A/N: This chapter come with good and bad news. The bad news is that my ambition has far outstripped my capabilities. Due to an inundation of problems and issues from the dreaded Real Life I will not be able to wrap the story up by the end of March. The new ETA is early to mid April(most likely mid). This particular chapter was also a particular devil to write but in the end I felt happy with the outcome. The plot contains some mild profanity and some darkness but nothing too drastic. In this chapter Shepard pursues her lost love in an effort to find her or some closure. By the end of her journey she quite literally loses herself. Making an appearance within this chapter are Tela Vasir, Senni, Archon and of course the Shadow Broker. That said read, enjoy, and please leave a review.
Chapter XXXV: The Shadows That Cloud Our Path
The after effects of Shepard's dose of stimulants were unpleasant to say the least. As she sat there her reality began to disintegrate into fractured visions of the past and present. It was immensely difficult for her to keep them all straight. Movement was completely out of the question. At one point Ashley appeared though Shepard had a hard time distinguishing whether or not it was a vision or reality. She was saying something and shaking Shepard bodily but Shepard could barely hear anything. Minutes or hours later Shepard heard two people arguing. Eventually someone took pity on her and pumped her full of more sedatives and painkillers. The blackness was a blessing.
...
While total oblivion seemed to initially be a blessing as her mind recovered she eventually felt as though she was drowning in it. With a gasp she shot bolt upright in her bed. The world around her was that of her quarters back on the Voice of Memory. Sira's presence was back in Shepard's mind reassuring her of the reality of her current surroundings. Shepard was tempted to dismiss everything that had happened to her as bad dream. The memories were almost too painful for her to bear. The fear that she had felt on Horizon had been superseded by a deep gnawing sense of loss. Liara had been Shepard's one solid support throughout her new life. The prospect that she was now dead was simply unbearable. Part of Shepard wished that she had actually died on Horizon at the hands of the Collectors rather than be left to face that prospect. As the thoughts assailed her sobs of grief began to wrack her body. She was glad that she was alone with her grief and away from the prying eyes of her crew.
Contrary to outward appearances Shepard was deeply cynical and deeply pessimistic. She was also fiercely loyal to her crew and when she did fall in love she fell hard and deeply. In the end she was still human and the loss almost broke her. It was only her inherent stubbornness that eventually saved her. She clung desperately to the prospect that Liara might still be alive and that desperation and stubbornness meant that she was prepared to do what ever it took to find her again. From that moment on nothing else seemed to matter.
Her emotions exhausted Shepard composed herself as best she could and hauled herself out of her bed. She dressed and headed for the bridge. Her wounds had mostly healed over her week long convalescence but the impact of the burns had left parts of her cybernetic endoskeleton exposed. For some reason the wounds had yet to heal. It was as though they were a reflection of the wounds to Shepard's soul.
When she reached the bridge she was surprised to find it deserted save for the avatars of Sira and Nemesis.
"Emma." Sira greeted hesitantly.
"Thank you Sira." Shepard replied with a genuine gratitude. "Thank you for saving me."
"I cannot take complete credit. Nemesis helped me." Sira explained.
"Then thank you Nemesis."
"We were not about to allow you to die Shepard." Nemesis retorted. "You do know what this means don't you?"
"What?" Shepard asked tiredly.
"We are approaching the moment of truth. Soon you will have to journey into dark space and bring an end to the rest of my kind. Now that they have identified you as a threat you will never know peace in this galaxy until you are dead or they are."
Shepard shook her head, her ire rising. "One thing comes before all that. I have to find Liara, dead or alive." She stated fiercely.
"Liara is a weakness. For her abduction to have this kind of effect on you means that the Reapers have truly found the right form of leverage." Nemesis reasoned. "It is better that you abandon her now. For you to succeed in your mission you must leave all distractions behind you."
"I can't do that." Shepard replied softly. "I can't just let her go."
"You must Emma." Nemesis cautioned urgently. "The end that she meets now is a thousand times more merciful than the one she will meet should you save her."
"You know something don't you?" Shepard realized her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
"We can aid you in finding her and the asari Councillor or at least the ship that they were on. It was how we found you." Nemesis confessed.
"Then we can find her again!" Shepard sighed, the relief audible in her voice.
"Shepard we entreat you to abandon this foolhardy quest. Rescuing Liara will only doom her." Nemesis almost begged. "What the Reapers will do to her if they know that she is important to you will break you beyond repair and in doing so allow them to win."
"I am breaking now." Shepard spat back. "I will hear no more of this madness. You will help me!"
"You'll come to wish that I never had." Nemesis replied with a hint of regret before disappearing.
As Shepard glanced about her she realized that there should have been at least some of her crew on the bridge. Sira took pity on her and explained.
"I had to leave the crew behind." Sira reported.
"You abandoned them?" Shepard asked, knowing full well that for the ship to be deserted meant that Sira had gone out of her way to lure the organics away. "Why?"
"That was the cost of getting you back Emma." Sira replied sadly. "Nemesis came to me at the beginning of your abduction with a way to find you. The catch was that only its two chosen organics could accompany you on this journey. Everyone else was a liability or so it said."
"I can guess who it let you take." Shepard said with a sigh. "We see now but through a glass darkly."
"You aren't angry with what I have done?" Sira asked in disbelief.
"How can I fault you for doing exactly what I would have done in your place?" Shepard asked. "Now I'm forced down the same path as you. I have to accept its help without knowing the cost down the road."
"It seems the future becomes darker by the minute." Sira remarked morosely.
Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Morinth and Oriana, Nemesis' unlikely followers. Morinth was her usual poised self, totally above the current crisis. Oriana on the other hand appeared nervous and out of her depth. The two were also glaring at each other as they entered. Their arrival had apparently interrupted some sort of argument. Morinth turned her gaze to Shepard expectantly and ignored Oriana who did much the same thing.
"I suspect that you two are responsible for my extraction from Horizon." Shepard stated. "I would like to get a full rundown exactly what happened before we leave this system."
"I will leave that to Oriana since she seems to have all the right answers and instead see to our preparations for departure." Morinth answered frostily, shooting Oriana a predatory look. As Morinth stalked off to the navigation station Shepard turned an expectant gaze on Oriana.
"I don't trust her." Oriana exclaimed in irritation. "I don't like the way she does things or that casual attitude she has towards life."
"The first time I met her she nearly killed me." Shepard replied conversationally. "Even though Nemesis may have changed her I still think some of those attitudes towards life and death persist."
"And where do I fit into this mess?" Oriana asked plaintively. "I thought we had things under control and then suddenly I have this compulsion to return to the ship that I can't really explain."
"Nemesis made you come on this expedition?" Shepard asked, her suspicions rising once more.
"No." Oriana confessed. "Once I knew what was at stake I came on the mission of my own free will. It explained what had happened and why it was necessary that the others be left behind. I didn't like it but it did make sense."
"And why was that?"
"Nemesis is worried that if you can be abducted off of the Citadel, from the Citadel tower no less, then everyone could be a potential saboteur. The only way to be sure that our mission wouldn't be compromised by a sleeper agent was to leave them behind. Strangely enough I think Nemesis actually cares what happens to you."
"I get that sense too but only so long as I follow its agenda." Shepard agreed.
"It isn't that. I think it actually respects you. It's just a feeling but I can't shake it." Oriana clarified before continuing with her report. "Anyway we were able to escape the Citadel despite the fact that everyone was up in arms trying to stop us. Miri will be absolutely beside herself."
"She'll probably hold me responsible." Shepard laughed. "Again."
"Probably." Oriana replied with a smirk savouring the brief moment of levity. "As I was saying we left for Horizon. By the time we got here the Collectors were already planetside. Nemesis was furious when it saw them. I thought it was going to rip the Collector ship apart by itself but it stopped as soon as they left the atmosphere. Then Morinth told me that it was time and we left for the planet. When we arrived there were several colonists milling around. They seemed dazed but even more strangely they blamed us for what had happened. Morinth just ignored them. She said they were unimportant. It didn't end up taking us very long to find you but getting you of the planet was another story."
"I remember Ashley being there." Shepard recalled as she sifted through her memories of the incident.
"So that was her name. She was pretty incensed when we got there and told us if we came any closer she would shoot us. She claimed that we were Reaper agents which I suppose we are. Morinth was all for just killing her and getting you out of there. I made sure to remind Morinth that you wouldn't have approved of that and that our mission was to rescue you, not kill random people. She just stared at me and then asked if I had a better plan. I tried to talk Ashley down. I told her that we were your shipmates and that we were here to evacuate you. She didn't believe me but at least she didn't shoot me. While we were talking Morinth suddenly shows up behind Ashley and puts her out." Oriana shuddered at the memory. "She was so graceful. One minute she was behind me the next she was behind Ashley. Just a quick touch and Ashley collapses. It was shocking. We just left her there and grabbed you. You were pretty out of it. You had this glassy look in your eyes when we found you. I thought you were already dead to tell the truth. Anyway we got you back here and headed for deep space. We've been here ever since."
"Well for what its worth I'm glad that you were there to reign in Morinth's destructive tendencies."
Oriana gave her a weak smile in response which only reinforced Shepard's feeling that Oriana was having a hard time coping with her new life. Despite this Shepard had the feeling that, like her sister, Oriana would be able to overcome her worries and actually thrive in it. Shepard gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder and a warm smile before turning her attention to Morinth.
"We are in formation with Nemesis." Morinth reported without looking at Shepard or Oriana. "You should know that this journey will be long and dangerous."
...
Morinth hadn't lied to them for once. The journey took them the better part of another week. With every day Shepard's hopes dimmed a bit more. On the second day they had crossed into Turian space without bothering to inform anyone of their entrance. The days since had consisted of following a seemingly random trail interspersed with terrifying and frustrating run-ins with Turian patrols. The week was beginning to take its toll on Shepard as well. Still tired from the Horizon incident the long hours of duty that had been required of her had exhausted her even more. She spoke less and less to now tiny crew and spent more and more time alone staring out into the night.
The break finally came when Shepard had chosen to snatch a few minutes of rest and was consequently away from the bridge. The two dreadnaughts had dropped from FTL into a remote system in Turian space. The region of space's only attractive features was a deep blue hued nebula and a single reddish star. A series of planets circled the star but they were of little interest to the two ships. What did interest them was the burning wreck of a Turian cruiser caught in a decaying orbit around one of the planets. As the vessels approached, their prey showed little sign of life.
Shepard's first image of the cruiser was what she saw as she stumbled from the elevator onto the bridge. She was barely awake but what she saw chilled her bones. The jagged rents in the vessel's hull showed that it had been in combat recently while the burning engine assemblies indicated that there was a good chance that it might explode from a reactor breach at any moment. There seemed little doubt that there were no survivors and with odds like that most captains would be unwilling to risk their ships on a fool's errand like attempting a rescue. Shepard on the other hand was risking everything on what Nemesis had already termed a fool's errand. One more risk was just par for the course. As soon as she had overcome her initial shock Shepard was barking out orders to bring the ship into dock with the damaged vessel. One way or another she would have an answer to the question that had occupied her mind for the past week.
