The Justicar and the Assassin
For the last four hundred years, Samara had pursued her quarry across the galaxy and on more than one occasion, had come close to cornering her only to see her slip away once more. Here, on Ilium, Samara had once again found the trail and knew this was perhaps the final chance she would have to complete her quest. Events had taken an unexpected turn with the arrival of the human, Shepard and her companions. The Code Samara lived by compelled her to surrender herself to Ilium law enforcement for twenty-four hours and Shepard had agreed to look for signs of Morinth in Samara's stead.
Normally, the asari was loath to involve outsiders in something so personal but Samara saw that she had little choice. Perhaps destiny had brought her path and Shepard's together. Or perhaps it was merely coincidence.
As she sat meditating in the police station, Samara's thoughts turned to the human and her team, a motley collection of various beings. Three of their number, a quarian, turian and Shepard herself moved and acted as one, each trusting the other implicitly. Together, they were made stronger whereas apart, each would be lessened. The justicar wondered what events and trials had shaped the three both as individuals and as a whole. The last member of the group accompanying Shepard, a tall dark haired human woman, held herself apart from the rest as though she was unused to trusting others. This last member of the group was also possessed of a strong aura - that of a person used to leading. That she followed another was testament to Shepard's will and strength of character.
Samara offered a brief prayer to the Goddess, that Shepard would find what was required before the twenty-four hours expired. The detective investigating the murder of the volus merchant would want to detain her longer but Samara's Code was clear: she would do what was necessary to accomplish her goal and if her hand were forced, many innocents would die.
Samara continued to wait and meditate.
Detective Anaya cast a nervous glance at the justicar. Things were bad enough in her district with the Eclipse Sisters controlling the back alleys that the presence of a justicar was an added complication she really didn't need. Without opening her eyes or showing any outward sign that she knew Anaya was watching her, the justicar said, "Be not afraid, Detective. I believe that our faith in the human is well-placed."
"I hope you'll understand if I don't share your optimism, Justicar," Anaya replied. Before returning to the report she was compiling, Anaya sent up her own little prayer to Athame.
---
The Eclipse Sisters were skilled, Miranda had to admit but the squad made short work of anything it encountered. Shepard, Garrus and Tali moved and fought with an almost choreographed and balletic grace and, observing the shared camaraderie the three enjoyed during moments of down-time, Miranda felt envious of the bond they shared. Enough she told herself. Focus on the operation. But it was becoming increasingly difficult - Miranda felt as though her skills and abilities were superfluous to requirements. Shepard possessed biotic abilities rivalling her own, and the combined technical prowess of Tali and Garrus coupled with the turian's sniper skills ensured that the three of them could handle anything the enemy threw at them.
Oh stop wallowing, you stupid girl Miranda scolded herself. Remember why you're here in the first place - without Project Lazarus, YOUR project, Shepard wouldn't even be alive. Shepard, it always came back to Shepard. At the rear of the squad, Miranda bit down on her lip in frustration, double-checking her machine-pistol's heatsink. Ahead, Shepard raised a clenched fist, signalling them to halt. The Commander sidled to the closed door of what appeared to be a storage unit. Faintly audible from inside came a youthful-sounding voice.
"Oh please don't let them find me. If they do find me, please don't let them shoot me!"
With quick hand gestures, Shepard ordered the squad to stack up to the left of the door, taking a position at the head of the formation. Standing behind Tali, Miranda observed as Shepard palmed the release for the door and slipped inside, shotgun at the ready. The inside of the storage space was dimly lit. Large metallic crates filled half the floor space. The praying ceased the moment the door opened. Head tilted to one side, Shepard pointed to the rear of the stack of crates as something behind them shifted slightly.
"Come out," Shepard said, eliciting a sharp intake of breath from behind the crates, "We know you're there."
A slender asari clad in a hardsuit bearing Eclipse livery emerged from behind the crates, hands in the air, noticeably rattled by her four armed visitors. "I'm not Eclipse!" the asari said in a rush, "I only pretended to fire my gun but I didn't shoot once! I thought being Elnora the Mercenary would be cool..."
Elnora's voice trailed off as she absorbed the disbelieving expressions of the people before her.
Lips twisted in a parody of amusement, Shepard replied, "Just how stupid do you think we are, sweetheart? We asked around about the Eclipse Sisters. Apparently, every member of the Eclipse is a killer and they have to commit a murder to earn the uniform," Shepard lifted the muzzle of the shotgun, indicating the emblem on the asari's breastplate. "Now, judging by your incredibly nervous disposition and the near-spotless state of your armour, I'm going to assume you're very new to this." Without breaking eye contact with Elnora, Shepard asked, "What do you think, Garrus? Newbie merc, a volus merchant killed just last night. I think we've found the killer."
