CHAPTER 2: "GOOD TURIAN"

Turian Hierarchy Space Force - Council Spectre Use Frigate Lightspear

Systems Alliance Relay One (name pending)

July 25th, 462 Freeport

Jalina wasn't sure about a lot of things.

The humans- and the AI, KN, who had surprised her by being the most casual and, according to Nihlus' impressions, the least professional of the group- had left the ship several hours ago, leaving behind a First-Contact Package not unlike the one she had given them. She still didn't quite believe that the cheerful, friendly mech she'd spoken to was an actual AI, let alone an AI who apparently helped drive a giant, 25 foot tall bipedal war robot.

On the one hand, the aliens she'd spoken to- even the AI, she admitted- all seemed like friendly people excited to meet the rest of galactic civilization. The information they'd given to her, spoke of a relatively peaceful society with a strong cultural sense of honour, duty, inclusion and respect, as well as a healthy drive for innovation; all traits that would endear them to the turians, asari and salarians. She knew several krogans who would fit right into the Alliance's military culture, if her instinct ran true.

On the other hand, there were going to be a LOT of people who would be, at best, seriously terrified, and at worst outright hostile to the Alliance for some very good reasons. She'd spent the last three hours drafting her initial report for the Council and Committee on First Contact, and in an unusual turn of events she'd spent over five minutes just figuring out where to start. She'd been tempted to open with the AI issue, since that'd be the most obviously sensational way to begin, but eventually she'd settled on the lack of Mass Effect technology within the Alliance. It was true that First Contact training had always said that, given enough time, the numbers simply stated that it was possible an alien race would come up with an alternative method of FTL travel, and otherwise fail to integrate Element Zero into the technology- but even with the no-doubt censored and sanitized version of the Alliance's technological capabilities, the implications of a society- and a military- that placed no importance on the relay network were shocking. Combined with the fact that AI citizens could theoretically live and work on otherwise uninhabitable worlds and environments, the Alliance would be easily able to outpace just about anyone else in terms of stable population and economic growth. The whole AI issue was itself another massive problem. True, she could spin the integration of AI and organic society as proof that the two groups could live peacefully together without some sort of catastrophe- but with the geth uprising still so strongly drilled into the collective consciousness of the Citadel races, Jalina doubted others would see it that way. No, she reflected, many would see it as propaganda; no doubt the functionally immortal AIs had enslaved or taken over the humans, or were controlling them somehow. Ultimately she settled on neutral language, save for a section where she strongly recommended the Council make an exception for the Alliance; telling their newfound alien neighbours to shut down or kill more than half of their population would be a terrible idea (although she had the strong feeling that several politicians would make the argument anyways.)

Jalina sighed, proofread and edited the document several times, encrypted it and hit the "send" button; she got up from the terminal in her quarters aboard the Lightspear and made her way into the common room. Nihlus and Larix were both watching one of the holovids included in the FC package; both were very quiet. She filled her canteen from a nearby faucet, pulled up a chair next to the pair and set the canteen down. "Thoughts, Nihlus?"

Nihlus laughed quietly, shaking his head. "Palaven is going to have a meltdown when they see this. I can hear it already. Bunch of upstart colonists waged a war of rebellion against their homeworld, and worst of all, they won!" His weak smile faded, and he hummed a noise of discontent as he watched the video. "Seriously, though, you've got your work cut out for you, Ambassador. The AIs, their lack of eezo tech- unless negotiations go real smootly, this could turn really ugly, really fast." Nihlus paused the video and drank from his canteen before turning to Jalina. "Damn shame, too. We're alike in a lot of ways, I think."

"Go on. The more positives you bring up the better," Jalina said, mentally taking note.

"Well, there's the whole military culture. Strong sense of duty and honour in combat, same sort of stubbornness. Fiercely proud of their traditions, even if those traditions are nothing like ours. As worried as I am about the whole thing, I have to say I can't wholly disapprove of their society. Then again, I'm not really a 'Good' Turian, so maybe don't put that in a report or something."

Larix chuckled, and leaned back in his chair. "Don't think any of the crew pass as good by Turian standards, boss."

"No, I suppose not." Nihlus closed his eyes for a moment. "So what's next? I'm assuming the Alliance is gonna send a delegation to the Citadel once their diplomats get here?"

"I believe that's the plan," Jalina responded. "Captain Ryder made a note that Waliya explained how to interface with the Relays, but their ships don't seem to be able to use them. His engineers are apparently still testing to see why that is; hopefully they'll figure that out by the time the diplomats show up- otherwise, the Lightspear is going to be a little crowded."

"What're you gonna do if they bring along AI ambassadors?"

