The shuttle touched down on Menae, at one of the few points not thronged with husks. The husks scrambled to remedy this. Shepard, Liara, and Vega disembarked quickly, and Lieutenant Cortez took off immediately. The husks proved no match for Liara's singularities and Shepard's novas, falling rapidly.

"Halt!" A turian soldier rounded a corner and pointed his rifle at Shepard. "This is a turian military facility."

What, the whole moon? thought James.

"State your business here, human," demanded the soldier.

Vega started to raise his own weapon, but Shepard cut him off with a hand signal. "Name's Shepard. I'm a Spectre," she said. "Maybe you've heard of me?"

"We know perfectly well who you are, Commander," replied the soldier. "What are you doing on Menae?"

"Spectre business," replied Shepard. "If you'd be kind enough to direct me to your commanding officer, I'm sure we can work this out. Maybe even without pointing guns at each other."

The soldier's mandibles flared in anger. "Turn right at that boulder, head straight. You can't miss the camp. I'll radio them, but if they don't like your explanation, they will arrest you." He holstered his rifle.

The group followed his directions. "That's a real warm welcome," muttered Vega once they were out of earshot.

"Human-turian relations are not in the best state right now," replied Liara. "Probably wise not to strain them any further."

"Their house, their rules," added Shepard.

They arrived at the turian camp. The guards leered at them but did not raise their weapons. A turian clad in black and red armor approached. "Commander, General Corinthus." His tone was even, but from her experience with Garrus, Shepard could read barely-concealed anger on his face.

"General," replied Shepard. "This is Lieutenant James Vega, and Dr. Liara T'Soni."

"I hope you'll excuse my men," said Corinthus, leading them to a temporary structure with a map of the region. "We were told a Spectre was inbound, but we didn't know it would be you."

"Smuggling primarchs off-world is somewhat difficult," said Liara, "unless one has an IES-equipped ship such as the Normandy."

"The Normandy is not entirely unique, but that no longer matters," replied Corinthus. "What does matter is that you're late."

Shepard exchanged a confused look with Liara. "We got here as quickly as possible," said Shepard.

"Which wasn't fast enough," said Corinthus. "Primarch Fedorian was killed about an hour ago, by sniper fire from a Cerberus agent."

"Say what?" said Vega. "You're telling me Cerberus landed a ship on this rock and you didn't catch them?"

"We were otherwise occupied," replied Corinthus dryly, nodding in the general direction of a reaper destroyer several hundred kilometers away, "and hardly expecting Cerberus in the middle of this mess. As I said, the Normandy is not unique. Anyway, Commander, I think we're done here." The expression on his face suggested that he rather strongly wanted this to be the case.

"It won't be that easy," said a familiar voice. Its owner stepped up to the map, a lighter skinned turian in blue and silver armor.

"Garrus!" Shepard extended an arm, which Garrus took.

"Vakarian, sir, I..." Corinthus trailed off, his eyes darting rapidly between Shepard and Vakarian. "Respectfully, sir, should you be here?"

"At ease," said Garrus with a wave of his talon. "I'll worry about my orders, and you worry about yours, General. Right now, we need to figure out who the new Primarch is and contact them. They have a summit to get to."

"Yes, sir," replied Corinthus. He began exchanging messages with Palaven Command. Everyone else stepped aside to talk. Pleasantries and introductions were exchanged.

"What was all that about with Corinthus?" asked Shepard. "He seemed nervous."

"Awkward, wasn't it?" said Garrus. "The Primarch, the old one, ordered me to stay away from you. Apparently you're a bad influence. Something about blowing up star systems, I think?"

"So, are you violating orders by talking to me?"

Garrus flapped a mandible in exasperation. "As if I care. We have bigger problems at the moment."

"Sir, I have something," said Corinthus, who had pretended not to hear this last remark. "We believe the new Primarch is General Adrien Victus."

"You think he's the new Primarch?" asked Garrus.

