Saturday, August 18th, 2187 (late morning) — 20:42 Daleri local time
With Tayna back at her tent, Kaidan and Samara stood in the rear of the shuttle, deciding on their next move.
"So what's the plan?" Kaidan asked. "We can't just drop by Mirala's place and ask, 'Pardon me but you're an Ardat-Yakshi, eh?'"
"As yet, we have suspicion but little hard evidence that she is the Ardat-Yakshi," Samara said. "We must use extreme care when we speak with her, or she will most likely flee. Tayna did not confirm that Mirala was the one who placed her under compulsion, and that is our angle. I suggest we hew closely to the truth: we were investigating a more serious matter, and chanced upon Tayna's compulsion. Though we suspect Mirala of it, it is technically a crime unsolved. I will remind her that tampering with another's mind without consent is a serious crime, and then you will ask her if she has observed any recent Reaper activity. If she is indeed the Ardat-Yakshi this will, I believe, help to convince her that we do not suspect her of it. And if she is indeed working with the Reapers, then her lies may be interesting."
"Tayna mentioned acolytes," Kaidan pointed out. "Should we bring in more people?"
"I believe that would be unwise," Samara countered. "A greater show of force will put Mirala on the defensive. We do not seek a confrontation with her at this time. If anything, I believe the acolytes work in our favor."
"Yeah?"
"We should ask Mirala for her permission to question the acolytes about Reaper sightings. A few surreptitious questions about Mirala's use of compulsions will be expected as well, I think. Later, we can compare our findings to determine if the acolytes appear to be there of their own free will, or if they are thralls to an Ardat-Yakshi. While it is unlikely we will uncover either proof or refutation of Mirala's status, the acolytes will likely provide us with more evidence than Mirala herself would. Remember, Ardat-Yakshi are what you would term 'psychopaths': they are wholly without empathy, but the successful ones are skilled at faking it. If Mirala is as we suspect, then she is doubtlessly an expert at deception, but her thralls are not."
"Okay," Kaidan said. "I'm going to notify the Normandy and the other teams, though. They need to know what to expect in case something happens."
"I see the wisdom in that," Samara said.
"Yeah… and now that I think about it, it makes sense to have the other Kodiak down here. That way, Cortez is free to extract the two of us, but we have a means for the other teams to converge on our location and spring us if we get into trouble." He tapped his omnitool to open an audio channel to the Normandy. "Joker, come in."
"Reading you loud and clear, Major," Joker replied.
"Patch me through to Gefyra," Kaidan said.
"… sending everyone the coordinates now," Kaidan's voice announced over James's omnitool. "I have Gefyra piloting the second shuttle, in case you need to launch a rescue mission, or if you need to extract and Cortez is unavailable. I'm also setting up a dead man's switch over an encrypted channel. If I don't squeeze my omnitool at least once every 90 seconds, your own omnitools will alert you. In that event, remember that Lieutenant Vega is the next officer by rank and seniority. Alenko out."
"Mierda," James muttered under his breath.
"If the situation is as dangerous as it seems, shouldn't he bring more firepower?" Javik asked.
James shook his head. "Blue's a by-the-book kind of guy. He'd call for backup if he thought he needed it. I don't like this — I really don't like this — but he knows what he's doing."
Saturday, August 18th, 2187 (late morning) — 21:01 Daleri local time
Kaidan and Samara stood in front of the address Tayna had given them. It occupied half a hectare of land on the outskirts of the city. A four-meter wall of polished stone surrounded the property. "Subtle," Kaidan said with an audible eye-roll.
He and Samara walked up to the gate, and Samara pressed the button on the intercom.
After a moment, a youthful voice answered. "Hello? Who is this?"
"My name is Samara. I am a justicar. I am accompanied by Major Kaidan Alenko, a Spectre. We wish to see your mistress, Lady Mirala. A matter has come to our attention that we would discuss with her."
There was a pause.
"One moment, please," the voice finally responded. The intercom clicked off.
"Now what?" Kaidan asked, squeezing the omnitool in his left palm.
"We wait," Samara said.
A minute passed.
The intercom clicked on again. "Mistress Mirala will see you now," the voice said. The intercom switched off and the gate began to slide open.
Samara led the way into the compound, Kaidan close behind. Both were trying to project 'alert but relaxed', but Samara was doing so effortlessly. Kaidan had to mentally shake off the tension he felt, the ominous feeling that he was walking into the lion's den. He tried to remind himself that, so long as they played their parts well, they would be safe.
As they followed the path toward the mansion, the air suddenly cooled to a surprisingly reasonable temperature. Kaidan looked up and saw that there was a sun-shade of some kind suspended over the property, dimming and diffusing the sunlight ever so slightly. A stiff artificial breeze blew toward the house from openings at the foot of the boundary wall; the breeze was pleasantly drier than Daleri's natural humidity.
Kaidan and Samara looked at each other, Kaidan with eyebrows raised in surprise and Samara with indifference. "I wasn't expecting the outdoor climate control," Kaidan said. "This has gotta be a serious energy investment."