The room was quiet for a long time.

"I don't know, Nihlus." Jalina rubbed at her eyes, and sighed. "I already noted in my report that whatever's hapened to us- the Citadel races- hasn't happened to them. When we think AI, we think geth uprising and horror stories of enslavement by machines. When the Alliance thinks AI, they don't think anything besides fellow citizen. Goddess, marrying AIs is apparently commonplace. The Council is going to explode over that one, let alone the quarians. Speaking of which, how is Raetor doing?"

Larix winced, and Nihlus shrugged. "Not great," Nihlus conceeded, "but a lot better than I thought he'd be doing given the circumstances. Frankly I'm just impressed he didn't shotgun KN when he started talking. He's still in his quarters- we, ah, had a bit of an argument."

"He won't be an issue if we bring AI ambassadors on board, will he?"

Nihlus stared Jalina straight in the eyes. "No, he won't. I promise."

"Thank you, Nihlus."

"You're welcome."

July 26th, 462 Freeport

Brakal was hungry. He stank. He was bored out of his mind. And worst of all, that asari bitch was probably eating like royalty and laughing her blue ass off at Brakal. She hadn't come down to visit him in his cell, so he hadn't even been able to taunt her about, well, anything. He stared at the shower unit in his cell; he'd tested it a few times, and knew how it worked, but refused to use it. That'd be showing the two-eyed bastards who'd caught him a sign of weakness, and he refused to do that. So, instead, he stared bleakly at the walls, passing the time imagining all the ways he would break out and slaughter the ship's crew.

He wasn't even sure what day it was, not since after they'd taken his suit away after he'd taken it off to use the toilet, but by his best estimate it hadn't been more than a week or two. He was spending his time waiting for the usual guard to check up on him when the cell's doors buzzed to let him know someone was coming into the- airlock? He wasn't sure what the word was, but the cell seemed to be isolated by at least two layers of airtight doors. A few moments later, a slit opened and two guards, one a disgusting two-eyed alien that looked similar to the one that had been delivering his food and the other a robot, raised their weapons at him, and pointed to the wall. Not wanting to be shot full of holes, he complied and leaned against the wall; the pair clamped his hands together behind his back with some sort of cuff, then ushered him back out of the cell. Once they were out, the robot slung him over its shoulder, and he did his best to break free; when that failed, he spit on the robot. "Stupid fucking robot," he shouted, trying to wriggle free. "Fuck you and your two-eyed idiot friends!"

The two-eyed alien sighed, said something in its idiot language, and escorted his robot friend over to a nearby machine; they tossed him inside, and the machine sealed itself shut with a loud hiss. He continued shouting and kicking as best as he could for what seemed like an hour or two before he gave up out of boredom, only jerking out of his daydream when the coffin-like container he was in began to rumble and shake. He flipped over, laying on his back to look out of the transparent panel, and his eyes widened as his container was loaded into a ship of some sort. "Perfect," he said to nobody in particular. "Bet my buds came back or managed to the boss to talk to some politician somewhere." He kicked the container several times, but the aliens escorting him paid no attention. "You're fucked! Once they hand me back to the Hegemony you're all dead!" He wondered if they couldn't hear him or if they were ignoring him; in any case, the ship rumbled as they presumably took off. A while later, the ship docked with something; the soldiers on the dropship detached his container from a securing bracket, and pulled it along with them through an airlock and into a ship of some sort. They stepped away.

Brakal's eyes widened and his stomach clenched very slightly when they were replaced with a turian face staring right into the container with a pitiless grin. "Brakal, it's a pleasure to meet you," the turian said. "I'm going to open this box, and you're going to get out. Slowly. Or I'm going to kill you. We clear?"

Brakal nearly insulted the turian before reconsidering, nodding slowly instead. "Yeah. Fine."

"Good. Corporal Toombs, if you'll do the honours."

Brakal blinked several times as an alien soldier began punching in something on a keypad on the exterior of the crate- did the turian just speak to a alien? And the alien understood? He had little time to contemplate the implications as the hatch of the crate unsealed; the turian took a half-step back, hand on his hip-mounted sidearm. "Get up. Take two steps out of the box."

Brakal did as he was told, eyeing his surroundings; he appeared to be on a ship of some sort; turian-made, if he guessed right. Another turian and a salarian were in the room, weapons at a low-ready stance; he swore under his breath as he saw three alien soldiers he didn't recognize, and another combat mech. "Alright, I'm out. What now?"

"Hold still," the first turian said. "Larix, restraints."