Garrus nodded, renewing the grip on his rifle, "I think you're right, Shepard."
The asari's demeanour changed instantly, from scared to aggressive. Elnora snatched up the SMG at her hip and swung it at Shepard's head faster than anybody could move. The SMG emitted a series of dry clicks followed by the high-pitched bleep of an over-stressed heatsink. Miranda looked on, eyes wide as Shepard dropped the shotgun and snatched the SMG from the asari's hand. With an amused smirk, Shepard ejected the spent thermal clip and held it up. "Well there's your problem!"
"Turn around," Garrus instructed. "Very slowly." Once Elnora had done so, he added, "Lace your hands together behind your head."
"I don't suppose anybody remembered to bring some restraints?" Shepard asked, still smiling.
---
The quiet hum of the police station was disturbed with the arrival of the human and her companions. Anaya looked up from her computer, wondering who else Shepard had managed to collar. A spectacularly irate Elnora had only recently arrived in the company of two uniformed officers and Anaya had ordered her into the cells under armed guard until the business with the Justicar was finalised and she could question her.
As the armed quartet entered the station, Samara stood from where she had been sitting meditating at a vacant desk and dropped smoothly to the floor. Anaya stood also to meet Shepard and her companions. "Did you manage to find the name of the ship the Justicar was searching for?" Anaya managed to keep her voice even as she asked the question. Shepard nodded, tucking an errant lock of hair behind one ear. "How's Elnora the Mercenary?" she asked.
"My lawyers will sue the pants off you, bitch!" a voice screamed from the cells.
Anaya shrugged, "She's fine. Good work bringing her in, by the way. My superiors will be pleased we found the killer so quickly."
"Shepard," the Justicar stepped forward, entering the conversation, "I believe you have found something?"
The former N7 operative nodded and handed Samara a datapad found in the possession of the now-deceased leader of the local Eclipse gang. For a moment as Samara met her eyes, Shepard felt as though she were staring into a timeless abyss and forced herself to look away. "The Eclipse arranged passage off-world for the fugitive on the AML Demeter but there is no record of its destination," Shepard explained, averting her eyes.
Samara nodded, face carefully neutral, giving no sign of the emotions she felt - she was still so close. "You impress me, Shepard. You have fulfilled your part of our bargain and I shall fulfill mine - I will pledge myself to your service until your mission is complete."
The asari knelt on the scuffed floor, biotic corona swirling around her and spoke softly, "Shepard, I pledge myself to you service. Your path is my path, your goals are my goals, your morals are my Code."
Samara stood once more, the flow of dark energy fading. For several moments, silence reigned in the station before Garrus said, "That's quite an oath."
The Justicar nodded, a trace of a smile on her lips. "Of course, if you order me to do something extremely dishonourable, I will be forced to kill you once my oath to you expires."
Shepard swallowed around a dry mouth. "Is it true that a Justicar will begin shooting if she smells even a hint of corruption?"
As the party, its number increased by one, exited the station, Samara said, "Though such tales carry great amounts of exaggeration, at their heart lies a core of truth, yes."
Shepard nodded and excused herself, walking rapidly away from the others. When she judged herself out of earshot, she opened a comm line to the Normandy.
"Commander?" Joker answered.
"Joker, patch me through to Engineering," Shepard spoke rapidly. She was probably over-reacting. Probably.
"Uh...sure thing," Joker replied, voice betraying a hint of unease. For a moment, Shepard listened to dead air before Kenneth's Scottish accent flowed into her earpiece.
"Commander, what cannae do for you?" Kenneth enquired.
"Kenneth, listen very carefully," Shepard hissed, looking over her shoulder. Samara seemed to be in conversation with Miranda but met Shepard's eyes as though aware she was being watched. Shepard hurriedly looked away. "I need you to dismantle the bootleg alcohol still you've set up down there."
Kenneth managed to keep the shock out of his tone, "Why Commander, I'm sure I have no idea what you're referrin' to."
"Personally I don't care if you want to get blind-drunk on hundred-proof rocket fuel, but we've just recruited an asari Justicar and they have a reputation for....taking issue with things they view as illegal. They're not known for seeing shades of grey, Kenneth."
A long pause followed this last statement as Kenneth digested the information. Finally he replied, "Well, let's just say that if there were any such alcohol still aboard this vessel and I'm not saying there is but if there were then you can rest assured that it would be completely dismantled by the time ye got back, Commander."