"Yes, sir. Everyone ahead of him in line is confirmed KIA. He's been out of contact for hours, but so have a lot of people. Based on reaper troop movements and numbers, we're fairly confident most of his men are still fighting, and we also have a general idea of where they are."

"Should I call the shuttle?" asked Shepard.

"Negative, Commander, it's just a few klicks away. Forwarding a map reference."

"Great, let's go," said Garrus.

"Sir...?" said Corinthus. His expression said Are you even pretending to follow orders?

"Obviously, I have to talk to Victus to get Fedorian's orders countermanded, and Shepard has to talk to him for the summit. So if anyone asks, we're both going to the same place, at the same time, purely coincidentally and for totally different reasons."

"Of course you are," replied Corinthus without a hint of irony. "Should I tell them you'll be walking the same path at the same speed, as well?"

Garrus ignored this remark, and the four of them set off for the map reference.

They walked for some time. Garrus and James discussed the war, and some of the political realities that would challenge them, with Liara occasionally chiming in about how she could blackmail this politician or bribe that one. Several times, they had to stop to kill husks or marauders; at one point, they fought a brute.

"Man, those guys are ugly," said James as it fell. "And big."

"Not too bright, though," replied Garrus. "That one couldn't keep track of Shepard through all her charging. Intel suggests they would be vulnerable to phaser fire. Too bad the geth still have the Defiant locked down."

They came to another camp. It had no sentries, and showed every sign of having been overrun. Shepard and Garrus exchanged a nod, drawing their weapons. James and Liara did the same.

The group crept into the camp, the regolith compacting softly beneath their feet. As Shepard peeked over a supply crate, she made a fist, the Alliance hand signal meaning stop. "I've got three brutes here," she said quietly. "Circling that building on the far side of the camp. Looks like Victus and his men are making a last stand over there."

"Plan?" asked Garrus.

"I want Liara dumping warps into them as fast as possible. James, throw grenades and try to keep them busy. I'll take point and get up close and personal with these guys. Garrus, watch my back. Everyone got it?"

They all nodded.

"Good. Execute."

Three brutes, several marauders, and what seemed like hundreds of husks and cannibals later, the last hostile fell.

Victus exited the structure. "Commander, thank you for your assistance." He started to say something else, but cut himself off when Garrus approached the group from his sniper's nest. "Vakarian, where did you go?"

"Heavy reaper unit on the right flank?" said Garrus.

Victus nodded. "Appreciated. You know, it's awfully convenient that you showed up at exactly the same time as Commander Shepard."

Garrus and Shepard exchanged an uncomfortable glance. "Well, actually-" began Garrus.

"It's obviously a coincidence, of course," interrupted Victus. "Fedorian ordered you not to interact with her. We all know Garrus Vakarian would never violate an order, particularly a stupid and short-sighted order, just because Palaven is burning. Clearly, the two of you arrived here independently." He turned back to Shepard. "Now that the bureaucrats are satisfied, what can I do for you?"

"A Cerberus sniper took out Primarch Fedorian about an hour ago," replied Shepard. "You're next in line and we have a war summit to run."

Victus blinked. "I am Primarch of Palaven?"

"Yes, sir," said Garrus.

Victus took a moment to absorb this. "I... haven't been briefed on this summit. I take it the summit is between Council races, to discuss our plans for mutual defense?"

"No," said Shepard. "Humanity has not been invited. I've been told our recent loss of a functional government and military makes us incapable of contributing."

"What?" He twitched a mandible in confusion. "But then, what are you doing here?"

"I'm a Spectre. It's my job."

"No, it isn't," said Victus, a suspicious tone creeping into his voice. "Without humanity, this is not a Council affair. You have no responsibility to assist."

Shepard said nothing.

"Do you want something in exchange for my passage?" asked Victus. "I cannot offer any-"

"No, I don't," replied Shepard. "Primarch, if we're going to continue this discussion, I strongly recommend we relocate to the Normandy. It is not safe here."