"Got it." The second turian moved forward slowly, unclipped two sets of restraints, and clamed Brakal's legs and hands (again) together; the alien, Toombs, undid the original set of restraints on his wrists. He resisted the urge to fight back, instead staring at the first turian and his black-and-red armour. "All done, boss."

"Excellent. Brakal, you're being arrested for assisting in the illegal activation of a dark mass relay, for multiple counts of sex trafficking, enslavement, rape, possession and distribution of illegal substances, murder, and probably more that we haven't found yet. Frankly, I'm tempted to kill you here, but there are people with better plans for you." He gestured to a nearby prisoner-transportation box not unlike the one he'd been brought in. "Stuff him in and throw him into the brig for now. We've got actual work to do."

"Fuck you, you alien-loving fuck. When the Hegemony finds out they'll have me out in days, you hear?"

"Sure." The second turian waited for the salarian to wheel the prisoner containment unit over, and unceremoniously dumped him inside; Brakal could only watch as the human, Toombs, waved at him with a stupid grin on his ugly two-eyed face.

"Captain Ryder." Alec looked up from his terminal to find Tagak standing in the doorway of his office, saluting.

"Oh, come on. Just get in here. What's wrong?" He waited for Tagak to pull up a chair, and nodded for them to continue.

"The diplomatic team sent a message; the Demeter arrived at their fleet and they've received the Council's FC package, as well as updated translation software and our preliminary impressions."

"Excellent. Did they have any orders for us?"

"Just to hold position, and to inform them if any further meetings are held, new information is shared with us or if we have any recommendations."

"Mmm." Alec stared for a moment at a photo on his desk Tagak couldn't see, then grunted a sort of positive noise. "Thanks for letting me know."

"Just doing my job, Captain."

"I know."

"I'll stop bothering you, then." Tagak gave a quick nod and smile as they left the room.

Alec sighed and cracked open another can of non-alcoholic stout, drained half of it, and got back to going through the contact package Jalina had given him; he'd read all of the text and had watched all of the video, although he hadn't been paying close enough attention with the last quarter due to exhaustion. (Tagak, incidentally, had found him passed out at his desk, and Dr. Lewis had demanded he take at least two hours per day doing something that didn't involve work.) In any case, he'd taken his two hours after he'd woken up this morning, and was now hard at work re-watching videos and taking notes as he went. It was a lot to take in, and frankly he was worried; not just because first contact was a delicate situation before factoring in the whole slave-trafficking thing, but because Jalina's comments on Binary citizens were worrying. Even more worrying were the things she hadn't said; reinforcing that fact was that his contact package contained several errors; often, text or video regarding Council-backed AI legislation and the "Geth Uprising" would be displayed or played before the rest of the content in that section. The section on quarian history was also placed first during the "Races of the Galaxy" section; from what he'd learned so far, the quarians weren't exactly the most highly regarded peoples, at least not enough to warrant first billing.

He had a suspicion that something as important as a contact package would- should- not have errors. He made note of this, and began drafting another report when Tagak barged back into the office. "Captain. Ambassador Atruus contacted the ship, and asked to speak with you personally."

"What, did something happen with Brakal's transfer?"

"She didn't say; all she'd tell me was that she needs to speak with you privately, in-person."

"And this can't wait until the diplomats arrive."

"No, sir." Tagak sounded confused and a little frustrated. "She insisted that this was something that needed to be discussed as soon as possible, preferably before the diplomatic team arrives."

Alec stared thoughtfully at his terminal screen for a moment. "She must know that privacy between the two of us in-person is going to be impossible. She'll have to settle for a secure line."

"The ambassador said that she can't take that risk."

The office was silent for a minute; Alec shrugged. "Can she not come here?"

"I-she didn't say anything about that, actually. I'll have Signals patch you her through to your terminal." Tagak paused, eyes flashing for a moment, then nodded at the Captain. "Message sent. I'll be outside."

Alec noted a waiting message alert on his screen, watched Tagak exit the room, and waited for the hatch to seal. He plugged in a cable from the terminal into the port on his collar, and heard Jalina's voice in his ears.

"Captain Ryder?"

"Hello, ambassador. I was told you needed to speak with me."

"Yes. Privately. Face-to-face."

"You know that's not possible. If you'd like, I could arrange for you to come to the Frontier; we could also meet on one of our shuttles, though there would be no semblance of privacy if you were to choose the shuttle."

"Thank you for the suggestion, Captain Ryder. I hadn't thought of that option," Jalina said in a pleasant tone that sent alamrs ringing in Alec's head. "If I were to travel to your ship, would you be open to a private meeting?"

"We'd have to see."