With the docking complete Morinth and Oriana joined Shepard at the airlock. Her two companions looked worried about what they were about to face and rightly so given the dangers. They had registered an oxygen environment on the other side but all three were wearing fully sealed suits against a possible hull-breach.
The moment they entered the Turian ship they were assaulted by a wall of smoke and flame. Shepard's experience as a spacer had led her to expect just such a conflagration and she reacted instinctively by hurling a salvo of fire suppressant grenades at the wall of flame. The grenades did their work well in smothering the blaze with a quantity of fire suppressing foam. The obstacle cleared the team picked their way into the charred remains of the ship's bridge. Everyone was silent as they took in the devastation. Most of the consoles were charred beyond use but Morinth was able to locate a single semi-intact interface and call up a status report. It appeared that most of the ship had been opened to the vacuum and that the ship's engine core was gradually building to detonation. They would be lucky if the core lasted another ten minutes. Shepard wordlessly gestured for the team to fan out to see what they could find. For her part she headed aft.
As she reached what remained of the crew quarters she noticed the tell tale impacts of small arms fire. The ship had been boarded she realized. The realization led her to the dual questions of who and why but the more pressing concern of completing her sweep overrode her worries. Hauling aside the wrecked remains of a pressure door she crawled into the captain's quarters. The room looked nothing like the last time she had been there. The artefact had been shattered by what appeared to be a shaped charge. The rest of the room had been burnt to a crisp.
As she turned to leave she found herself confronting what was likely the ship's only survivor: the turian officer. He was holding a pistol pointed in her general direction but didn't look capable of actually hitting her. His face was covered in blood and bruises giving him a demonic appearance while his face was torn between a snarl of anger and a rictus of agony.
"Shepard." He gurgled. "We knew you would be here. The gods said I had one last duty to perform before I could go to their side. I see their power now."
"Where was that power when you were attacked?" Shepard snarled.
"Unbelievers always doubt." The turian coughed. "Our plans may not have worked this time but you can be made to serve them whether you want to or not."
"I tire of your ranting. Tell me where Liara is and I'll send you back to your gods." Shepard growled her hand edging towards her own pistol.
"You will not have to listen much longer." The turian replied, his voice barely above a whisper. "The one who has your lover and the councillor is the Shadow Broker. He betrayed us. You will be our instrument of vengeance whether you like it or not."
Before Shepard could make a move the turian pressed his pistol to his skull and depressed the trigger. Shepard could only stare open mouthed at the entire event. In truth she had planned to kill the Reaper agent herself but the suddenness with which he ended his own life took her aback. The zealotry with which the indoctrinated followed their masters' orders had shocked her once again.
Oriana appeared moments later her helmet obscuring her expression. It took a moment for Shepard to realize that she was talking to her.
"We need to go! Now!" Oriana was yelling. "The ship is about to blow!"
The two made a hasty exit and crawled through the wreck back to the airlock. Morinth was there waiting for them. It didn't take long for them get back aboard the Voice of Memory and away from the turian ship. The trio had just reunited on the bridge just as the cruiser's reactor went critical consuming the ship in a miniature nova. As the fire began to dissipate Shepard felt her hopes die with it. Her last lead concerning Liara's location had gone up in smoking, literally. Now she was left attempting to find the most illusive information broker in the galaxy.
"So does anyone have any idea what we do now?" Shepard asked, her voice unstable.
"I have been exploring alternatives with Nemesis in case this plan fails." Sira interjected. "Since the Shadow Broker has always been a potential target we have been able to target one of his primary contacts in Citadel space. The contact is a Spectre named Vasir who has on numerous occasions made use of Shadow Broker intelligence. She is not above misusing her position to provide the Shadow Broker with the odd bit of intelligence or the occasional hit."
"It seems like they don't make clean Spectres anymore." Shepard remarked. "What was her last known location?"
"We have her most recent position localized to Illium. Unfortunately we have no way of actually locating her on Illium." Sira concluded.
"Alright, we have a lead. I want a course to Illium. In the meantime we crack whatever databases we can to get any and all information concerning Vasir, the Shadow Broker, and the Spectre's operations with the Shadow Broker. With any luck we'll be able to find some sort of connection which will tell us where she is."
Morinth let out a derisive snort but set to work. Oriana looked like she was about to say something but appeared to think better of it and instead gave Shepard a quick nod. Shepard turned her attention to her station and the virtual mound of reports that Sira had compiled for her to peruse on Vasir's movements.
...
By the time they had reached Illium Shepard considered herself an expert on Vasir. Better still she had angle for a getting at Vasir. As best as the three organics and two AIs could tell some very sensitive information about the Shadow Broker's location had fallen into the hands of some very indiscrete employees of Baria Frontiers. The two salarians had been so foolhardy as to actually contact the Spectres with the information. Of course the dossier and mission had ended up on Vasir's desk. All Shepard had to do was hope that Vasir hadn't killed the two contacts before she arrived on Illium.
Keeping both of the dreadnaughts out of range of the Illium planetary security grid took some doing but in the end was managed competently. Shepard's fancy piloting coupled with Sira's fabrication of a false transponder for the shuttle ensured that their arrival on Illium went smoothly. After Shepard had set the shuttle down on one of Illium's many landing platforms she hesitated for a moment before stepping on to the planet's surface. To her Illium held some of the best and worst memories of her life. As she stood on the shuttle's gangplank she was joined by Oriana. With a shiver of realization it struck Shepard that for Oriana Illium was the beginning of her whole odyssey. To her it was the debarkation point from ordinary everyday college student to a hybrid of human machine thrust onto the frontlines of a conflict that no one knew about or cared to know about.
