Chapter 26

While Captain Nimmel had been more than willing to accept the refugees of what had been the Tonbay, word was quickly passed on from both the Iktomi and High Command with a "better" idea. Which was why the Iwo Jima was now back-tracking the Iktomi's flight path towards the quarian homeworld of Rannoch.

Marshall understood there was a practical reason for the change in plans. The Iktomi was a fairly crowded ship to begin with, and not really suited for children. While they were attempting to construct a Needlepoint Drive of their own with the designs provided to them, it would take far more time for the ten quarian refugees to find some semblance of stability with the Iktomi than if the Iwo Jima took them home.

But Marshall knew the primary reason was a political one. News of the fate of the Tonbay was no doubt already being disseminated among the quarian people. Having their recent allies be the ones to triumphantly deliver the children to their ancestral homeworld would put a face on their rescuers and deliver a strong message that they were not the same as the criminals on Eden Prime.

On top of that, the selfish part of Marshall was annoyed that they were going the exact opposite direction that they were supposed to be going. Even if the delay only amounted to a handful of days, that was a handful of days that kept him from finishing the Iwo Jima's assigned mission, and him returning home to his own daughter.

That reminded him that he hadn't spoken to her since the entire Eden Prime fiasco started. Looking over to the empty seat next to him, and remembering that Smoke had asked to be excused but cryptically answering when asked why, he figured whatever it was couldn't be that important that he couldn't return to the bridge while Marshall checked in back home.

Initial queries to the commander's comm got no reply, suggesting that Smoke had turned it off. Now suspicious that Smoke had decided to take the opportunity to confirm his namesake, Marshall activated the VI. "Where is Commander Takei currently?"

"Commander Takei is in the Conference Room, with our quarian guests." Kelsey VI trilled happily.

Mental images of Smoke trying to teach young children how to properly light a bowl filled Marshall's thoughts, and if that proved to be the case, Marshall wanted to be one to discover it and summarily show Smoke another hazardous environment to try and survive in... vacuum conditions without a pressurized suit.

"Chipper, you have the bridge for the time being. I shouldn't be long." Marshall said, standing up, and towards the aft of the command deck.

He nearly ran down two petty officers with his swift walking pace, not even slowing down as they pressed themselves against the sides of the hall, avoiding even the slightest bit of eye contact. They already knew that when the captain looked that determined, someone was in deep shit, and that the best place to be was anywhere else.

The door was locked, but a quick override with his authority changed that. Smoke was already waiting right on the other side as the door slid open. Marshall instantly demanded, "Smoke, what in the..."

The commander interrupted with a hush and an index finger to his lips. He then gestured Marshall to enter and silently observe the scene. The ten refugees were either sitting or standing on one half of the table, watching, listening, and occasionally even laughing along with the projection of the young girl on the table.

Kelsey.

"What is going on here?" Marshall asked quietly

"I had been talking to Jonas last night, and between the two of us, we kinda came up with the idea of letting these kids talk with a human more their age; something to help them discover that we aren't all horrible monsters that are gonna lock them in a cage." Smoke answered. "We both decided that Kelsey was a good choice. She's a smart girl, and has a knack for handling troubled minds."

"And neither of you thought including her father on this decision might be prudent?"

Smoke looked at Marshall with regret. "You seemed... on edge... after the mission. It seemed like a good idea to let you cool off before thrusting this entire tragedy on you again."

"How much background did you give her?"

"That these kids had been held prisoner and that they've lost pretty much all the family they've ever known. Didn't want to tell her much more than that, although they've offered quite a bit on their own accord." Smoke cringed. "Some of the specifics were pretty intense... I tried to interject once, but your girl gave me an evil eye that she must have inherited from her mother. Uncanny, I tell you. She made it quite clear that I was gonna do no such thing, and that I was going to sit down in this corner and be good."

Marshall shook his head, chuckling in spite of himself. "How many times have I told you, Smoke; you give Kelsey a centimeter, and she's going to take a kilo?"

Smoke rubbed his forehead. "I know... and I never listen."

However, as Marshall observed the meeting, it seemed like Jonas and Smoke had stumbled onto a very good idea. The quarians looked genuinely... at ease... something that Marshall knew was not at all common among imprisoned children. They were actually happy to be talking with his daughter, and said girl was playing right to her audience.

"I don't know much of anything about Rannoch," Kelsey said, her tone bright and cheery, and astonishingly genuine in its tone even though Marshall knew it was intentional. "But I do know it has to be a lot bigger than anywhere you had been forced in before! You'll be able to run and play and have fun!"

"I don't feel much like having fun though." One of the seated children said despondently. The poor girl couldn't have been much past her toddler phase. Barely old enough to even know she was alive, and thrown out into a very big galaxy pretty much all by herself, a daunting task for someone from a normal life, much less from the background of what amounted to livestock.