Shepard breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Kenneth. I'd really hate to explain to The Man how one of my crew killed the engineering staff." Shepard clicked off, smiling as she imagined the look on Kenneth's face.
---
He will always remember the first time he met the woman the vids once referred to as the Savior of The Citadel. Drell have perfect memory, he will later tell her, when she visits him in the frigate's life support hub.
He observes Nassana and her personal guard from a position in the penthouse's false ceiling. "So," Nassana says, pacing back and forth beneath him, "First you killed my sister and now you've come for me."
A voice replies from elsewhere in the room. His keen senses place the speaker - a human woman - and her team near the centre of the room. The woman laughs softly. She sounds genuinely amused. "As I recall, Nassana, it was you who manipulated me into killing your sister. I'm not here for you in any case."
"Who sent you?" Nassana persists. "Whatever they're paying you, I'll double it."
"Oh, I think you'll meet him soon enough," the human replies. He can tell by the tone of her voice that she's smiling. Taking this as his cue, he drops silently to the floor, snaps the neck of the nearest guard and guns down two more in the space of half a dozen heartbeats. Nassana sees him, too late, gasps "Who-?" as he hugs her to him in an almost tender gesture, pressing the muzzle of his sidearm over her heart. He fires once more. Her body jerks. With reverence, he lays he her down upon her desk. Blue blood spreads rapidly from the bullet wound, staining his hands as he folds her arms over her chest.
This whole time he is aware of the human and her companions, his mind flawlessly committing the placement of each one to memory. She stands flanked by a krogan on her left and a turian on her right. Standing behind and between the human and turian is a slender quarian. On his knees, he offers up prayers for the wicked. "Not for her," he tells them soon after. "For me."
---
"Gee, Commander," Joker quipped, "Another dangerous alien! Thanks! Did you get them all at the same store or something?"
"Yes," Shepard deadpanned, "There was a two-for-one special at Nos Astra. Couldn't pass it up." Freshly showered after ensuring Thane and Samara were comfortably settled, Shepard began her usual tour of the ship. Ilium had left the Spectre....drained.
"So, I heard you ran into Liara?" Joker asked, unsubtly changing the direction of the conversation. Shepard sighed and slumped against the bulkhead beside him. Liara...Ash's anger on Horizon had been bad enough. Liara's abrupt and cold manner, her obsession with bringing down the Shadow Broker had left Shepard stunned and saddened. It was yet another reminder that everything had changed while Shepard had been 'away.'
"You know this is meant to be Chambers' job?" Shepard said with forced levity, "Talking me through things, I mean."
Joker ran nimble fingers over the controls, prepping the craft for departure. "Who said anything about talking you through it? I'm more interested in whether you and Liara had to time to you know."
The helmsman winced as Shepard leaned over and gently swatted the back of his head, knocking his flight cap askew. As he repositioned it, she replied, "You want the unvarnished truth, Jeff?"
"Yes please!"
Shepard shook her head, eyes unfocused, "We hugged. We kissed. A lot. I kinda went crazy and had her halfway on her desk-"
"Whoa!" Joker held up his hands in surrender. "OK...that's enough. Geez."
Despite herself, Shepard laughed, "You asked for it. Besides, some of your extranet bookmarks....hanar tentacle porn, Moreau?"
Joker's face turned pink with embarrasment, "I was curious!" he blurted. "Anyway, don't turn this back on me. Seriously, Shepard, how were things?"
"Weird. Liara sounded like...a pod person version of herself, you know?"
Joker shook his head. Shepard sighed, struggling to find the right words. "When we walked into her office, she was speaking to somebody via hologram. And she sounded so much like her mother, it gave me goosebumps."
"Damn," Joker replied, "Shy little Dr T'soni managed to rattle big scary Commander Shepard?"
Shepard cleared her throat, ensuring she had the helmsman's undivided attention. "Have you faced an asari commando unit before? Few humans have. I'll make it simple. Pay what you owe me or I'll flay you alive. With my mind."
"OK, yeah," Joker nodded, rubbing the back of his neck, "Coming from Liara, that's kinda creepy."
The Commander pushed off from the bulkhead, prepatory to leaving the bridge. She nodded out the cockpit windows to the bustling metropolis of Nos Astra where the ship was currently docked. "How soon can we leave? I'm suddenly struck by the burning desire to be elsewhere." Even as the question hung in the air, the docking clamps detached from the hull of the Normandy, sending dull reverberations throughout the frigate. Joker smirked at her as the ship vectored away from the city, angling for the stars.
"Smartass," Shepard said as they left Ilium behind.
Author's Note: Liara as a pod person is courtesy of vshard.