Samara pointed to a flower bed, the flowers erupting in unfamiliar shapes and patterns of color. "Those are Thessian bluehorns," she said, pointing to one of the varieties. "They are native to Thessia's southern temperate zone. I doubt they could bear the heat of Daleri's natural climate."
"This all seems rather… opulent," Kaidan said.
"Indeed," Samara said. "But the opulence is concealed behind a privacy wall. I do not know if humans have similar customs, but among asari such shows of wealth are considered tawdry by those born into families of longstanding wealth. Based on the mixed signs, I would guess that Lady Mirala was born into her wealth, but that her mother had a more humble origin."
They continued to follow the path of stones, finally arriving at the house itself. It was made of the same blue-white ceramic as asari skyscrapers, cast into shapes that reminded Kaidan of a Greek temple, but with a rounded arched roof.
The door opened, and an asari appeared in the outer doorway, dressed in white robes with a golden sash around her waist. "Welcome," she said. "I am Pelina, an acolyte of Mistress Mirala. If you'll just step inside, I'll show you to her."
Samara nodded politely. "Thank you, Pelina."
The two of them followed Pelina into the house's airlock. After it cycled, all three removed their breathers and Pelina led them through a maze of rooms, occasionally passing other acolytes dressed in the same way as Pelina. They eventually came to a drawing room, where an older asari was seated in a regal chair, wearing a black-and-gold ensemble and attended to by three acolytes standing behind her at a respectful distance. The figure in the regal chair, clearly Mirala, stood up. Pelina made a flourish and then left the room.
Samara bowed her head slightly. "Lady Mirala, I thank you for meeting with us."
"No, esteemed justicar, I thank you for your patience," Mirala said, returning the slight bow. "May I offer you refreshments?" she asked, indicating a tea set on the table.
"Thank you, but I must decline."
Mirala indicated the sofa before them, then returned to her own seat. She picked up her teacup and sipped. "Does the day find you well?" she asked.
"It does, and I hope the same is true for you," Samara said as she and Kaidan sat down.
"Oh, today has found me quite well," she said. "Though I wonder what brings a justicar to our humble city."
"A matter of some concern," she replied. "Major Alenko and I have been investigating rumors of Reaper activity in the area."
"That is a matter for concern," Mirala said. "These would be the hostile faction that's been in the news of late?"
"The same," Samara said. "Just this morning we discovered one of their facilities. It had been abandoned, unfortunately, but we learned much nonetheless."
"How fortuitous," she said with a strange intonation. "I hope your investigation goes well."
"Thank you," she said.
Kaidan raised his hand. "Pardon me, but I'm curious: why go by 'Mistress Mirala' instead of 'Matriarch Mirala'? I hope it's not rude of me to point it out, but you're clearly of matriarchal age."
"It is not rude, honored Spectre," Mirala said. "Among asari, age is a marker of grace and wisdom. To be mistaken for a matriarch would be a high compliment. However, you make no mistake: I am indeed of matriarchal age. I style myself 'Mistress' instead of 'Matriarch' because I prefer a life of relative seclusion and privacy. I spend my days with my acolytes, contemplating the wonders of the universe. Are you familiar with our religion, siari?"
"I know the basics," he said. "You believe that the universe itself is conscious, and that individuals are merely fragments of that consciousness."
"Indeed," she said. "The universe desires to understand itself, and so it has broken itself into fragments that can be more easily understood. We contemplate the relationships between ourselves and the other pieces of the universe, and in doing so we enhance our understanding of the universe, and thus of ourselves."
"And how does one go about contemplating such things?" Kaidan asked.
"Near the center of the house, I have a telescope and a holographic planetarium. I show the acolytes the beauty of the universe, then we consider the relationships between stars and nebulae and the variety of life that springs up from within them. Perhaps you could join us in this evening's contemplations?"
"Where does charity fit into this?" Kaidan asked.
"I'm… sorry?" Mirala asked, confused. "I don't follow."
"What the Major means to ask is," Samara began, "have you spent time among those without homes and offered to feed, clothe, and shelter them?"
"I have been known to do so, yes," Mirala said. "Many of my acolytes were formerly those unfortunate enough to live on the streets."
"I am sorry for the need to ask this," Samara began, "but have you ever used melding to alter their minds?"
"Rarely, and only with permission," Mirala said, a hint of indignation creeping into her voice. "What is this about?"
"We recently met a homeless asari named Tayna," Kaidan said. "We wanted to ask her some follow-up questions about the Reapers, but she disappeared. We were afraid she'd been kidnapped for speaking to us, so we searched for her. When we found her, she was coming to see you. Samara said she seemed to be under a mental compulsion, one that only a skilled asari could have placed on her. We asked her who had placed the compulsion on her, but she was evasive."
"She did, however, provide us with your address," Samara finished. "You have been a most gracious host, and I would be much grieved to learn that you were responsible."
Mirala was speechless for a moment. "Well, I assure you," she said softly, "I may have offered this Tayna a benediction, but I would never knowingly place a compulsion on someone. Such mental compulsions cannot create faith, and I only want acolytes who are faithful." The last word was said with a quiet intensity.
