Notes:

Amara – Mother, as an intimate title of respect (Thessian)

B'tomak's Best Bitter - a variety of Batarian Shard Ale (Source: CDN)

Breá Ber'ah - Combined form meaning beautiful and strange lover; Breá being a close lover, somewhere between Amantia and Siame (Thessian)

CGC - Center for Galactic Cooperation

Siame - "one who is all", a loved one cherished above all others (Thessian/Source: CDN)

SILC - Synthetic Intelligence Life Codes

Sim're - "sister of my sister", a dear friend's loved one (Thessian/Source: CDN)

XO - Executive Officer

The Next Step

T'Soni Country Estate, Thessia, Athena Nebula – 19 Apr 2189

The dawn light was just beginning to filter in through the linen curtains of the bedroom as Shepard lay face-up in bed with her eyes closed, fingers interlaced behind her head. She was thinking about the previous night – she and Liara had purposely retired early to spend a bit of much needed private time together. Their lovemaking had lacked the… urgency… it had previously possessed, and Shepard discovered she had rather enjoyed it.

Much to her surprise – given the early hour – a soft voice echoed in her head. {Me too, Siame… and I'm sure it's because we are no longer in a frenzy, fearing imminent death every other day.}

Shepard turned to see a pair of bright blue eyes shining at her. With a grin, she responded, "Only every other?"

A soft chuckle preceded the response of, "I'm allowing for travel time between battles."

Laughing, Shepard rolled up on her side to face her Asari lover. Propping herself up on an elbow, she agreed, "It is kinda nice to not be constantly worried about dying, isn't it?" She reached over to gently caress Liara's cheek, never ceasing to be amazed at the warm softness of the scaly-looking blue skin. "Especially since Miri fixed my nanite crap."

"We're not quite done with that yet," a suddenly more somber-faced Liara replied. Her smile returning, she continued, "But we're certainly close. It's just a matter of finding that last little bit of rare material she needs." Liara placed her hand upon Shepard's, and then gently ran her fingers up her arm, sending shivers through the woman's body. "I was thinking we should contact Legion. I'd bet the SILC have a stockpile of material… or, at the very least, know where we could get some." She paused as her forehead scrunched up a bit. "I'm really not sure why I didn't think of it earlier."

"I don't know…" Shepard's expression shifted to her roguish grin. "Maybe because that fear of imminent death you just spoke of had you more than a bit preoccupied?"

"Maybe." Liara grinned and propped herself up as well, mirroring Samantha's position. "But that's no excuse… so, I'll see to that as soon as we get up." The grin shifted to a smirk as she added, "But it's much too early to even think of getting out of bed yet… I'm not sure the staff would survive the shock of seeing me so early. They would be absolutely positive something was wrong."

Laughing together, Shepard finally managed to respond, "So… you going back to sleep, or do you have other ideas?"

"Oh, no. I'm wide awake…" Liara smiled somewhat bashfully, "but I'm sure we can think of something to do." She leaned in, placing her lips against Shepard's and pushed the woman over onto her back. {I don't believe that will be a difficult task at all, as a matter of fact...}

Spectre Vessel Nalotir, Arcturus Stream – 20 Apr 2189

Spectre Ashley Williams raised her eyes at the nearly silent swish made by the compartment door as it parted in the middle and slid into the pockets on either side of the opening. Standing ramrod straight in the passageway outside was a tall woman with what appeared to be a nice tan. Green eyes sparkled as she spoke, "Chief Petty Officer Oksana Yakovna reporting as ordered, Ma'am."

Ashley smiled at the woman. "Chief Yakovna… please, come in." Motioning to the chair in front of her desk, she added, "Have a seat."

The woman moved effortlessly, with a fluid grace indicative of someone that had spent years aboard ships of every kind. She gingerly sat down, seeming to remain at attention as she did so.

"Nice to finally meet you, Chief. I hope you'll be comfortable here on the Nalotir… at least until we can all move back to the Normandy. Do you have any questions for me?

"No, Ma'am. I've studied the systems on this ship; they're all designed to operate with an absolute minimum of hands on maintenance…" she smirked, "… or interference. Probably best for a quasi-civilian vessel being crewed by explorers in a new galaxy."

Ashley smiled at that. "The Andromeda Initiative… there were no weapons of any kind on this bird until we had a GARDIAN system installed." With a shake of her head, she concluded, "I believe Initiative leadership has blinders on if they cannot see the potential for a hostile reception to their 'invasion'."