"Brings back memories doesn't it Shepard?" Oriana asked whistfully as she stood looking out over the buildings of Illium.
"It does indeed." Shepard sighed.
"If you two are finished wasting your time with pointless reminiscence we have a mission to complete. Every minute we delay increases the chance of us losing our only lead." Morinth interrupted as she pushed by the two on the gangplank.
"She's right you know." Oriana conceded.
Shepard only nodded before following Morinth down the ramp. Their destination was the Baria Frontiers office which was the last known location of their two contacts and one of the most likely locations for Vasir to target. Prior to landing Shepard had already set up a meeting with the two salarians. She had claimed to be interested in the information about the Shadow Broker.
The party had just reached the garden plaza in front of the Dracon Trade Centre when the entire upper story belched out a geyser of angry looking reddish orange flame. The shockwave of the blast hit them moments later hurling the party away from the building in various directions. As Shepard shook her head to clear the ringing in her ears she cast about for Oriana and Morinth. Both appeared to have survived the blast uninjured which was more than could be said for those nearer the blast. Shepard was on her feet moments later sprinting towards the now burning building. With any luck Vasir would still be in the building.
Bashing the wreckage of the front door to the building out of her way Shepard made a beeline for the nearest set of stairs. Ascending the three flights was no challenge to her enhanced physiology but the rattle of gunfire was going to prove more problematic for her. Reaching the third floor and the Baria Frontiers Office Shepard nearly tripped over the corpse of the asari receptionist. The asari had been brutally gunned down with a dozen rounds to the back, evidently as she had been running for the exit. The combination of water from the emergency extinguishers, smoke from the fires which still burned and the fires themselves cast the entire floor in hellish mist. Having reached her destination Shepard proceeded more carefully. With her pistol out she gradually wound her way through the rubble choked hallways of the former office. While she had heard gunfire earlier she encountered no resistance on her journey to the salarian's office.
The door like many of the others she had encountered had fused solid in its supports from the heat of the explosion. Rather than attempting to find a way around Shepard slapped a shaped charge on the door and took cover. The charge did its work and moments later Shepard materialized in the smouldering hole sword in one hand in pistol in the other. The room's occupants were shocked to see her but not shocked enough to spare their captive salarian's life. The trio of white armoured mercs staring at her were irrelevant to Shepard. What had her sole focus was the single asari holding a smoking pistol over the corpse of a tiny looking salarian.
"Spectre Tela Vasir?" Shepard hissed clearly enunciating each word.
"Former Spectre Emma Shepard if I'm not mistaken." Vasir shot back unperturbed by the terrifying armoured apparition standing before her. "What brings you to the Dracon Trade Complex?"
Shepard's lips curled into a predatory smile. "You."
Vasir had the good sense to realize that the predatory smile coupled with the unstable glint in Shepard's eyes was the harbinger of something terrible. Throwing caution to the winds Vasir dove for a nearby window while at the same ordering her men to kill Shepard. As Vasir plunged out of the window she heard the screams of the Shadow Broker's mercs. Moments after landing with a biotic cushioned thump Vasir heard a second thump behind her. Turning to see what it was she was shocked to see a round white object sitting in front of her. She recognized it as one of her mercenaries' heads sans body. Looking up she saw the demonic apparition of Shepard come plunging out of the window in a glowing haze of biotics. Fear seized Vasir and she franticly ran for her skycar in an effort to escape the crazed woman behind her.
Shepard arrived in the middle of the Dracon Plaza in an explosion of biotic power that flattened several nearby bushes and left a small crater. Her biotics flared with a menacing intensity as she stalked towards Vasir. Only one thing seemed to matter to her and that was catching Vasir and extracting the information from her. As Vasir's skycar lifted off from Shepard channelled her biotics to seize the fleeing vehicle in a powerful mass effect field. What once had been impossible to an ordinary human biotic had been made possible through a combination of nanites and will. The skycar groaned under the invisible pressure of the mass effect field as it was dragged inexorably back to the landing pad. Suddenly and unexpectedly Shepard was knocked off her feet and sent sprawling on the pavement. With her concentration broken the mass effect popped out of existence allowing Vasir's car to flash away into the traffic of Illium. Shepard hauled herself to her feet her eyes alight with rage and her sword in hand. Seeing who had knocked her over caused her to start in surprise. Standing in front of her with her pistol drawn was Senni.
"You had better have a very good reason for letting her go Senni." Shepard growled as she slowly circled the other Spectre her sword grinding menacingly against the stone of the plaza. "I came here to capture Vasir but I might not be picky about which Spectre I extract information from. I'll bet that you've had dealings with the Shadow Broker too."
"Easy Shepard." Senni murmured the fear creeping into her voice. "I'm on your side."
"I'm still waiting for a reason Senni." Shepard whispered as she continued to circle.
"I'm running a signal trace on Vasir's communications. If I can couple the trace with the data from the salarians then I can find the Shadow Broker. Without both bits of information we can't find him." Senni explained, recovering her composure.
"For the moment I trust you Senni. For the moment." Shepard replied as she sheathed her sword and headed for one of the other skycars.
"Where are you going?" Senni asked.
"To get the disk from Vasir." Shepard replied over her shoulder. Shepard's comment caused Senni to spring into action as she ran towards the skycar. She was joined by Oriana and Morinth who had finally managed to catch up with Shepard's reckless advance.
