Letterbomb.
When she got back to the Citadel, with Morinth begrudgingly accompanying her, she had not informed how she had been 'cured'. Samantha immediately greeted her as the door opened into the apartment, looking slightly panicked.
"What is it?" She said immediately.
"Well, your wife is on the QEC. She's rather panicky about your absence." Samantha said, her eyes skimming around Georgia, she was clearly hiding something.
"And?" Georgia pressed, trying to worm the final bit of information out of her recently promoted assistant.
"She's not alone, Hackett and Councillor Osba are with her, plus there's this." Samantha handed her a datapad, with another message from Miranda. "I got it this morning, whereas she wanted to see you since midday." Georgia quickly read the message, walking over to the wall and leaning against it.
Dear Georgia,
The baby's been kicking and punching quite frequently, she's got your temperament. Orianna has been begging for me to end this embargo, but I've been updated about the decommissioning work, and that you are essentially trapped on the Citadel, how I envy you.
But on to the main matter, I hear you are picking up a gathering of Normandy crew-members-to-be, please contact me and I'll have the final say, otherwise you'll build up a harem and it would ruin our tight-knit family already established.
Also, the next woman for your 'timetable' is a woman of considerable intelligence and strength, only truly comfortable on the Normandy.
Yours
Miranda
xXx.
Georgia smiled at the first few sentences, then realised the uphill struggle she'd have convincing Miranda to accept select members of the people wanting to join the crew. But her 'riddle' was not so tricky to crack, Tali'zorah Vas Normandy loved the ship, and it was a second home away from Rannoch.
Georgia stirred herself out of the thought and followed Samantha to a small room, deep in the apartment, that she hadn't been in, which was solely occupied by a QEC, which currently displayed Hackett, Osba and Miranda, supported by Orianna at her side.
"Greetings General" was the greeting given by Hackett and Osba in unison, Miranda smiled and blew a kiss to her wife.
"Is there a reason for this meeting?" Georgia asked quickly, after saluting her commanding officer.
"We want a summary of your meeting with Leviathan, and the Commander here has informed us of new crew members for your ship, which may need to be rectified with us." Osba said quickly, gesturing at Miranda when he mentioned her.
"That and the recent 'press conference' you held without warning to us" Hackett said sternly, like a disapproving parent.
"Well the press conference went smoothly, excluding ms Jilani's usual pig-headed idiocy" Georgia began, her fist clenching at the name. "And was a result of being jumped by the press the day before."
"We have seen the footage, what became of Ms Jilani?" Osba asked.
"She's serving a stint as payment for the grievances she has caused in the past" Georgia said simply, not really wanting to go into detail with such aristocratic guests, but she saw Hackett momentarily smirk at the thought.
"We'll trust in your judgement general, there isn't anyone she held a problem with more than you" Hackett said quickly before Miranda or Dominic could press the situation further. "Who are these other people wishing to join the Normandy?" He asked, changing the subject, she saw Miranda shift her posture, readying herself for the worst.
"I'll start with Diana Allers" Georgia said, "she's been unemployed for some time and wishes to be my PR manager," Hackett raised an eyebrow. "But there's a catch with her joining." Georgia hesitated.
"What?" Miranda growled.
"She won't join without her assistant, someone we have experience with my dear." Georgia paused again, knowing Miranda would react badly.
"Who?" Miranda said, Orianna braced herself, knowing something bad was coming their way.
"Tela Vasir, the former Spectre" Georgia said, she saw Miranda's fists clench and Hackett's eyes widen slightly.
"I thought she died years ago, when we took down the Shadow Broker" Miranda snarled, Orianna tried to comfort her enraged sister, but with little success, "how the bloody hell did she survive?"
"An old Asari hunting trick of feigning death" Georgia said simply, she saw Miranda tremble with rage. "And before you ask, Liara hasn't met her yet; she's been too busy with intelligence matters." She phrased it like this as Osba and the Council were unaware that Liara was the Shadow Broker.
"They're okay with me" Hackett said and Osba nodded, "though Miss Vasir will need to pass security clearance first, the Normandy may be decommissioned, but she's still a valuable symbol to the Alliance." Georgia and Miranda nodded.
"And I'll want a word with her and Liara as well, to clear the air as it were" Miranda said, an edge to her voice.
"Next, Ms Jilani, though not in any official capacity or willingly, she'll need to join the crew to fulfil her sentence, with minimum security clearance." Georgia said, the three others nodded their agreement immediately, not really needing to discuss it.
"The most recent is Morinth" Georgia said quickly, the other three tensed.
"Samara's Ardat-Yakshi daughter?" Miranda exclaimed. "Why does she want to join?"
"She's too dangerous, she could influence and kill the crew one by one, we cannot allow her to…" Hackett said, but Georgia interrupted.
"As I'll explain in a minute, her power to kill is gone, we used Ms Jilani as a test subject, and she's firmly under Samara's control, but if she poses a threat I will not hesitate to kill her." Georgia quickly said, alleviating some of their concern.