"Of course. I'll be leaving my ship shortly with one or two guards, who will remain with the ship; my pilot will notify the Frontier when we leave and shortly before arrival."

"Excell- hello?" Alec frowned; she'd hung up on him. He unplugged the cable from his collar, let it snake back into the desk unit, and rubbed at his forehead. He tapped the comm button on the desk; Tagak entered almost instantly.

"Everything alright?"

"Technically, yes."

"That doesn't count."

"I'm aware." Alec sighed. "Something's off about this and I don't like it one bit. Jalina's on her way with bodyguards, not a fully-armed escort."

Tagak simply stared at him in response.

"Yeah. Does that sound right to you?"

"No, Alec," Tagak replied, sounding suspicious- and a tiny bit nervous. "It doesn't. I'll have the landing crew prep for arrival, and tell security to be on alert. You're not seriously going to entertain her privately, are you? I know your office has the turrets and stun-guns, but I- and the rest of the crew- would be far more comfortable with this if you had a few bodyguards, and were armed."

"I'm always armed," Alec replied, patting the Wingman on his hip.

"Heavily armed, sir."

"What, do you go to meetings carrying a shotgun?"

"Only when I need to. In all seriousness, though, Captain-"

"-I get it, Tagak. I'm making a judgement call."

"I understand," Tagak said, frowning. "Just stay safe."

Alec didn't have to wait long. About two and a half hours later, he was standing in the Frontier's hangar bay, watching Jalina's shuttle land; the ambassador exited the ship shortly after that, flanked by Nihlus and Larix. The two turians nodded politely at Alec; he returned the gesture with a half-wave, and waited for Jalina to walk over to him. She extended a hand, which he shook, then gestured to the elevator. "I understand we have a private matter to discuss?"

"I'm afraid we do, Captain Ryder, Jalina said politely. She followed him into the ship's main elevator in silence; they exited on deck nine and walked down several corridors past more guards than were usually on duty. A minute later, Alec used his office hatch's keypad, as well as the retinal, fingerprint and nanite scanner to unseal the entrance, and ushered the ambassador inside. She pulled up a seat as Alec settled into his chair.

"Well, we're here. You'll have to forgive me for the lack of formality, but you must understand that this is rather unusual," Alec said as he sat down. "I won't pretend to know your protocol- or you- in any meaningful sense, but my instincts tell me this isn't normal procedure."

Jalina sighed, and then took a deep breath. "It isn't, and I apologize for that."

Alec stared at her for a moment before speaking, slowly. "This is about the Alliance's binary citizens, right? The first contact package I received appears to have been edited."

"Tampering with first contact materials without prior approval is forbidden," Jalina said, face neutral and her voice composed. "It's not a criminal offense, but there would be consequences for doing so. May I ask in what way the package was tampered with?"

"Sections of text and portions of video relating to the geth, quarians, and AI-related issues in general were displayed or played out-of-order, with respect to the rest of the content."

"It would appear whoever edited the package was making a statement, then, about the hostility of the collective Citadel civilizations toward AI in general."

"A threat?"

"No," Jalina said, shaking her head. "I get the sense that it's meant to be cautionary."

"You didn't mention this sort of hostility, open or otherwise, during our initial meeting; while you certainly didn't lie about it, I have to admit I feel like you downplayed many of the issues involved."

"I apologize if I did so. There were a lot of people present and I didn't want to cause any trouble."

Alec remembered Raetor, the quarian, and how even beneath the full-body suit he could tell Raetor was unbelievably furious. "That makes sense," he replied.

"Thank you for understanding. Was anything else tampered with, as far as you could tell?"

"Not to my knowledge, although it'd be impossible for me to say for certain."

"Just in case, Jalina responded, pulling another grey box from her coat. "Another copy of the package; I can personally vouch for its integrity."

"Do you make a habit of carrying those around?"

"In times like these, it's good to be prepared." Jalina waited for Alec to take the box and place it inside a desk drawer. "Wonderful. In any case, please rest assured that Nihlus and I will be questioning the full crew of the Lightspear and her escort to see if we can figure out who did this; I can't make any promises, but we will try."

Alec simply nodded, and leaned back in his chair slightly. "You know, give that this act of tampering is one with some serious consequnces, I can't help but wonder who would do this, and why."

"I can't say who the culprit would be; the package has been secured, yes, but the entire escort fleet and its combined crew are all quite skilled in dealing with hacking and sabotage. As for why? I would hazard that this message of caution was meant to deliver its message such that its sender could inform you- and by extension, the Alliance and its diplomats- in case the sender couldn't find a way to contact or otherwise speak with you in private."