As soon as the team was aboard Shepard opened the skycar's throttle and sent it hurtling into Illium's night sky. With Senni's help Shepard was soon hot on Vasir's trail. The two skycars wove through oncoming traffic both of their pilots unwilling to surrender the advantage to their rival. Vasir's luck ran out first as she grazed a long cargo hauler. She was sent spinning out of control into a nearby building. Shepard mirrored her course and brought her mostly undamaged vehicle in for landing close to the smouldering ruins of Vasir's skycar.
As soon as they had landed Shepard was on her feet sprinting towards Vasir's wrecked skycar. By the time that Shepard reached the car Vasir was long gone. Casting about in barely suppressed rage Shepard hunted for some clue as to where Vasir had gone. A trail of bluish indigo blood gave her an answer and Shepard was off once more. Eschewing the discreet approach Shepard simply crashed through the plate glass window of a nearby apartment. Ignoring the stunned occupants, an asari and a human man in a state of undress, Shepard picked up the blood trail once more and stalked through the apartment. She exited onto a rooftop plaza. Her eye caught a flash of movement similar to the blue armour that she had seen Vasir wearing. Vasir was attempting to escape as fast as her legs and wounded body would go. With a snarl Shepard ran after her leaving her companions behind once more. Barrelling through the occupants of a rooftop café Shepard was on Vasir in an instant. Throwing herself into the fleeing asari Shepard tackled her to the ground.
With a brief struggle Shepard came to rest securely atop Vasir. Vasir continued to squirm and struggle to get Shepard off her but eventually her struggles grew weaker from a combination of blood loss and Shepard's weight constraining her breathing. As Vasir calmed Shepard began her interrogation.
"I'm here for one reason Vasir. I want the Shadow Broker. You are going to give him to me. The only choice you have is whether or not I leave you breathing at the end." Shepard threatened in a deadly voice.
"Go screw yourself Shepard." Vasir spat back attempting to hide her fear in bluster.
"Not the best rejoinder when I'm the one on top Tela." Shepard purred enjoying the look of sudden shock in Vasir's eyes. "Now what's it going to be? We do things the long, slow, unpleasant way or we do things the quick and painless way. Choose."
"I can't tell you Shepard." Vasir responded her voice quivering slightly.
Shepard pulled her sword loose and examined the blade before posing her next question. "Can't or won't?"
Vasir shivered underneath her at the sight of the long blade. "He gave me good information. Information that saved lives..." Vasir blurted out.
"And the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Time's up Vasir." Shepard replied as she positioned the blade over Vasir's arm as though she was going to cut.
"Shepard stop!" Vasir begged. "I don't know where he is!"
"Then you aren't much use to me?" Shepard replied coldly as the blade edged toward Vasir's arm.
"I have the data from the Salarians." Vasir blurted out.
"Your corpse will still have the data." Shepard returned.
"Hagalaz! He's on Hagalaz!" Vasir sobbed.
"How do you know where he is?" Shepard asked her blade hovering millimetres from cutting into Vasir's arm.
"I traced him in case he ever double crossed me." Vasir confessed.
"I thought you were supposed to be tough Tela." Shepard mocked. "To think that you would give in to me like that. I think I should take you with me. Maybe make sure that you aren't lying. We can go through every memory in your head one at a time to make sure that you're telling the truth."
"I told you the truth." Vasir whimpered.
Shepard rose to her feet in a single fluid movement and hauled the wounded Spectre up with her. "You're still coming with me." Shepard promised direly she shoved the wounded Spectre towards Morinth.
"Take her back to the ship. Make sure she doesn't die." Shepard ordered ignoring Oriana's shocked expression.
Senni was far more vocal in her protest. "Tela Vasir is a council Spectre you can't just abduct her!"
Shepard rounded on Senni who instantly regretted her words. With a dangerous smile Shepard drew uncomfortably close to the other Spectre. Without a word Shepard moved to Senni's side and wound an arm around her. Shepard's hand had come to rest on the back of Senni's neck with a thinly veiled threat. Shepard turned her head to fact Senni.
"It looks like I'm not just abducting one Spectre but two." She replied with the hint of a smile.
...
Safely away from Illium and on course for Halagaz with two Spectres as her unwilling guests Shepard shook her head at the turn of fate. As nervous as she was about the upcoming mission to the Shadow Broker's base Shepard knew that there was nothing she could do to prepare. Over the course of her journey she had gone from elation to despair. She knew that she should have been appalled by her cold blooded, single-minded pursuit of Vasir but she couldn't muster up any emotion. Truth be told she was emotionally exhausted. Shepard had left navigation in Sira's capable hands and dragged her weary armour clad self off to her quarters.
An hour later she lay flopped on her sofa a robe loosely wrapped around her body with a half drunk bottle of Elysian Schnapps sitting on the nearby table. The alcohol had helped her to take the edge off her feelings and the edge off of her nearly twelve hour wait before going into combat again. Her eyes were clouded and unfocussed as her mind drifted back to memories of happier times. Her solitary musings in the dim light of her quarters were cut short by a soft footstep. As Shepard glanced up she realized that Senni had escaped her 'accommodation' and was now stalking towards her. Shepard had half expected Senni to escape and had as a result ordered Sira not to hinder her efforts. Senni paused as she drew nearer to Shepard taking in Shepard's weary state and realizing that the other woman was, in stark contrast to her earlier self, no threat.
"Emma?" Senni questioned, using Shepard's first name as though it would elicit a different response.
"Fancy meeting you in my quarters." Shepard responded sarcastically. "Something wrong with the ones I gave you?"
"Apart from having a locked door that I couldn't open, no." Senni responded glibly as she cautiously sat opposite Shepard. Shepard for her part casually filled a second glass of schnapps and ice and handed it to Senni.
"So I suspect you want to question me?" Shepard queried.