The three of them, Shepard, Vakarian, and Victus, stood in the Normandy's War Room. Several Alliance personnel were also stationed there. Shepard had reassured Victus that they were all highly-trusted members of her crew, and they all had appropriate security clearances. The holographic projection in the center of the room displayed recent troop movements over Palaven and Earth. Most of the data was not encouraging.

"Commander, I apologize for my brusque tone earlier," said Victus. "But the question remains: What is in this for you?"

"Unity," replied the Commander. "My primary responsibility is to the galaxy as a whole. That means doing as much as possible to thwart the reapers, regardless of whether humanity benefits. Your summit is the obvious first step. Of course, my leaders in the Alliance might see things differently."

"So they believe you are trying to make friends with us?" asked Victus.

"And why shouldn't I?" asked Shepard. "Obviously, we stand a better chance of defeating the reapers together than separately. Does any amount of self-interest automatically make my actions wrong?"

Victus sighed, gazing into the projection. "And then there's the matter of Cerberus. Why would the Illusive Man want Fedorian dead?"

"I have no idea," replied Shepard, "on the off chance that wasn't a rhetorical question."

"Yes, you cut ties with him," said Victus, his face taking on the turian equivalent of a frown. "Garrus, you trust this woman?"

"I... yes, absolutely!" said Garrus, startled at the sudden question.

"With your life, and the lives of our entire race?"

"Without question," replied Garrus. "You've read my reports."

"Indeed." Victus continued to stare at the troop movements for some time. Finally, he seemed to come to a decision. "Commander, there are two possible interpretations of this situation, which conveniently lead me to exactly opposite courses of action. If you are still under the Illusive Man's control, this is most likely a plot to eliminate the military leadership of all three nonhuman Council races at a stroke. After that, Cerberus or the Alliance will swoop in to save the day, assuming command of all our fleets. Once the reapers are defeated, humanity becomes the dominant race of the galaxy, exactly as he has always wanted.

"But if you have truly cut ties, as you profess and as Garrus believes, then the Illusive Man is attempting to drive us apart. By his deluded human supremacy logic, no other race can stand against the reapers. You will defeat them alone, somehow, while the other races will be swept aside." He frowned again. "But of course, if you are with Cerberus, then I have already lost, just by boarding this vessel. And the evidence I've seen so far is all on your side, Commander. Time and time again, Cerberus has deliberately generated bad publicity for humanity among other races. Garrus is no fool, despite what some of his superiors may have believed." He locked eyes with Shepard. "So, Commander, I will invite you to this summit, and entrust you with what intelligence I can."

"Good to know this will be a Council summit after all," said Garrus.

"Inviting humanity won't change the nature of the summit," replied Victus. "Which leaves us some interesting leeway. Commander, do you believe we will be able to defend the galaxy effectively without the krogan?"

"Um... no," replied Shepard. "No offense."

"None taken. In fact, I entirely agree. What do you say we invite them?"

"That is going to be an interesting conversation. Do you really think the salarians will go for it?"

"There is only one way to find out," said Victus. "I will speak with them, and the asari as well."

"I'll talk to Wrex," she replied. "He'll be there, at least."

"Urdnot Wrex?"

"Yeah, he's an old friend. Served on the original Normandy. I trust him, and so does Garrus."

Several long minutes later, Primarch Victus emerged from the comm room, a defeated look on his face. Shepard nodded to him. Garrus had left for the forward battery.

"Primarch. I take it your meetings went poorly?"

"The asari," said Victus in an eerily detached voice, "have apparently decided they do not wish to play witness to a reenactment of the Krogan Rebellions at this time. Meanwhile, as much as the salarians would like to refuse, they are incapable of defending themselves without the Hierarchy. Yet they really do not want to do this. I was first told the Dalatrass needed no less than three weeks to 'recover' from political activities relating to control over the Linron bloodline, and then that they needed the time to make security arrangements."

