"Is running still an option?" I laughed nervously as she continued to glare at our approaching forms.

"We refuse to converse with other life forms," she stated darkly as I hid behind Garrus.

He turned to me questionably as I shrugged.

"She scares me," I told him honestly as he shook his head in bewilderment before turning back to the asari.

"Why is that?" Jane asked, crossing her arms at her.

"We shall not be tricked again" she replied as distant groaning gave us pause.

"Jane…" I raised my voice in caution, searching for the source.

"What happened?" Jane interrogated her.

"We conversed with the life form, Saren, who sought knowledge of the past. We made a…trade," she explained as Jane motioned to continue.

"We traded knowledge: the knowledge of the past for the knowledge of the present, until Saren tried to destroy us" she continued before her eyes turned pitch-black.

"And now another seeks to harm us" she told us as distant shots echoed around the large circular chamber.

"Well, we found her" Garrus mumbled as the shots came closer.

"We were wrong to converse with life forms. We won't make the same mistake," the asari said as I turned just in time to see her grab Jane's neck and lift her into the air before her body was surrounded in biotics as she threw Jane into the wall, creating a crack in the wall.

Out of fear and protection, I tackled the asari onto the ground before shoving her across the floor and over the edge as I cautiously looked to see her flailing body dive into the depths below the plant.

I turned and jogged to Jane's side, adrenaline making me ignore the pain in my body.

"Are you okay?" I asked, grabbing her hand and pulling her onto her feet.

"Peachy" she coughed as the shots from before became louder as well as the groaning.

Suddenly, Miranda's body came into view as a mass of those things charged after her.

"Miranda!" I screamed in fear and surprise.

"Quick! While they're after me, destroy that plant!" she yelled as she ran past us along with the horde.

"Why is she risking herself for us?" Garrus asked confused.

"She's not stupid, and I doubt she's that selfless. She probably has what she needs and needed an escape route" Jane explained as I turned to her, confused.

"She couldn't have picked a safer one?" I watched Jane as she walked towards the plant.

"Probably didn't have a choice," Jane yelled from a distance as she search the higher levels before turning back to us.

"Okay, it looks like its 'roots' are attached to the walls around the building. If we find a way to destroy them, gravity can do the rest" Jane explained her strategy before wincing as she lowered her arms.

"Are you sure your okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine" she bit out as she began to head up the nearby staircase.

"When do you think they will be back?" I asked the group.

"Talking about them summons them y'know" Jane called over her shoulder.

"Let's just focus on the plant," Garrus added as we continued to ascend before a disturbingly familiar noise sounded below us.

"That was the plant again wasn't it?" I whined, peering over the edge of the stairs.

"You don't think it can clone asari, do you?" I asked, worriedly.

"I doubt it" Jane tried to assure us but it didn't stop us as we increased our pace.

"Look, there's another one" I nodded at the red-veined, bulging sac tied to the wall with a long red arm hanging from it.

"Lovely" I mumbled as Jane shot at it, making it explode violently.

"Watch it!" I yelped, dodging to goo as it sprayed all around us while an ear-shattering screech emitted from the plant.

"Let's go, we're wasting-" Jane was shoved backwards into the wall again as the asari reappeared.

I shot at her with continuous fire, never releasing the trigger until it was too late.

The rifle had overheated.

"Bugger!" I swore before the asari turned to me.

"Bugger," I swore, as I got ready to dodge before a loud bang and flash before revealing a gaping hole in the asari's chest as she fell onto the floor.

"Let's kill this thing before she comes back" Garrus yelled, scanning the area over with his rifle.

"Right: I'll deal with the roots and you two stop the asari from killing me" Jane grunted her order as we jogged up the stairs and onto a different floor.

I looked over the edge and scanned the upper levels.

"Three more arms left, Jane," I informed her as an unnerving moan came from the lower levels.

"I think they're back" Garrus mumbled, peering over the edge.