"Ah. I understand. I think I'd subscribe to that theory too, ambassador." Alec smiled for a fraction of a second before clearing his throat. "In any case, as much as I understand the dangers of sending binary delegates with our diplomatic team to the Citadel, I'm afraid their attendance is non-negotiable. Binary citizens have the same rights and freedoms as organic ones; cutting out more than half of the Alliance from representation isn't acceptable." He watched as Jalina's eyes flitted about, scanning his face and taking on an alarmed expression for the briefest of moments; she was about to speak when he raised a hand. "Still, the contents of the contact package have been enlightening. I will send recommendations to the diplomatic team regarding a way to...ease the shock of your peoples encountering binary life. It is my understanding that the team intends to send a message ahead of its arrival with some basic information regarding Alliance society and culture. I'm sure the public relations people on the team will come up with something that, if not entirely set the Citadel at ease, should at least reassure them that their safety is assured."

"I...yes." Jalina's face was measure and neutral, as was her voice, but her eyes gave off an air of grudging acceptance. "Given the conditions your society operates under, perhaps that would be for the best."

"I agree. Was there anything else you wished to discuss?"

Jalina's body visibly relaxed, and she returned to the default, small smile she'd worn during their first meeting. "Ah, yes, there is, actually. Brakal's transfer has gone very well- I wanted to let you know in person. Our resident scientist Itok is impressed with the work you did on Waliya; she's more or less finished recovering from her injuries and her narcotic dependencies. The psychological impact from her confinement and the stress of first contact- through no fault of your own- has been rough on her, though. She's been speaking with one of the counsellors we brought with us, and the counselor has noted that Waliya asks to see the Pilot who rescued her quite often- Jane Shepard, I believe?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"I was wondering if it'd be possible for Waliya to see Jane before the team sets off for the Citadel with your diplomats. The counselor says it'd be useful to have a friendly face around, even if only once."

"Technically, I'm don't hold any authority over Jane, but I will speak to her superiors to see if I can arrange something. I'd also warn you that where a Pilot goes, her Titan is sure to follow."

"That's fine," Jalina noted, nodding with a smile. "You'll find that the majority of our fleet is composed of some unusually open-minded characters."

July 27th

Jane and KN waited for the dropship's airlock to cycle, and both stepped through once the hatch opened. The Fang was a salarian-made frigate, slightly smaller than the Lightspear but a good deal faster; its interior was much the same as the Lightspear, though. The pair found themselves inside what looked like a CIC, a square room with exits to the cockpit and another corridor. Nihlus, the turian, and Itok, the salarian were waiting for them. "Spectre Kryik, a pleasure to see you again," Jane said, extending an arm. Nihlus clasped forearms with her, smiling.

"I see you've been through the contact package?" He unlocked arms, then extended a hand. "It's only fair we shake hands, too." He shook Jane's hand; Jane shook hands with Itok next. Nihlus locked forearms with KN next after only a split second of hesitation; he smiled as they shook hands. "Apologies, KN, if I seem uneasy."

"Nothing to worry about," KN replied. "I'm not gonna hold you responsible for the, ah, opinions of your government or whatever," KN said, gesturing vaguely beyond the ship. "You've shown me nothing but politeness."

"Bunch of fucking idiots," Itok said. "We could all have cool AI friends and one thing happens and no, it's kill-all-the-robots."

Nihlus glared at him; Itok shrugged. "You don't pay me to be polite, Nihlus. Actually you don't pay me at all."

"Spirits help me, if you talk like that in front of Ambassador Atruus or anybody else with any amount of influence I will personally put holes in your skull and throw you off the ship," Nihlus growled, pointing at the airlock. "I do NOT need a recording of my resident scientist being...flippant getting to my superiors."

"I'm not stupid," Itok said, arms raised in protest. "Nod-and-smile is the way to go when the brass is around, I get it."

Jane and KN both did their best not to laugh; Nihlus sighed. "Don't enable him," he groaned. "He's insufferable enough as is. Anyways, Waliya's still with her counselor; she should be done fairly soon. I don't know Waliya personally but I appreciate you coming regardless." He stared out one of the ship's windows, expression blank for a moment, before turning back to Jane and KN. "You know, now that I consider it, I suppose you two- Pilot and Titan- aren't all that different from Spectres. More oversight, more organized. But not that different." His flanged voice was thoughtful, as was his expression; Jane was about to respond when his omni-tool beeped. He read a message on it before nodding to himself. "Itok, head downstairs and get Dexila or one of her pilots to get you back to the Lightspear; ambassador Atruus wants everyone's take on the updated media packet Pilot Shepard here delivered earlier before it's sent off to Citadel space."