Shepard stared in some confusion. "She's taking a three week vacation in the middle of-"

"No, I talked her people down to two. But they wouldn't go any lower. Their exact words were 'if she is going to be in the same room as a live krogan, we simply must take reasonable precautions.' By the time they're finished, I anticipate the Dalatrass will have no less than three wireless monitors of her vital signs on varying radio frequencies, two concealed krogan-effective less-lethals, and a high-power kinetic barrier, and that's assuming they control the meeting space and may take additional measures. If they do not, I expect the term 'reasonable precautions' will utterly cease to be an accurate description of their activities."

Shepard's vision wandered up to the ceiling for a moment. "If it hasn't already. I had better luck with Wrex. He's willing to make himself available at any time, with a few days' notice. I suppose we'll just have to wait the two weeks, unless you want to kick the salarians out."

"I will confer with Wrex on that point," said Victus. "Until then, assume we are waiting." He consulted one of the consoles briefly. "Commander, may we speak in private?"

They retired to Shepard's cabin, which was significantly larger than Victus had expected. Cerberus has interesting design priorities, he thought.

"So," she said. "What can I do for you, Primarch?"

"It's my understanding," he replied, choosing his words carefully, "that you and Garrus are... close?"

Shepard nodded.

"You're his commanding officer, now that I've transferred him. And you were before, when this was a Cerberus vessel."

"Yes," said Shepard. "Is that a problem?"

"Potentially," said Victus. "There is an inherent inequality to your relationship."

"What exactly are you suggesting?"

Victus shook his head. "If I believed you had done something wrong, we would not be having this pleasant conversation. But I am concerned about his level of consent. You have a relatively strong and forceful personality. While Garrus is far from weak, he is a broken man on the inside. Surely you're aware of this. How do you know he hasn't felt pressured to go along with anything?"

"I have no way of knowing what's going on in Garrus's head, Victus," said Shepard. "But I've made every effort to avoid that. I asked him about his comfort levels, reassured him that he could walk away at any time, and let him set the pace of things."

"But what if that was not enough?"

"He is an adult, Victus. I trust him to do the right thing for himself, and so should you." She realized her voice had gotten rather sharp, and she softened it. "Primarch, he is the most important person in the galaxy to me. The reapers, Cerberus, the Council... Garrus is the only reason I've been able to bear it all."

Victus nodded. "He said much the same of you when I spoke with him on Palaven, months ago. Very well, Commander. If your relationship makes both of you happy, then continue it with my blessing." He turned to leave, but stopped at the door. "But remember this, Shepard: no one hurts my men. See that you're not the first."

"I won't be."

The turian (probably not the turian you're imagining) opened the door of his Tayseri Ward apartment. He crossed the threshold, the lights coming on automatically. He tapped the lock button on his omni-tool and the door obligingly clicked shut behind him. Citadel apartments were expensive, and his was a simple zero-bedroom studio. Though his income from the Shadow Broker job was large enough to afford something bigger, he always traveled light and leased month-to-month. Broker employees were not known for settling down.

Another tap of the tool made the windows opaque. Shutting off his kinetic barriers, he reached behind his back. He pulled a mechanical interlock on the armor, a standard turian design, and felt the joints pop out slightly. The armor was now a few centimeters further from his body than normal, ready for adjustment or removal. Naturally, the interlock did not function while the shields were online, even if they were depleted.

He took off his chestplate and continued with the rest of his armor. Many turians preferred to wear armor at all times, but he found it a relief to strip off the constraining exoskeleton after a long day's work. One of many reasons he had left the Hierarchy. The armor was reasonably padded, of course, but the cloth inserts could only be removed individually for cleaning. They were not designed to be worn independently of the armor itself. The attitude of the Hierarchy was that there was no reason to wear "civvies," as the humans called them, in a combat zone, and no reason to wear armor outside a combat zone, so the lack of underclothing was an advantage rather than a drawback. Officially, turians could do as they pleased so long as it did not impede their work. Unofficially, everyone on active duty wore full armor for every waking hour of the day, simply because they had been issued nothing else.