"Anyone else?" Orianna asked, sitting her sister down after a moment.
"Not that springs to mind, on to the matter with Leviathan then?" Georgia said, and the others nodded to answer her question. "Well, myself, Samara and Liara went to the meeting at the tip of Legion ward, it was held in my mind, and Leviathan represented itself with the form of The Illusive Man." Hackett and Miranda tensed at the name.
"Why him?" Dominic asked quickly.
"Random selection it said, and refused to change, but considering what it revealed, I felt it a rather apt choice." Georgia smirked, which was not shared by the others. "Right, it said that the planet did predate the Reapers, and that the 'power' it held was that of its ancestors which shaped the galaxy." Georgia summarised, and the others looked dumbfounded.
"The power of its ancestors? In that little band?" Orianna asked, pointing at her metal arm. "Sorry, Miranda told me about it one night." She blushed at the reveal.
"Essentially it's a 'god' artefact" Georgia said quickly, "with the power to shape the galaxy as the wielder sees fit." Miranda went pale, Hackett raise a hand to his chin and pondered, and Georgia could tell Dominic had paled significantly. "But I'm not a god" she quickly said, "There's stages to it apparently." Dominic off to one side and turned to face them.
"I'm sorry but a Council session has been called, I will require a report on my desk as soon as possible" he said rather quickly, he then bowed and left, uttering a quick 'good day.'
"Please explain these stages General, and how long until you're 'god-hood' begins?" Hackett asked.
"Its not so much stages, as the artefact has to power up" Georgia said twiddling her fingers.
"How?" Miranda quickly pressed.
"By me, making 'wishes' or something like that, eight of them to reach full power" Georgia looked down at her wife's feet with embarrassment.
"And how many have you used?" Miranda quickly asked, her concern etched in her voice.
"Four when I spoke to Leviathan, now its five down, three to go." Georgia said weakly.
"What was the fifth?" Hackett asked.
"Curing Morinth's curse upon a plan I had to test Leviathan's claims." Georgia said, feeling stupid as she said it.
"And the other four?" Miranda asked like a doting mother scalding a child for misbehaving.
"I'm not sure, healing Samantha's fingers, which she burned when she touched the band, making Samara rebuild the Justicar order, and healing Tela partially the other one I'm not sure of." Georgia said, looking from one to the other.
"Then how do you know you are at five?" Hackett asked.
"Each time the band has gotten brighter, and I've noted it getting brighter five times." Georgia explained, Hackett's look of concern was etched on his face.
"What did Leviathan say about you having the band?" Miranda asked, Georgia didn't want to go over it, knowing the others would argue the same argument she had made with Leviathan, but she complied.
"It said it was my destiny to assume the god position that my entire life had led up to it" Georgia said deflated. She saw their eyes widen in surprise and shock.
"What did it use to justify this claim?" Hackett asked quickly.
"The fact I've always been the one person to save the galaxy, that I came back from death, and avoided it when it should have claimed me at the end of the Reaper war. As well as claiming I was descended from greatness." Georgia summarised, Miranda held her head in her hands and Hackett didn't move from his pondering look.
"You came back thanks to the Lazarus Project, science, not magic brought you back" Miranda insisted, "but true you should have died at the end of the war, that I'll give it, but the descended from greatness is nonsense."
"We chose you to be the one to save the galaxy" Hackett added, "you didn't take the role willingly, in fact you complained about the appointment after the Reapers attacked Earth if I recall." Georgia blushed. "Is there a way to stop this metamorphosis?"
"Leviathan didn't say, it want is to happen." Georgia said sulkily. "If there is a way, it isn't going to say."
"Who else knows of this?" Hackett asked quickly as someone handed him a datapad.
"Us, Liara, Samara, Leviathan and probably EDI." Georgia replied quickly.
"Then that's where it stops, we do not want this information getting public, it could cause a galactic incident." Hackett said, "All who know must be sworn to secrecy and no one else must be told until they are sworn in as well." Miranda nodded as Orianna swore not to tell anyone.
"I'll retrieve the others and get them to swear to secrecy" Georgia said quickly, "anything else?" Hackett shook his head and quickly left with his usual 'Hackett out.'
"This matter worries me" Miranda said when Hackett had left.
"How so?" Georgia asked.
"Are there drawbacks, side effects, effects to those around you?" Miranda asked standing up slowly.
"It didn't say" Georgia said bluntly. "It did say I could share power if it got too much, and I assume I'll have the weight of the galaxy on my shoulders to worry about."
"I need time to take this in, I'll be in touch" Miranda said, "I love you, and miss you so much." Miranda blew a kiss and vanished, leaving Georgia alone in an empty and quiet room.
What was she going to do? She thought, the matter was weighing heavily on her mind.
-AN-
I will add the scene between Tali and Georgia at a later date, but for the moment, the story will jump ahead by a month.