"There's quite a bit on there," KN noted, before Itok could protest. "Not a problem for a binary like myself, but if I recall correctly your ship's crew isn't that big."

"That's correct," Nihlus said, nodding. "There's no need to watch and read everything, Itok- skim through it, watch a few videos. She wants our impressions."

"Understood. Is it alright if I grab the rest of the crew, have them get the reports done all at once?"

"So long as you don't interrupt anything important. Try and get Raetor to join you, if possible. His opinion is...important."

"Got it. Pilot Shepard, Titan KN, it was a pleasure meeting you. Hope to see you again soon," the salarian said, heading out of the CIC with a jaunty wave and disappearing into a nearby elevator. The three watched him go, and it was Jane who broke the silence.

"So, uh, not to stereotype, but I was under the impression that a Spectre's crew would be more-"

"-professional? You're not wrong," Nihlus said, chuckling softly. "Technically, yes, but I'm free to select my own crew, operate as I see fit. Itok's a skilled scientist with a great mind, and in a pinch he's a pretty good engineer as well. My superiors would no doubt consider him a poor representative of the salarian peoples at best, but to be honest our crew- myself included- probably isn't a good representation of the galaxy at large." He paused, carefully considering his words. "I think there are a good number of differences between your Alliance and the rest of galactic civilization, but there are a good many parallels, too. I can only hope that the diplomatic process is a fruitful one. We have, after all, a lot to learn from one another." He looked up as the corridor hatch by the rear elevator opened; Waliya and another asari, this one taller, curvier, darker-skinned and wearing a black-and-red uniform with similar stylings to Nihlus' armour.

"Jane! KN!" Waliya waved and ran over to the pair; she hugged Jane tightly, then turned to KN and gave him a thumbs-up; KN flashed his green mono-eye and returned the gesture. "I was worried I wouldn't be able to see you guys before we returned to the Citadel."

"Well, we're here," KN replied warmly. "It's good to see you again. How've you been doing?"

"Good, good," Waliya said. "Itok and Doctor Medo here say I'm almost fully recovered physically. Mentally, well, I'm working on it," she said, gesturing to the other asari.

"You're tough," Jane said, smiling. "I know you can do it."

"Thanks," Waliya responded. "That means a lot coming from you. What have you two been up to?"

"Well, the Demeter is a pretty fast ship, so we relayed some stuff to and from the Vanguard fleet to the diplomatic fleet that's going to be arriving in a day or two; we heard you wanted to see us when we got back and there's no way we could say no," KN said. "Gotta make a good impression so you make us look real good in the reports, right?" He stuck a pose, miming flexing arm muscles; Waliya laughed, and sighed.

"I'll be sad to leave you and the rest of the people on the Frontier behind," she said after a moment. "Of all the military people I've ever met I have to say you guys have been the friendliest. And I don't think I'll be alone in being surprised at how nice you and your binary fellows are, KN. I just hope everyone else can get past their first impressions."

KN shrugged. "Just gotta keep being nice, right?"

"Mhmm." Waliya was going to continue when Nihlus stepped in.

"Ambassador wants to see you, Waliya, sooner rather than later. Pilot Shepard, KN, you said the diplomatic fleet won't be arriving until tomorrow at the earliest, correct?"

"Yeah, though really it's looking more like two days if I'm honest."

"Alright. Hopefully we'll be able to see you guys again," Nihlus said. "Ayala- Dr. Medo can assist you with the airlock if you have trouble. Come on, Waliya, we have to go." Waliya nodded, smiled sadly, and followed Nihlus off the CIC. Dr. Medo walked over to Jane and KN, and extended a hand. The pair each shook hers in turn.

"Dr. Medo, though you can just call me Ayala. I serve as the main medic and counsellor for Nihlus' little crew. I just wanted to thank you, and the rest of your fleet, for treating Waliya so well." She grimaced for a moment. "I know a lot of military people who would have treated any civilian, let alone an alien, far, far worse than you and your people did."

KN nodded. "Will she be alright?"

"I can't say for sure." Ayala closed her eyes and shook her head before opening them again. "She's been through a lot, enough to break most people. I'm sure she'll recover eventually; we asari do have the time," she said, smiling sadly. "Whether it'll be any time soon is another question. Still, thank you for all you've done; you two have been a source of comfort for her. I just hope the ambassador doesn't pressure her to speak much publicly despite the obvious benefits for everyone involved."

"She deserves better," Jane said quietly.