"And you won't." Kelsey admitted. "Not right away. Some of you will take longer than others. And that's okay. But I believe you all will." Her inflection turned sad herself. "When... when my mommy died... I could feel it. I mean, literally feel it. Deep in my heart. It hurt so much. It felt like I'd never smile again."

Marshall could feel the memories bubbling up, and he forced them back. Now was not the time. He wasn't ready to face them. Not now. Maybe not ever.

Smoke seemed to agree, seeing the distress cross Marshall's face. "Hey. Don't start going there." The commander warned.

Marshall glared daggers at Smoke. He was trying not to, damn it.

But where Smoke's warning started dragging his mind away from that loss, Kelsey's next words finished the job. "But I did. It wasn't right away, and it wasn't all at once. But with each day, it got a little easier to smile... to laugh... to have fun... to live. And it will be the same for all of you. You want to know why?"

A chorus of quarian voices asked, "Why?"

"Because when you give up on living, when you surrender to sadness, everything that was done to bring you to this point, to bring you home, will mean nothing. By making you sad and unhappy, that's how the mean people who did those terrible things to you win. Even after they are long gone, if you give up on happiness, they win. That's what my daddy taught me. And I won't let my hurt win, and I don't think you will either."

Marshall shook his head in awe. "When did my daughter become smarter than me?"

Smoke scoffed. "Hell, she came outta Alice smarter than you." Giving a glance at his omni-tool to check the time, he added, "I suppose I should probably start wrapping this up. Kelsey's actually supposed to be in class right now."

Marshall put a restraining hand on Smoke's shoulder, and said, "Let them have all the time they need. Captain's orders."

"Okay." Smoke confirmed as Marshall turned about, and returned to the bridge, reminded that sometimes good things can come even out of the worst scenarios.

Later that night, Marshall looked over the response he had received from High Command, much of it expected, and some of it not quite so. There really wasn't any more holding back at this point, Dani needed to know what had been determined, if she didn't know already.

"Lieutenant Dani'Arah, are you available?" He asked through the comm.

Dani's response was surprisingly fast. "Yes, sir. Do you need me?"

"I do. Meet me in my quarters."

"Aye aye, sir."

Not even two minutes later, a beep at his door told him she had arrived. "It's unlocked."

The quarian navigator entered, and Marshall gestured to the corner of his bed as he spun his chair about from the desk. Dani complied, taking a seat as Marshall gathered a very deep breath. This was not going to be easy.

"I wanted to wait to tell you what Khull and I had found in the Processing section of the Tonbay facility when High Command could confirm it. I was nigh certain as it was, but I wanted to hold out hope that it wasn't how it looked."

Marshall finally activated his omni-tool, displaying an image he had recorded from one of the pods in Processing. Dani's hand flew to her mouth in dismay. "Is that..."

"It looks like a quarian husk." Marshall confirmed. "The technology I was able to scan was also confirmed to at least be similar to Reaper design and operation."

"Keelah..." Dani whimpered. "Why?"

"We don't know." Marshall answered. "We're not even sure where they got operational Reaper tech or the means to replicate facsimiles. But one thing that really worries me, and High Command, is that if they remain true to Reaper processes... husks were what they make out of the rejects. And if that is the case, that means the 'pure' quarians they were breeding were going somewhere else... for a purpose I really don't want to contemplate."

Dani's breathless whisper carried that same conclusion, "You don't think..."

"I don't even want to go there. Neither does High Command." Marshall said, reaching behind him to grab the data pad on his desk. "I wanted to show this to you in case you didn't get the news from Rannoch yet."

Dani's brows furrowed in curiosity as she took the pad, and started to read it's contents, the tears welling up as she did so.

Two months ago, we learned we were, graciously, not alone in this galaxy after all.

Two days ago, we learned that we weren't the last bastion of humanity in the galaxy.

One day ago, we learned that we in fact were.

The inhabitants of Eden Prime are no longer what we would consider "human;" as they tossed aside any claim to the common decency towards fellow life that the people of Nimea consider sacrosanct. The crimes they have committed to our newfound allies are unconscionable, intolerable, barbaric, cruel, monstrous, and any other malevolent adjective I could use to describe them.

We will do more than stand by our quarian allies as they face the dark reality of the fate of their people on Eden Prime. We shall stand and lead the charge against the criminals responsible. It is with that determination that we announce our unilateral and unanimous declaration of war against Eden Prime. Our efforts towards expanding our interstellar fleet will be doubled with our goal set; nothing but due justice delivered to those responsible for the atrocities committed on our allies. We even have the backing and support of our Sedin brothers in this mission, even the Consulate of our sister nation troubled and disturbed by the nature of the maliciousness of the "humans" of Eden Prime.