"Let's hurry" Jane ordered as we moved on ahead, climbing over piles of rubble.

Suddenly, I screamed in agony as a rush of pain enveloped my head, followed by dizziness.

"Oh, not now" Jane growled as the moaning got louder.

"Okay, Plan B: Garrus, look after Lily and stop those monsters from touching her. We're going to run; we only stop for the sacs, understand?" I managed to make out Jane's order as we started to run through the facility.

"What about the asari?" Garrus asked Jane as we navigated the corridors.

"Run" she retold.

"Distract her if you need to but keep moving" Jane ordered before narrowly avoiding a biotic pulse.

"Grenades" I groaned, managing to keep up with Garrus as he pulled me along.

"Good idea" he replied, throwing on onto the ground as we continued to run, only flinching when the grenade went off.

"Arm!" Jane yelled as she took a shot at the sac, making it explode as we got soaked, but I was in too much pain to notice. A shriek followed from the plant, making me feel like my ears were bleeding.

Suddenly, the ground went out from under me as I was hoisted onto Garrus's shoulder.

"You okay?" he asked before throwing down another grenade.

"No" I groaned, gripping my head. Why know, of all times?

"Hang in there" he said, sliding over a rock barrier with grace.

"Lily, I can't stop: are there any enemies behind us?" he asked.

I slowly lifted my head to see a horde of scrambling masses of bodies tirelessly chasing after us; arms outstretched with a hungering look on their faces.

"A few" I mumbled as he threw another grenade onto the floor. I groaned, dropping my head as I tried to block out the noise.

"Arm!" Jane yelled again, sliding under it before shooting it and pushing off the ground again. This time, the shriek managed to break off rubble from the top of the room

Garrus did the more normal route of just ducking under the arm blocking any other route around, leaving a few of our friends behind for a while.

"Are we there yet?" I mumbled into his shoulder as he called the question over at Jane.

"Yep!" she screamed as she began firing at the last one, except it didn't explode.

"This might take awhile," she yelled, wavering slightly at the sight of the oncoming horde.

"Lily, I need you to shoot" Garrus said, putting me onto the floor as he quickly took out his assault rifle and shot at the few close-by enemies.

I took out my pistol and began firing from the ground since I didn't trust myself to stand.

I managed to hit a few of them before a blue form was starting to emerge.

"Garrus, she's here" I strangled out the warning before turning to Jane.

"Are you done?" I managed to growl.

"Almost" she yelled over.

I hissed in pain at the noise as I fueled my rage against the enemies.

Suddenly, I was forced back into the wall by a biotic as the helmet took most of the force away from my head, thank god.

I saw the image of those creatures running towards me as I remembered Lizbeth being eaten alive.

'So this is it then' I thought as I helplessly shot at the creatures before I was recovered in goo. I heard another shaking roar from the plant as I heard it plummet and the earth rumbling crash in the depths below.

Suddenly, the creatures dropped onto the floor lifelessly, along with the clone.

I gave a lopsided grin before slowly looking up to see another asari slowly walking towards me before I lost consciousness.

The images flashed through my head on constant replay, except they were distorted even more like something was manipulating them in my thoughts.

They were also a lot clearer, meaning they were a lot more gory and horrific than before, if that was possible.

Suddenly, I felt something in my mind. It filled my thoughts with fear and I didn't even know what it was. It was then that it spoke, like a whisper in the back of my mind.

We will end you

My eyes shot open as I chocked on air, propelling myself forward and managing to fall off something and land on the ground in a cold sweat,

"Lily!" Someone yelled as they flipped me around.

Doc scanned me over frantically as I breathed heavily, wrapping my hand gently around my throat as I hugged myself.

"Lily, it's me: Dr Chakwas. Do you know where you are?" she asked me as I scanned around the welcoming sight of the med bay.

I sighed happily, laying my head on the side of the bed.

"I was monitoring your brain activity when it increased dramatically. Are you feeling alright?" she asked me slowly as I dragged myself back onto the bed with Doc's assistance.