RESOLUTION - ALLIANCE PARLIAMENT / NEXUS LIBERTY - COMMITTEE ON FIRST CONTACT

JULY 19-20, 462 FP

TOPIC EC6-12509083458: MEDIA TO BE INCLUDED IN FIRST CONTACT WITH "CITADEL RACES"

THE COMMITTEE:

Reminding all involved parties of the importance and influence media plays in all societies;

Recognizing the similarities in media culture between the Alliance and the galactic civilizations encountered by the Vanguard Fleet [see HERE for further info];

Reaffirming the importance and equality of human and binary society and their media in terms of importance;

Stressing the role media will play in normalizing Alliance cultural norms in alien society,

skip to attachment EC6-AC10-B

opening

The following is a preliminary suggestions list of shows, works and other media primarily produced by binaries made during session EC6-12509083458. This list is not in any way exhaustive or final; these are simply the recommendations of several committee session attendees, and will be further debated during the next session, as well as an ongoing 1:170 dilated debate on Nexus Liberty Subsection EC6-AC10-B (partially open to the public.) Attached are reasons given by the delegate who recommended the work.

- Eating with Kat, Dining with Kat and Cooking with Kat, seasons 1-109 inclusive. Cooking / travel show starring the famous binary chef and celebrity EK-12E6P4. Chosen primarily for its host; EK is regarded by many as a warm, inviting character with a friendly personality. The travel-doc nature of the show helps explore the Alliance in a non-threatening manner.

- Optimum Drive, seasons 3-9. Fairly recent show about vehicle culture; season 3 introduced a second host, racing enthusiast and celebrity IM-29OPZCC31. Chosen for its light-hearted nature and a way to introduce aliens to the aesthetics and style of Alliance ships. Soft propaganda effect via FTL capabilities.

- Starfall, seasons 1-19. Long-running romance drama. Chosen for positive depictions of binary-human relations.

- "Spires of Nox" book trilogy. "Swords and Magic" style fantasy with humans and magically-animated stand-ins for binaries. Chosen to display the degree to which binary and organic cultures have integrated.

- Metal Rage and Metal Rage 2: Dawn of Fists. Cheesy, low-budget movie with a female-identifying binary lead, NN-3EOP9143. Will help normalize Alliance military technology without giving away any real information.

- Ordinary History. Combination travel-doc and history show with a binary host. Explores the history of the Alliance; the host, SE-2BDI visits the sites of many battles and events, and often interviews surviving binaries 'born' more than a century ago. Widely loved.

Jalina found herself sitting in Captain Ryder's office once again, sitting across from a man that was obviously exhausted and stressed; nonetheless, the Captain retained an air of warm, professional kindness. "Thank you for coming," he said, leaning forward in his chair. "As I indicated in my previous message, the diplomatic fleet will be arriving tomorrow. I asked you to meet with me because I wanted to go over the Citadel Council's contact protocol. I did read the contact package's recommended course of action, but there are a few problems I think might come up."

"Beyond our initial discussion?"

Alec sighed. "I've already received preliminary reports from the diplomatic fleet. I want you to know that the contact packages- both of them, to be clear- were... illuminating, and we understand the risks- but it's been decided. There will be binary representation within the group of delegates we're sending. There's no argument to be had- we simply can't just cut out half of the Alliance during negotiation and diplomacy with the Council."

Jalina simply nodded. "I understand."

"Still, we'll be taking precautions. If I understand correctly the current plan is to have the binary delegates remain aboard the primary ship during the initial disembark onto the Citadel. In a best-case scenario, the contact and media package we're sending ahead will be sufficient warning to the people of the Citadel; worst-case, our binary delegates can leave quickly if need be. Of course," Alec said with a calm that Jalina wasn't quite sure was real or not, "I'm hoping for the best-case scenario."

"I think we all are," she replied. "Our full escort is on its way, and should be here shortly. I'll probably be sent ahead of the actual diplomatic fleet to give an in-person report to the Council proper, but I'll be present for the proceedings once your diplomats arrive."

"Thank you. Speaking of which, that raises another issue- despite the best efforts of my science teams and the many other experts that have joined the Vanguard in the past week, we're still no closer to figuring out why the mass relays refuse to allow our ships passage. Our best estimate is that the relay has a two-stage interface; the first is the ship in question sending its mass to the relay, and the second is the relay scanning for engine signatures to ensure it doesn't activate by mistake, say, from a stray signal. Of course, the relay's only set to scan for element zero signatures, so our scientists hypothesize that the relay receives our mass input, begins to activate, then shuts down when its scans don't 'see' our ships."

Jalina thought for a moment before nodding. "There'd be an unacceptable security risk if your delegation were to simply leave their ships behind and seek passage on ours, but you still need to get to the Citadel. I see. I'll arrange to have map data delivered to you in one way or another, though I don't recommend jumping ahead of our escort fleet."