"It would be hard for me not to." Senni conceded. "I mean your ship abandoned your crew on the Citadel leaving only the Normandy. The Geth simply disappeared as though they had never been there. The council had to declare martial law on the Citadel after the Ferris Fields incident and in the middle of all this you and Councillor Tevos simply disappear. Something bizarre happened and no-one, not even the Councillors, know how to explain it."
"Lucky me." Shepard laughed before taking another sip of her drink.
"What's going on Shepard? Why are you after the Shadow Broker?"
"The far more interesting question is why you were after him." Shepard responded enigmatically.
"I was hunting him down to get information about the Councillor." Senni shot back. "I was doing my job."
"And I was hunting him down to actually rescue Councillor Tevos from him." Shepard replied mockingly before becoming serious. "The truth is that I could care less if the galaxy burned because Tevos was abducted. The Reapers took Liara and gave her to him," Shepard spat the last word. "Like she was just a bargaining chip to be traded. They gave her to him to be killed..." Shepard trailed off.
"You love her don't you?" Senni asked, the question seemed inadequate to both of them. "That's why you're doing this."
"I wish I could say that I had some high minded goal. I wish could say that I would do this for anyone but I can't." Shepard whispered. "They took the person I love and I realize that I would gladly let the galaxy burn if only to see her again. In the end I'm not any different than anyone else."
The two lapsed into silence after that.
...
The Voice of Memory arrived over Halagaz twelve hours later exactly as Sira had predicted. On the bridge Shepard considered the greyish green globe in front of her. Somewhere on that planet was Liara not to mention the Shadow Broker. She turned away from the view of the planet to her unwilling guest. Vasir had recovered somewhat from her ordeal at Shepard's hands. Shepard's mercy had a definite pragmatic bent as she had only treated the rogue Spectre's wounds to ensure that she hadn't died. To Vasir, in captivity, it would have seemed as though Shepard had ignored her during the entire trip. The truth had been far more sinister. Sira, on Shepard's orders, had saturated Vasir's cell with nanites. With every breath the captive Spectre took she ingested hundreds of the invisible machines. Mid way through the journey the nanites had gone to work reading through her memories without her even being aware of it. Shepard was now certain that Vasir had told her the truth about Halagaz and the Shadow Broker.
"So Tela, I trust your accommodations were satisfactory?" Shepard asked venomously as she surveyed her captive.
The manacled Spectre only snorted derisively in response. Shepard resumed her pacing around the Spectre, intent on keeping the asari off balance.
"I will be giving you one chance to prove to me that you are cooperating. Cooperate and I'll let you go on the next civilized planet we run across. Don't cooperate and I'll take you with me to stop the Collectors and after that into Dark Space. I don't think you would survive the first mission but if you did the horrors that await us in Dark Space don't bear talking about. Just so you know, I already know the answer to the question so this is more of a test of you than anything else." Shepard taunted as she reached the end of her circuit. She carefully studied Vasir's face as the asari weighed up Shepard's last statement. When Shepard was satisfied that she was sufficiently doubtful she asked the question.
"The Shadow Broker's ship, where on the planet is it?"
Vasir was silent, evidently still weighing up her options.
"Silence is the equivalent of not answering."
"His ship travels in a thin band of weather between the day side and the night side. The region is full of lightning storms. It makes him nearly undetectable with all the EM interference." Vasir conceded, hanging her head from the shame of having given in so easily. At Shepard's triumphant look Vasir couldn't help but ask her the question that had plagued her. "How did you know already?"
"I infected you with a colony of nanites. They read your memories while you were in my brig." Shepard answered returning her attention to Hagalaz.
"Why? Why ask then?" Vasir asked in confusion.
"You deserved a second chance despite being unworthy of it." Shepard answered cynically. "Prove to me that it was more than a wasted gesture on my part."
After escorting the Spectre back to her cell Shepard headed for the shuttle bay and her waiting team. The shuttle ride down to the planet became progressively rougher and more unsteady as they descended through the storm layer. By the time they reached the same level as the Shadow Broker's ship the shuttle's inertial dampers were having a hard time keeping the crew from being dashed against the inside of the shuttle. Shepard was having a hard time controlling the shuttle itself as the Shadow Broker's base drew into view. The vessel was massive, easily the size of an Alliance cruiser, it was festooned with grounding rods and cooling vanes.
"Shepard, the shuttle's autopilot will not be able to hold the ship in place while we board the Broker's ship. Someone will have to stay behind to keep the shuttle flying." Morinth reported.
"You just volunteered." Shepard replied icily.
"That will leave you with only Oriana to back you up." Morinth informed her.
"Thanks to you Oriana is all we have. You were the one to persuade me to leave Senni behind on the ship." Shepard retorted angrily.
"I'm right here!" Oriana shouted from her position in the passenger bay. "Don't talk about me like I'm baggage!"
"Hold the ship steady." Shepard ordered as she unstrapped herself. Morinth nodded as she took over the controls and drew the shuttle closer to the bow of the massive vessel.
Shepard headed towards the shuttle's ventral access hatch. Oriana joined her looking nervous in the set of armour that Nemesis had provided for her. Shepard motioned for Oriana to seal her helmet onto her head and did the same before opening the bottom hatch. The first thing the two heard was the howl of the wind below them. The view was of storm wracked clouds punctuated by the occasional flash and fork of lightning beneath them. The view soon changed to a relatively flat portion of hull as the shuttle wobbled its way over the bow of the other ship. Without a second thought Shepard dove out of the hatch knowing that she had a fifty/fifty chance of ending up on the hull. Oriana followed her a second later.