It was then that I noticed Kaidan sleeping in the bed next to me.

"He's resting while the painkillers set in," she explained as I turned to her to see another body behind her: Jane.

"Is she alright?" I asked concerned.

"She'll be fine but she'll need to rest for a few days. The asari did a lot of damage to her skeletal structure" Doc explained.

"What's happening to me, Doc?" I whimpered.

"I might be able to help" Liara's kind voice called behind me as I turned to see her smile at me.

"I was doing some research on the protheans' beacons and my personal knowledge, I might be able to explain the fainting" Liara continued, walking next to Doc.

"Nothing bad, I hope?" I asked, nervously.

"It might not even be the reason; this is just a theory mixed with speculation" she replied as she pulled out a data pad.

"According to various archaeological findings, they indicate that the protheans had a 'sixth sense', if you will. Like asari bonding, they can share information with each other. That's how they can communicate through the beacons" Liara began to explain.

"When you touched the beacon, you formed a link with the beacon and in turn anyone who had recently interacted with the beacon" she continued.

"You formed a weak bond with Saren. You can't share information but if you or him interact with a beacon, you share the experience of losing consciousness" Liara finished.

"So Saren has a beacon?" I asked.

"Like I said, its just speculation, but if it's right then yes, he has a beacon" Liara replied.

"Brilliant" I groaned, rubbing my forehead.

"The beacon probably has useful information. Finding the beacon could be helpful" Doc commented, checking up on Kaidan's vitals.

"We'll have to wait for information from either the Council or another source," Liara told me.

"Lieutenant?" Doc called as I look at her questionably.

"Jane must remain in the med bay until the treatment has finished. For now, according to regulations, you now control the ship" Doc explained as I sat their dazed by the pile of information I've just be given in a matter of minutes.

Suddenly, the door clicked open, revealing Shiva.

"I apologize for leaving your side. It won't happen again" Shiva sounded panicked for some reason.

"It's okay, Shiva" I told her as she floated next to me.

"For now, I'm at your service" she added before showing a hologram of Tali, Wrex and Garrus.

"I'd suggest gaining the crew's loyalty while Commander Shepard is indisposed" Shiva spoke more calmly now before shutting down the hologram.

"I will, Shiva. Thank you for the suggestion" I nodded before a wave of fatigue hit me.

"Rest, Lily. You've had a busy day and Jane can fill you in on the rest of the mission later" Doc suggested as Shiva offered her assistance to care for us.

I relaxed back into my bed, my eyes drooping before finally closing as I drifted off into a more comfortable sleep.

Dream of the Past - Earth; Tower Bridge

I sat with my legs hanging over the edge of Tower Bridge as I watched the slug, the target that barely managed to flee, float along the Thames.

"Well?" he smirked, holding the rifle over his shoulder as I glared away from him before sighing helplessly.

"What do you want to know?" I asked him, turning to face him.

"Where is he?" he asked bluntly, making me sigh.

"I'm not telling you that," I mumbled, turning away from him as he walked over to sit next to me.

"You promised," he argued, placing the rifle next to him.

"I promised information" I retorted, leaning back on my arms as I watched him.

"Okay then" he said, imitating my position as I battle thoughts in my head.

'Should I? Jason will kill me if he finds out'

'He won't find out and if he loves you, he wouldn't suspect you'

'Does he? Even so, I did make a promise'

"I'll give you the time and location of our next smuggling operation. It will be heavily guarded" I sighed as he nodded in approval. I opened my Omni-tool and sent co-ordinates and time placement to his own, which immediately lit up.

He opened it and, after checking, nodded and closed it.

"I'll organize a raid. I promise I won't hurt any of the crew," he told me as I chuckled humorlessly.

"You got the info, you don't need to pretend like you'll care which target you pick" I pushed myself off the ground as he did the same, turning to face me.

"I won't touch them," he stated as I brushed past him.

"We'll see" was all I said as I re-entered the car.