"I'd appreciate that. Your mapping data accounts for the drifting relays?"

"Not long-term, no, but they're accurate for what we need now. In the future this data would be synchronized via regular updates."

"I believe a compromise could be arranged where the diplomatic fleet would follow your escort, jumping only when they encounter a relay- and exiting where the relay links to. I'm not expecting a firm answer from you now, but do you think that'd be agreeable?"

"I don't see why not," Jalina replied. "Personally I think it's an excellent solution, and probably the only practical one. I'll contact my superiors as soon as I have the chance."

"Thank you. The last issue I wanted to discuss was security- the package states that the diplomats are allowed armed escorts, but it doesn't give any hard numbers. I assume that'll be finalized once both they and the Citadel's escort group arrives?"

"Yes, that's the case. How large is the diplomatic fleet?"

"Seven ships as of now, but that number can be changed depending on negotiations. The diplomats will want their own security team guarding them, especially once they're on the Citadel."

"Of course, of course." Jalina waved a hand towards the ceiling in a vague gesture. "Nobody's going to deny your diplomats their guards, Captain. They'll understand."

"Even the binary diplomats? Even binary guards, though? I'm not trying to be combative, but I do need to try and cover as much as I can in my report."

"Technically, yes," Jalina said, frowning. "You're familiar with the legislation regarding AIs in general?"

"My knowledge extends to the information I've been given."

"Well, AIs are technically illegal creations and aren't allowed to, well, exist, in Citadel space. There are, if I remember correctly, three or four companies right now with research licenses who submit to close scrutiny in exchange for that right. If it were one of our own races or someone closer- or to be frank, less developed- appearing with binary diplomats and armed binary guards, I can't say it'd set a diplomatic tone. But your Alliance has shown that long-term existence between AIs and organics is entirely possible and indeed fruitful."

"No offense, but I get the distinct impression that a lot of people don't share that view."

"No, they don't. And I guarantee you a good deal of the more conservative-leaning politicians, especially in regards to AI legislation, are going to have a fit when they get the full contact package."

"Asari politicians complaining about our lack of long-term planning, perhaps?"

Jalina smirked. "I would leave that out of your report."

"Leave what out of my report?" Alec smiled very slightly, and took a drink from a can sitting on his desk before continuing.

"In any case, my point was that the combination of the Alliance's...advanced development, and the degree to which your organic and binary cultures have integrated might be enough to convince enough people in positions of influence that your diplomats- both kinds- will be allowed onto the Citadel without trouble. As for binary guards, well, I can't say. There are a lot of people who are going to be terrified of the sight of an armed AI- Goddess, there are probably going to be a few Asari who remember the original uprisings. You're not going to convince them, not for a long time- but hopefully your contact and media packages will help allay some of those concerns."

"And we can count on your support during your debrief with the Council?"

"I can't promise you anything, Captain. But even from my limited experience with you and your peoples, I can say that I will defend your binary citizens' rights." Jalina scowled. "Goddess help me, I sat through an hour of that drama vid, what was it- Starfall, I believe? Any society advanced enough to make mushy garbage like that is far past 'integrated,' though the quality of that show lends me to believe that the word 'harmonious' might imply a level of artistic taste that doesn't exist."

Alec laughed loudly, and shook his head. "Keep your voice down, Ambassador. There's no shortage of die-hard fans aboard this ship, let alone the fleet. Do you have any recommendations regarding the media package as it is now?"

"Not particularly, no," Jalina said, her expression sobering. "I think your politicians have done an excellent job, for the most part, of choosing media that introduces the viewer to the Alliance and its culture without being threatening or boastful." She pulled a black rectangular object from her coat, tapped it on her omni-tool, and set it on the table. "An Optical Storage Device- OSD. Your people know how to interface with it?"

"Yes, we do. The contact package contained one."

"Excellent. You'll find Nihlus and his crewmates' impressions recorded on here. I've skimmed through them and for the most part they're positive."

"Raetor?"

"His impressions are there, yes." She sighed. "I'll let you read it. Honestly it's not as bad as I thought it'd be, but it's far from positive."

"It's important to have all the opinions we can get, especially if Nihlus and his team aren't necessarily representative of the wider populace."

"I agree. If that's all, I believe I should be getting back to the Lightspear and get to work finishing my reports- and preparing my debrief notes."

"I won't keep you then. Thank you for all the help and advice you've given me- and the Alliance, Ambassador. I appreciate it."

She saw a genuine warmth in his eyes, and returned it as best as she could. "Just doing my job, Captain."