Our planet stands united for the first time in nearly a century, united by a common foe, and soon... very soon... the monsters of Eden Prime will learn the peril of angering the might of Reticuli. To the people of Reticuli Prime; may our valor shine where the light of humanity has failed, and to our quarian friends; you are not forgotten, you are not alone.

We stand with you. We stand for you. And together, we will stand victorious.

Thank you, and God bless.

"That was from the press conference the Prime Minister held this afternoon. They're fairly empty words at this point, honestly." Marshall said with a wry smile. "It will be at least another six months before Nimea Military Forces has retrofitted or constructed enough ships to justifiably call an interstellar fleet. But make no mistake, Dani, the next visitors Eden Prime receives will arrive with the full intent to pound that entire forsaken planet into glass." He then noticed Dani's state, and said, "Dani? Are you okay?"

The quarian was now outright crying, the tears dropping onto her uniform slacks. She welcomed Marshall's comforting hand on her shoulder, and returned the data pad. "My people... have been used to being alone. Even before The Pulse, the quarians were largely outcasts, distrusted, shunned... our flotilla was rarely welcome, our pilgrims barely tolerated even in the best of times... the knowledge that my people were even part of a greater galactic community was so long ago it felt like it never really happened."

"So, I'm sorry, Captain, for behaving this way." She continued, wiping her face with her sleeve. "It's been so long since the quarians have had allies... to know that we now do is a little overwhelming. I probably should collect my wits." Standing, she asked, "Is there anything else you need?"

"Not at the moment." Marshall answered, but as Dani took two steps, he said, "Actually... there is."

The quarian stopped and turned around, now obviously nervous. "Oh?"

"I really don't want to have this talk right now, but I think we have to." Marshall declared, now disapproving. "We really have to talk about your behavior and actions on the field. This isn't the first time you've run off and done your own thing, breaking position and wandering off on your own."

"I am... sorry, Captain." She stammered. "I... I'm really not used to squad maneuvers. I... never really had to do it much."

"Yeah, I dismissed it initially for that same reason." Marshall replied smugly. "But the more I thought about it, the more it didn't add up."

"W... what do you mean?"

"Every time you 'wandered off', we discovered something. Like a body of a Cerberus researcher, or living geth platforms... or living quarians." Marshall tapped his omni-tool, displaying a graph that Dani did not recognize. "Each time just before you ran off, the Iwo Jima logged you accessing our communications, and sending off information towards the Iktomi. You then disappeared, or attempted to, shortly after receiving a reply. It was very cleverly encoded... and encrypted... and compressed in size so that it didn't immediately draw much attention."

At this point, the tears were dry on Dani's face, her expression stern, yet she remained silent.

Marshall took it as a sign to continue. "Then on Eden Prime, I find you largely unhurt, the bodies of roughly twenty Eden Prime soldiers littered around you, which in and of itself would be impressive, even more so considering that when I found you, you weren't exactly in the most defensible position I've ever seen."

"Your point, Captain?" Dani asked coldly.

Marshall slid over to Dani's left side. "The point is that your actions, and your results, are consistent with a fairly seasoned combat veteran. But the dossier I was given from Captain Nimmel doesn't exactly match what I have observed. But you want to know something funny? You wouldn't be the only one on this ship whose personnel file doesn't exactly match their true experience."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Mine and Commander Takei's are the same way."

Dani straighted, and refused to make eye contact, instead looking straight ahead. "I wouldn't know anything about that, sir."

"Of course you wouldn't." Marshall said knowingly. "You're dismissed, Lieutenant."

Dani saluted sharply, still refusing to make eye contact, turning about to her right to avoid doing so. She made a quick exit, momentarily startled as she nearly ran into Smoke three strides past the door, swiftly side-stepping him and continued her retreat as Smoke took her place in Marshall's quarters as the captain sat down at his desk again.

"So, am I right in assuming you just confronted Miss Dani'Arah about the... inconsistencies in her dossier?"

"Yep. I'm not sure if the quarians have a direct correlation to our Black Ops, but whatever their closest analogue is, I'd bet credits on Dani being one of their number."

"Is that going to be a problem?" Smoke asked.

Marshall shook his head. "Nah. Do you honestly think Nimea would give the quarians our full dossier if one of us were to serve on a quarian ship?" He tapped his fingers on his desk thoughtfully, "I'm sure there's a nice big story behind why Captain Nimmel wanted her here, and I doubt it's anything malicious towards us. I'll keep an eye on her, just in case, but I don't think she'll be a problem."

After another moment's thought, he added, "In a way, it's actually quite handy to know that she's seen her share of fighting, especially someone who knows how to keep quiet about it. I suspect we'll find her addition to be more a blessing than anything else when all is said and done."