He shivered as the last piece of armor fell away, and quickly retrieved a set of clothing. I should talk to maintenance about the HVAC... it feels like they calibrated it for humans again. Once he was dressed, he had one last task before he was formally off-shift.

He opened an audio channel to the Shadow Broker. They exchanged identifications and authentified themselves. The Broker got straight to the point. "Agent, your 48-hour report is 19 minutes overdue. Explain."

"It was my fault," he said, knowing from experience the Broker did not tolerate excuses. "The traffic on Tayseri's main backbone was worse than I expected, and I did not budget enough time." Part of his "travel light" mentality was using a cheap ground car instead of a skycar. Public shuttles were, of course, not nearly reliable enough for his job.

"Acceptable. Do not allow it to happen again. Your report?"

"I successfully exfiltrated Dr. T'Soni to the Citadel as ordered. I'm not sure how she felt about our spending her favor on her behalf like that."

"I have discussed the matter with her," replied the Broker. "Continue."

"She nonsensically asked me to go back and try to rescue any humans who might have survived the Cerberus attack, which was impossible given the size of my vehicle. Overall, I found her demeanor distracting and annoying. The mission was successful, but it could have gone wrong in any number of ways. Unless this Dr. T'Soni is much more valuable than the woman I met, I would not recommend pulling her ass out of the fire next time she's in reaper-controlled space."

"She is not military," said the Broker, "and may not have been mentally prepared for the situation. I will take your concerns under advisement, but she is indeed more valuable than you perceive. She was the only serious academic fully aware of the reapers before their invasion, and may possess extremely pertinent intel."

"Understood, sir. Orders?"

"Keep an eye on Councilor Sparatus. If you hear any plausible rumors which might be used against him, you are to contact me at once. Otherwise, you are formally off-shift for the next week. Shadow Broker out."

Feron disconnected the call, and shook his head. "Good thing Liara wasn't here for that."

The Normandy approached the Widow relay. Joker was nearly finished with the pre-jump checklist. "All stations, secure for transit," he said.

The mass relay snaked out a gossamer blue tendril of light towards the ship. It caught the Normandy just as she came alongside the core of the relay. The mass effect field enveloped the frigate, instantly dropping her mass to an unimaginably small quantity. The Normandy shot through the massless corridor of space. As suddenly as it had begun, it broke, leaving them deep within the Serpent Nebula.

"Transit complete," said Joker. "Citadel Control, this is SSV Normandy requesting a vector and a berth."

Shepard and Victus stepped away from the cockpit as Joker continued negotiating with the controllers.

"Commander, I'll be staying on the Citadel for the time being. You can reach me through the turian embassy, if something comes up."

Shepard nodded. "Sure. And you can reach me through the Normandy or the human embassy."

"Hey, Commander?" called Joker. "I'm getting a call from a... captain. You might want to take this."

Shepard blinked. That's right, Victus doesn't know. Might be a good idea to tell him. "Primarch, go find Garrus and ask him about a ship called the Defiant. There are some things you need to know."

"All right, Commander," said Victus, a somewhat confused expression on his face. He headed aft.

"Didn't the Council tell you not to talk about that?" asked Joker.

"Sparatus can kiss my ass if he complains. Victus needs to know, and his own councilor has no business keeping it from him. Now patch Sisko through."

Joker shrugged and did as he was told.

"Commander," said Sisko, "we have a problem. I would appreciate it if you returned to the Defiant as soon as possible."

"I can do that," replied Shepard, knowing the calmness in Sisko's voice came from consummate professionalism rather than lack of concern. "What happened?"

"The ceasefire has broken."

[In ME3, the Menae mission had a lot of "and then they ran over there and killed some husks for a while," but that's rather boring to read over and over again, so I skipped most of it. Feel free to mentally re-insert it, since it hardly matters.

Our nameless turian friend returns. Will we see him again? Probably not.]