The two landed in close succession with a pair of thumps. As Shepard turned her gaze skyward she saw the black form of the shuttle climbing away from them. Doubtless Morinth was heading back to the ship. With a swift hand gesture Shepard waved Oriana forward as the two wound their way along the narrow companionways towards the rear of the vessel. The deck was unsurprisingly deserted given the fierceness of the storm. After climbing down one steep side of the ship the duo ran across their first resistance. A trio of mercs were sheltered from the storm in a small recessed area of the hull. The element of surprise was on Shepard's side as she threw herself at them with her sword in hand. Oriana didn't even get a shot off before the mercs were neatly dispatched. Wiping the blood off the weapon Shepard continued her trudge aft without a word.
The entrance to rear section of the vessel was an imposing blast door designed to resist any explosive that Shepard carried with her. While the designers of the door had counted on assailants using powerful explosives what they hadn't counted on was the shear quantity of explosives Shepard intended to use on the door. She had packed a compact satchel full of the most potent charges in Sira's arsenal before leaving. Oriana had remarked that she had enough explosives to take out a frigate by herself. Shepard had only replied that the door was liable to be, in her words, "a big mother" and might need quite a bit of persuading. Shepard busied herself rigging the explosives to the door as Oriana kept watch. Periodically small teams of mercenaries would appear from further aft and attack their position but they were usually driven off or wiped out to man by a combination of fire from Shepard and Oriana.
Just as Shepard had finished setting the charges - to her immense surprise - the door opened by itself. Just as surprised was the patrol of mercenaries standing on the other side. Their surprise was short lived as they were dispatched by a hail of SMG fire from Oriana. When Shepard turned to confront her Oriana just gave her a nervous laugh. Shepard just gave her a reassuring thumbs up before heading into the bowels of the ship.
The interior was drab, functional, and labyrinthine to the two invaders. Brief periods of combat punctuated the quest through the featureless corridors. As the two passed a security checkpoint Oriana quickly rushed over to bank of haptic displays. Shepard let out a sigh of irritation and followed her if only to keep her safe from harm. By the time she had reached her Oriana had already cracked the first several levels of encryption on the terminal. Shepard blinked in surprise at the young woman's proficiency. She had been sure that attempting to slice the Shadow Broker's security would be a waste of their time.
"I'm in." Oriana reported a moment later. "Apparently these enhancements that Nemesis gave me are useful for something after all."
"Well you don't see me arguing about your combat proficiency." Shepard replied as she scanned the corridor outside the office.
"The base is on full alert but the main barracks is two levels down. I've managed to lockdown the elevators but it won't be long before they're up here with us."
"Good news would be nice." Shepard shot back as another group of guards appeared and opened fire on their position.
"We're only a few hundred metres away from the operations centre. The Shadow Broker is in there." Oriana yelled over the rattle of gunfire.
"At last!" Shepard growled as she dispatched the last mercenary with a surge of biotics. Springing from cover Shepard sprinted for the set of doors down the hallway from the security station. As she reached them the doors opened obediently for her. Throwing caution to the winds Shepard continued her sprint until she found herself in the office of the Shadow Broker.
The creature that was staring at her expectantly was unlike anything she had ever seen. It was larger even than a Krogan and seemed to have just as bad a temperament. Oriana joined her a moment later and gasped as she took in the Shadow Broker as well. As Shepard cast her vision around the office she noticed that there several dozen mercenaries with their weapons trained on her. There was also a single mercenary holding a drell at gunpoint. Liara's memories supplied her with the name Feron. Of Liara there was no sign.
"Emma Shepard." The Shadow Broker rumbled in a deep commanding voice. "Drop your weapons or watch the drell die."
Shepard hesitated for a moment her hand tightening on the hilt of her sword and on the butt of her pistol. The Shadow Broker gave an imperceptible nod and a shot rang out before Shepard could even process what had happened. Feron fell to the ground, dead.
"Last warning." The Shadow Broker bellowed.
Taken aback with the speed with which events had unfolded Shepard reluctantly acquiesced to the Broker's order and lowered her weapons to the ground. With a sigh she pulled off her helmet.
"I see you can be reasonable. This will make things much easier." The Shadow Broker laughed. "Your lover didn't give in that easily."
"Where is she?" Shepard bit back her voice thick with emotion.
"Right behind you. Why don't you listen to her sing for you?" The Broker replied sadistically.
Shepard turned slowly not wanting to believe the evidence of her eyes. Liara was there strapped into what looked like an interface chair. Her face was bruised and her clothes were rags but that didn't seem to matter to Shepard. What had caught her gaze was the slack expression that graced Liara's face.
"She is very much still alive. Though whether or not she is still sane is debatable. Observe." The Shadow Broker added cruelly.
Liara went rigid as several thousand volts of electricity surged through her body. A loud scream punctuated the stillness. Shepard fought to keep herself from weeping openly.
"Your fate is inevitable Shepard. The Reapers will forgive me for stealing their prized councillor if I give them you instead." The Shadow Broker continued. Shepard was no longer listening, moving like an automaton she slowly walked towards Liara's now still form. Her mind slowly broke down as she drew nearer and nearer until all that remained was a deep, burning, need for revenge. She took Liara's still hand in her own and gradually wove her fingers in between those of her lover.
"I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry." Shepard whispered.
"Take them away. Her emotionalism is tiring to me." The Shadow Broker ordered coldly.