Oksana grinned in response. "Invasion? That galaxy is as large as the Milky Way… the Initiative is sending five sleeper ships and a deconstructed space station to the Heleus Cluster. I don't believe a hundred thousand colonists could be construed as an invasion force, Ma'am."

"Aye, but they're making a one-way trip, Chief. I have to imagine the imperative to survive will be extremely high." With a shake of her head, she dismissed the subject by concluding, "It's been four years since launch and they're traveling through dark space on a 600-year-long journey. You and I… and most everyone those people know… will be gone and forgotten by the time they arrive."

"Everyone but the Asari and Krogan, anyway." Oksana grinned with a shrug of partial agreement, then said, "I'll comb through the Nalotir's ops manual in order to make sure all her systems are operating at peak efficiency, and I'll begin studying the equipment manuals for the Normandy. I expect by the time we move to that ship I'll have at least a general understanding of all her systems." With another smirk, she added, "Then I'll have to relearn everything the Geth modified."

Ashley smiled. "They're called SILC now, Chief. Self-aware machines… something I never believed to be possible." With a grin of her own, she stood from her chair. "I'll have Commander Adams show you to your quarters; you can leave your bags there before he shows you around the ship and outlines your full duty list and schedule." She stuck out her hand. "Welcome aboard, Chief. I hope you enjoy this assignment."

Oksana clasped Ashley's hand and pumped it twice as she replied, "Thank you, Ma'am. I'm sure I will… but honestly? What I'm really looking forward to is getting onto the legendary Normandy," before turning to leave.

Even though the woman had already turned away, Ashley gave her a parting smile. "You and me, both, Chief… You and me both."

Thaptos Vineyards, Attena, Thessia – 22 April 2189

"Thank you, so much, Tris!" Sammi positively bubbled, a huge grin on her face as she said goodbye to the Matriarch. "And Kanesha… and Maga… and Savana…" The nine blissful days spent at the Vineyards had been food for the soul and, given the Reaper War and everything that had followed, she and Riana were possibly the most relaxed they had ever been since the day they first met.

Traynor stopped and her face turned a bit darker as everyone started to laugh. Tristana simply smiled and answered, "Thank you for thinking to call me, and for creating this opportunity, Samantha Traynor." She glanced at Riana for only the briefest of moments before returning her gaze to the olive-skinned Human. "I hope you honestly understand just how much of a gift your visit to this House is, to bring Riana home and to have my lost birth daughter once more alive in my mind. Sharing all those memories of Ryati… It provides me with a contentment beyond words. Thank you… and know you will always be welcome in our home."

She turned to Riana and reached out with both hands. Immediately understanding what the Matriarch was asking, Riana stepped up and took them, closing her eyes and tipping her head forward, gently, until their foreheads touched. With a light tap on her consciousness and permission granted, Tristana slid softly into her mind.

A sense of calming love – the likes of which only a mother can give – and overwhelming affection swept through her, causing Riana to weep with joy. {And you, my young one… don't you dare leave so much time between contacts ever again. Ryati is gone, yes, but you are still a part of this family and, now that this initial… reacquaintance… has been accomplished, I fully expect to see you more frequently. I could not bear to lose you again, dear one. Visit us again… soon.}

As their farewell meld continued, Savana stepped up to Traynor and took one of her hands as well. "Sammi, it truly was our pleasure getting to know you!" With a disbelieving shake of her head, she chuckled and continued, "I can't thank you enough for all your help in the comm room, updating all of our security protocols, when you were supposedly on vacation."

"Are you kidding?" Traynor grinned. "Stuff like that is fun for me! It's like this huge puzzle that I have this driving need to solve. I love any challenge of that kind!"

"You have an odd definition of fun, Human." Savana laughed quietly. "Do you know the Asari word Sim're?" Canting her head slightly to the side, she asked, "And, if so, would you find it acceptable for me to refer to you as such?"

"Certainly." Traynor's voice reflected her surprise. "But… we've known one another for less than two weeks! I didn't think such an honor was so easily earned."

"It is not," Savana replied quickly. "But you did not hesitate to offer your assistance… and you have an amazingly… sincere… way about you, Samantha Traynor. It breathes confidence and trust, and I admit to finding it rather endearing." She smirked and added, "Judea was correct in her assessment of you and I can very easily see why Riana fell in love with you."