"Okay," Kaidan said. "I'm sorry we had to bring that up. I have one last question for you: have you seen or heard about any Reaper activity here on Niacal?"
Mirala shook her head, relaxing a bit. "I'm afraid not, Spectre."
"May we speak to your acolytes, then?" Samara asked. "Perhaps they have seen something that you have not."
"I very much doubt that," Mirala said, "but I see no reason to deny you. It is their choice."
"Then we would speak to them now," Samara said, standing up.
Saturday, August 18th, 2187 (afternoon) — 22:48 Daleri local time
Raindrops and a crash of thunder reverberated throughout the house.
"Okay. By any chance, were you awake between the hours of 34:00 and 09:00 this morning?" Kaidan asked.
The acolyte tilted her head, remembering. "For some of it," she said.
"And did you happen to look at the sky at all during that timeframe?" he asked.
She shook her head. "No, I was getting ready for sleep."
"Well, those are all the questions I had for you, so thank you for your time," he added.
"I'm happy I could oblige," she said. "Please let me know if I can assist you in any other way."
Kaidan turned to Samara and lifted his chin to acknowledge her. "I think we've spoken to enough of the acolytes," he said.
"Agreed," Samara said. "Pelina?"
"Yes, esteemed justicar?" Pelina asked.
"We are ready to be shown the way out."
"Certainly," Pelina said. She walked Kaidan and Samara back through the maze of rooms to the house's airlock, where they donned their breathers and stepped inside.
"Thank you for your time, Pelina," Kaidan said.
"And give our thanks to your mistress," Samara added.
"I will, thank you," Pelina said as she shut the airlock.
Kaidan used his omnitool to signal for Steve. The airlock cycled, and the two of them stepped out onto the mansion's sumptuous grounds. Rain was falling and hitting the sun-shade… but the sun-shade must have been porous, because a gentle drizzle was passing through the material upon the plants below. They followed the stone path back to the property's gate, which opened for them to leave.
Neither spoke a word as the raindrops fell on them. Kaidan could feel the eyes and ears of the surveillance devices that were doubtlessly trained on them.
They arrived at the LZ, where Steve was already waiting for them. As they boarded the shuttle, they still said nothing.
Finally, the shuttle doors closed behind them. "What do you think?" Kaidan asked.
"I am no longer convinced that Mirala is the Ardat-Yakshi," Samara said. "Her followers were loyal but not fanatical, and there were no major inconsistencies between their answers and Mirala's."
"I'm not so sure," Kaidan said. "Do you remember when you told Mirala about this morning's mission?"
"Yes?" she acknowledged hesitantly.
"I don't like the way she reacted," Kaidan said. "Here, I'll play it back." Kaidan tapped his omnitool, and the snippet of conversation replayed:
"Just this morning we discovered one of their facilities," Samara said. "It had been abandoned, unfortunately, but we learned much nonetheless."
"How fortuitous," Mirala said with a strange intonation. "I hope your investigation goes well."
"It sounded to me like she was surprised that we learned anything while we were there," Kaidan said. "She shouldn't have had an opinion at all. She's involved."
"That is not much to go on," Samara chided. "What of her acolytes?"
"What, the acolyte situation didn't feel weird to you?" Kaidan asked. "The whole thing felt hinky to me."
"I cannot deny the atmosphere," Samara said, frowning. "However, the acolytes seemed to form a fairly banal religious order, not an Ardat-Yakshi cult. As I already said, I saw none of the frenzied zealousness that thralls would display. Mirala hinted that she had placed the compulsion on Tayna by accident while giving her a benediction, and based on the evidence I am inclined to believe her."
"Fine, they weren't Ardat-Yakshi thralls," Kaidan said. "But I'm pretty sure they were indoctrinated."
Samara tilted her head slightly to the side. "What makes you say so?" she asked.
"I… can't quite put my finger on it," admitted Kaidan. "It's something about how they were too damn cheerful. And all in the same way." He shook his head. "Yeah, Shepard mentioned to me before that people in late-stage indoctrination start to share one another's thoughts and memories. The acolytes' answers were too consistent with one another. People are supposed to misremember things, and when you ask two people they're supposed to misremember in two different ways."
Samara considered that. "You have more experience with indoctrination than I do. Perhaps you are right."
"I think what we really need, is to rope in Shepard himself. The ordeal with Dr. Kenson, the scientists' video logs on the derelict Reaper… Shepard's the one with the first-hand experience."
The huntress aimed the listening device at the shuttle, but all she could hear in her headphones was a pink noise hiss. She grunted in frustration.
"Talon, status report."
"Talon here. Unable to acquire LOS. It's the damn rain, it's interfering with the beam."
"Very well. Come inside before you're spotted. Out."
Mistress Mirala stood impassively in the communications room, watching.
"Very well. Come inside before you're spotted. Out," the comms operative said into her headset.
"Operative Ciele," Mirala said.
"Yes, mistress?" the comms operative asked.
"Put the word out: the time for playing games is over. I want the hit squad ready by tomorrow to take out that damn Spectre and his pet justicar."
"Yes, mistress."