Two guards slowly advanced on Shepard's unmoving back. As they neared her a jagged shriek of metal echoed throughout the room. It was followed by another rending groan. The two guards turned to see what had caused the noise and realized that the walls of the room were wobbling unsteadily. Turning back towards Shepard they were horrified to see a blackish red corona of energy growing around her. Tendrils of reddish energy arced around her as she turned to face the Shadow Broker once more. Her face had gone from a mask of grief to a serene countenance. What was most shocking was the fact that the thousands of tiny patterns of nanites in her skin were now glowing brightly with the same reddish energy that surrounded her. Her eyes were a pair of deep reddish pits.
"It was a mistake taking away her anchor Shadow Broker." Shepard intoned in a melodious voice that was not her own. "It is shocking what these organics will agree to when they lose their hope. In fact our daughter begged for the honour of being our agent of vengeance."
"What are you?" The Shadow Broker gurgled in fear and surprise.
"We are the ones you betrayed. You thought that you were in control but you made one critical error in bringing her here." Archon continued. "You were also supposed to keep her asari in good condition. You have failed us."
"I can still kill you!" The Shadow Broker roared in rage brandishing his own assault rifle.
"You can try and you will fail." Archon laughed with a carefree ease before her eyes narrowed. "In the end you will die."
"Open fire!" The Shadow Broker bellowed.
To their credit the mercenaries opened fire on the now hovering eldritch form that had been Shepard. The warping corona of energy that enveloped her actually deflected several of the bullets back towards their owners while the rest flew harmlessly into the walls of the chamber. Flinging her hand outwards a series of tendrils of energy leapt from her fingers to incinerate several of the mercenaries. The warping effect of millions of biotic fields suddenly springing into existence in the middle of the crowd of mercenaries caused several to implode and explode under the tremendous pressure. With another gesture a section of hull was peeled back like a sardine can and another dozen mercenaries were carelessly flung into the maelstrom of Halagaz's upper atmosphere. With another casual gesture the rent in the hull was closed once more. Soon the only living beings in the room were Archon, Oriana and the Shadow Broker.
Shepard's lips curled into an eerie smile as she cocked her head at the Shadow Broker. The creature continued to fire its useless weapon at her invincible form. With the greatest of ease Archon used her biotics to yank the weapon from the Broker's hands before lifting the creature from the ground. With a single gesture she flung the helpless broker into the power conduit that had been feeding into Liara's chair. She ruthlessly held the creature down with her biotics as it was subject to the wrath of the storm outside. Oriana had to turn her head away at the harsh vengeance that was being meted out.
Eventually the room was silent once more. As Oriana turned back towards where Shepard had been she was horrified to find Shepard's form a millimetre away from her staring intently into her eyes.
"And what should I do with you young Oriana?" Archon questioned musically with a maniacal lack of concern. "Should I let you live? Should I take you away to the Collectors to fulfill your destiny? Should I leave you to remain Nemesis' lover or should I kill you now?"
"Release her!" Oriana ordered in a voice that was considerably more brave than she felt.
"Why should we?" Archon asked. "She doesn't want to let us go. We love her."
"She embraced you out of grief. It isn't fair and it isn't real." Oriana argued.
"Perhaps you speak the truth." Archon conceded, the energy surrounding her wavered. "But what do I have to live for anymore." Shepard asked.
"Maybe Liara is still alive?" Oriana suggested hopefully.
Shepard paused to consider what Oriana had said before floating gently back towards Liara and settling back onto her feet. After letting out a sigh of relief Oriana joined her. Shepard was in the middle of gently caressing Liara's features with a forlorn look in her eyes.
"So much time together and yet in the end it is over in the blink of an eye." Shepard said wonderingly, a single tear trickled down her cheek.
Oriana ignored her distraught companion and quickly felt for a pulse while silently praying that Liara was still alive. She almost fell backwards when she found a weak but persistent pulse. Looking more closely she could see Liara taking a ragged breath. Shepard saw it as well.
"She's still alive!" Oriana gasped.
With a snap of energy the power that had surrounded Shepard flashed out of existence. Shepard wavered unsteadily on her feet as though drunk, her face had returned to normal once more.
"Still alive." Shepard murmured "Can't cheat the Reaper for ever."
With those two statements Shepard crumpled to the ground with a soft sigh. Oriana let out a sigh of relief before letting out a groan of irritation. She gently hauled Shepard's comatose form over towards the Broker's desk and with an effort flopped her down onto to the tabletop. Shepard had survived her ordeal but it had rendered her totally inert. She was barely even breathing. Oriana quickly jogged back to Liara and set to work freeing her from the chair. Doing a quick medi-scan Oriana was shocked at the amount of punishment the diminutive asari had suffered. Feeling that it was somehow proper Oriana gently picked up Liara and carried her over to the immense desk. She gently set her down next to Shepard's form. While they weren't aware of it at least they were together again.
Oriana's contemplation was shattered by a burst of radio chatter from the console behind the desk. The first voice was joined by a second, both demanding orders and an update from the Shadow Broker. Oriana hesitantly stepped towards the console as more voices began to clamour for instruction. As she neared the console she felt Nemesis' presence in her head.
"You have reached your goal Oriana." Nemesis informed her. "Open the transmission relay and tell them that everything is alright. Ask for a summary of their operations and then close the relay. Become what you were meant to be Oriana."
Oriana was in shock. The prospect that Nemesis had been guiding her towards this moment all the while without her knowing terrified her. All the same she couldn't deny the irresistible urge to do what it said and become someone important. She had wanted to make a meaningful contribution to fighting the Reapers and saving her people. Now she was confronted with the best opportunity to do exactly that. Doubts banished Oriana Lawson touched the control panel.
"This is the Shadow Broker. The situation is under control. We experienced a momentary power fluctuation. We are now back online. Resume standard operations. Status reports from all units are due within the next solar day. Shadow Broker out."