"Wait. What?" Traynor's voice pitched up in surprise. "What do you mean, Judea's assessment of me?"

A broad smile erupting on her face, Savana answered, "On the day of your arrival, during final approach, she told me to go easy on you… that you were worthy of Riana's love. All I'm saying is that I agree with her."

"Judea actually said that?" She asked the question as she glanced over her shoulder at the pilot, patiently waiting at the door of the T'Soni VIP-1.

"Yes, she did." Savana winked and whispered conspiratorially, "But don't you dare tell her that I told you! She may have spoken in confidence, knowing you were not on the Bridge."

Traynor leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Savana's cheek. "It'll be our secret, then." She chuckled softly, adding, "Just so you know, I truly enjoyed spending time with you. You're not a bad technician in your own right, Savana Thaptos… and a very entertaining conversationalist. I was far from bored, spending those hours with you. I am honored to be considered Sim're."

Their light meld broken, Matriarch Tris and Riana joined them, just in time to hear Traynor's last few words to Savana. "Sim're?" Riana's eye's opened wide as she glanced between the two. "You have much to tell me, Sammi, and a long ride home in which to do so. I obviously missed something, during my time spent with the Matriarch!"

Tris smiled and let out a quiet little laugh. "We did spend quite a bit of time together, young one. Did you expect your Breá Ber'ah to sit quietly in your rooms, alone, simply waiting for your return?" Grinning at the embarrassed surprise on Riana's face, the Matriarch's laughter grew in volume as she smiled, and then added, "She was out making friends while we reminisced. I am given to understand she is quite the technical genius, who willingly lent her expertise to improve a number of security programs and processing protocols. You can bring her back, anytime!"

Kanesha, the House Steward, quietly cleared her throat. "Pardon the interruption, Matriarch, but they have a long journey home and are already late for their departure… not to mention your next appointment, who is waiting – quite patiently, I might add – to begin purchase negotiations for this year's promising vintages."

A grinning Riana pulled away from the Matriarch. "Woe be it for me to be the one keeping you from a lucrative business deal, Amara. Economic recovery from the war is slow enough, without me getting in the way of a sale." She paused and glanced across the group who had interrupted their schedules to see them off at the tarmac. "Thank you all, for an absolutely wonderful visit. I promise the next one will not be nearly so long in coming." Smiling, Riana waved one final time as she said, "Stay well and we'll see you again, soon!" before turning and walking up the ramp to board the ship, hand-in-hand with Sammi.

Savana looped her arm through her mother's, turning the Matriarch to keep her from staring any longer at the closed door of the transport. "Come, Mother. I know it is hard, but I truly believe Riana's words. She and Sammi will be back as soon as they are able, as they honestly did have a wonderful time… but we have business to attend to. Our wines don't quite sell themselves… not yet, anyway."

Civilian Shopping and Dining Area, CGC, Widow System – 29 Apr 2189

Upon entering the small bar and grill with Greg Adams, the Spectre mentally took note of the number and locations of the Batarians seated at the nearby tables. Both Humans were dressed in civilian attire; Ashley felt having lunch with a Batarian while dressed in their Alliance uniforms might bring them even more unwelcome attention.

In order to change her appearance, she had braided her long hair and applied minimal makeup before pulling on a pair of faded jeans, a tan blouse and short-heeled black boots; Greg was dressed similarly in navy blue slacks with a plain dark shirt under a grey wool sweater.

After conferring with the young woman behind the front counter, they were seated at a small, round table as far from the other lunchtime customers as practicable. While waiting for Ferank to arrive, Williams quietly reminded Adams about interactions with Batarians in a social setting.

Of no real surprise to Greg, Ashley had once again designated him to lead this meeting in order to spare the Batarian any unwelcome scrutiny once they were done with lunch and their business was concluded.

Their wait was short; a solitary male entered through a side door, looked around for a few moments, then began walking towards their table. At least he's punctual, Ashley thought.

The Batarian came to a halt beside their table – the only table in the place where a raven-haired Human female was seated with a Human male – and quietly said, "Ashley Williams? It's good to see you once again."

The Spectre tilted her head to the left as she stood to greet him. "Garok Ferank… you're the only person that's approached me since I've been seated here." Keeping her eyes downcast, she indicated Greg with a slight wave of her hand. "I'm sure you remember the Normandy's chief engineer, Greg Adams?"

Ferank acknowledged the man with a barely perceptible nod; