. Dr. Tattius. After reading a few articles about the doctor, Kaja keeps the contact number. She plans on calling him after she gets up. The asari goofs off on the extranet for a few more hours before she decides to head to bed for the night. Without Cass lying next to her, the bed feels empty. The last thing Kaja thinks about before fall asleep is how much she misses Cass.

The first thing Kaja T'Soni does when she wakes up the next morning is call Dr. Tattius' office. Kaja feels lucky, she is able to see him later in the afternoon at 1530. The next thing Kaja does is send Cass a message letting her know about her doctor's appointment and how she is doing. The eldest T'Soni daughter has no idea what she is going to do with her time. She is unable to drive yet. Her shoulder restricts what the young asari can do. She would love to keep up with her pistol skill at the very least, but she can only hold it with her right hand and she already knows she isn't as accurate holding a pistol with only one hand.

Hopefully, Dr. Tattius can give her something to do with her time. Give her some type of goal, or help her set some. The things Kaja wants to do requires both arms to do them. She can't bang the shoulder around riding on the roller coasters. So, going to the amusement park is out of the question. Kaja starts thinking about what to do about her future. What type of job to take. Cass hasn't been much help in that department. She knows what ever she decides to do, Cass will support her.

Kaja leans back in the chair, rubbing her chin with her hand thinking about her goals. One goal is to heal her left shoulder. Kaja rather not have another surgery on it if possible. Another goal is to get her mental state in order. So, she can hold down a job and be the best possible bondmate to Cass. Not because she feels Cass deserve it, because she wants to give Cass everything she can give the human. Everything emotionally and physically. One last goal is to figure out what type of career will give her fulfillment. Maybe one goal will lead to another, Kaja isn't sure. She hopes getting her head on straight will lead her to figure out which career path to take. Kaja T'Soni sits in the chair, remembering the night she met Cass and what Cass said to her. One day at a time. Take it one day at a time.

The retired commando decides to send a few messages to her friends on Thessia. First message is to Specialist Lorrea Trippolis. Kaja wants to let her former partner know what is going on. She owes Trippolis that much because Lorrea knew something was wrong and didn't push the issue. The next message is to Clayre Madysson. Her ex-partner would like to know she not living on Thessia. Kaja explains what happened and hopes Clayre understands.

After sending a few more messages, Kaja turns off the terminal. She searches through a desk drawer looking for an unused data pad. Finding one, the asari starts typing on it. Kaja suddenly feels the urge to keep a journal. She writes puts down everything that has happened to her since she returned to Elysium two weeks ago. Has it only been two weeks? Feels like a life time. Everything happened so fast. Kaja rubs her neck. Things do happen for a reason. I believe that more than ever. I've already taken one step. All I need to do is to keep remembering to take it one day at a time. Getting out of the chair, Kaja walks to the kitchen to get something to eat. She grabs two bananas and sits outside.

Kaja looks around the yard while eating one of the bananas. It's calm and peaceful. Unlike her apartment on Thessia. The longer she looks at the mountains in the distance, the more Kaja feels she is on the right path. It's only been a day, but since signing her discharge papers, she has felt less pressure on her shoulders. Swallowing the late bite of the first banana, Kaja starts peeling the second banana. The eldest T'Soni daughter goes for a walk around the property.

Walking does two things. It helps Kaja think through things. And it gives the asari some exercise. Walking is the only thing she can do physically until her shoulder heals. Maybe in a few weeks, she can start doing more. Kaja hopes so. Being restricted on what she can do is frustrating. Kaja reminds herself to keep a positive attitude about things. There is a flicker of light at the end of the darkness that has engulfed the asari.

The more she walks, the more Kaja realizes how fortunate she is. How grateful she is to have not only her mother to lean on for support. She also has her youngest sister, Liv and her bondmate, Cass for support as well. Kaja isn't sure how much support Gaia would provide if any. In a way, it bothers Kaja and in a way, it doesn't. She pushed her sister from her thoughts and puts Cass in her thoughts. Thinking about the human always puts a smile, grin, or smirk on Kaja's face.

Kaja reaches the big flat rock. The infamous rock. The rock they were not allowed to go past. The rock her and her sister played on as kids. The rock they would sit next to or on and confide in each other. She grins when she thinks, if that rock could talk. What secrets would it reveal? Kaja sits on the rock and rubs her right hand over the top of it. The view of the mountains is still beautiful. Kaja's thoughts are on Dr. Mitchell and how much she misses her smiling face. Cass is doing what she loves. Kaja misses the human, but she isn't the type to stand in the way of someone's happiness.

"I miss you, Cass." says Kaja as she looks up to the blue sky. A smirk appears as Kaja pops the last of the bananas into her mouth. She walks slowly back to the house. She continues to think about what she is going to do with her time until her shoulder is ready for rehab. Then she has something to focus on. Life is going to get very boring for Kaja. She knows she has to take it one step at a time, one day at a time. So far, today has been a good day. Kaja hope more days in the future are good days. Only time will tell, thinks Kaja. Only time will tell.

A/N: This is the last chapter for part 2. If, I'd had worked out the story better, this would have been chapter 15. I will be posting the epilogue shortly.

I know, I still did not address Kaja asking Liara about being the Shadow Broker. I have a scene written, but I took it out of the story. I thought about adding it back, but didn't. I also thought about adding it to part 2 and couldn't find a sport to do it. I may go over the deleted scene, rework it a little and post it as a story on it's own.

I hope you enjoyed this.