He got in the other side and, taking a quick glance at me, started the car and drove off into the traffic below.

We sat in comfortable silence when we drove through the traffic as I watched the flying lights dazzle me in the midnight sky.

"Will you be at the raid?" Garrus suddenly asked me, breaking my focus.

"Of course, me and my sister help him organize our operations" I told him honestly before I froze stiff.

'Please tell me he didn't hear that?' I thought as I waited for him to speak.

"So you know where his other operations will take place? Interesting," he mumbled the ending as I swore in my head.

'I relax for a few seconds and then tell him a very good reason to keep in touch with me and probe me for more information. Brilliant' I glared at myself as I turned back to look out the window before gasping loudly.

"Stop the car!" I hissed as he slowed to a halt, parking next to the park a few blocks away from my house.

"What?" he asked confused as I mumbled 'no, no, no' over and over. Outside my apartment block was my sister and Jason arguing.

"Listen, I need you to trust me here. I need you to handcuff me and get me to Jane. Pretend I've done another offense or something" I begged him as he looked at Jane and Jason.

"Scared to interrupt them?" he asked me, looking at me questionably.

"You could say that" I sighed as I watched him pull out a pair of handcuffs.

"Thank you" I smiled gratefully, completely forgetting that he was the turian trying to arrest my boyfriend and was instead a turian willing to help someone in need.

Unfortunately, this makes me a damsel in distress.

Jane

"What makes you think I know where she is?" I glared at the filth in front of me, the same guy who pays me and he's also the one dating my sister. If you can't guess:

I'm not happy.

"She's your sister! You, of all people, should know!" he yelled at me, becoming more and more inpatient.

"She went to see you, that's all I know!" I yelled back, becoming more and more irritated before sighing, trying to relax myself.

"Have you rung her mobile?" I asked him as he began to pace slowly in front of me.

"She's not answering," he mumbled, stopping in front of me as he took a moment of silence.

He had the basic look: messy black hair like what you'd find on a male model; forest green eyes; a light tan and a small, dark blue, crystal earring in his right ear. He was also very muscular, with a large sword tattoo on his back, according to Lily.

He wore a large dark brown hoodie, which was completely covered in dirt and loose-fitting, dark blue denim jeans along with large brown boots.

"I told you, I'm 17!"

I jump at the sudden noise before looking to see Lily struggling against the turian from before.

"Oh brilliant" I groaned, gaining Jason's attention.

"And I told you, I don't buy it. I'm only letting you go because it's a minor offense" he retorted as he led her to the doorstep.

"Who the hell are you?" Jason glared threateningly at the turian as I rolled my eyes, holding him back.

"Don't mind him, he's just a cop looking for Jason Trent" I explained casually, which immediately shut him up.

"Heard he doesn't like people getting into his business" he narrowed his eyes at Garrus.

"Doesn't have a choice" the turian shrugged before unlocking the handcuffs and pushed Lily gently to us.

"If I catch you again," he threatened as Lily chuckled.

"I'll run" she smirked. His mandibles twitched before he left and headed back to his car.

Lily yawned loudly before jogging inside.

"Well, I'm tired. I'll see you guys later" she rushed as she nearly slammed the door.

"We can discuss the plans tomorrow" I told him as I followed Lily inside.

I jogged up the stairs and into our apartment, just managing to catch Lily before she went into her room.

"What the hell happened?" I yelled at her, shutting the door behind me.

"I'll explain tomorrow, Jane, I promise. I'm just drained right now," she whimpered, doing the puppy dogface.

'Goddamn' I thought as I gave in, waving her off.

"Fine, get some sleep. You'll need it for the operation tomorrow" I told her as she froze in the doorway.

"You okay?" I asked her, concerned as she shook herself back to life.

"Yeah, I'm good" she quickly replied as she shut her door.

I eyed her door for a few seconds before going back to the TV. I don't know what's wrong with her but I'll bet on it that it's because of the turian, whatever the hell his name is.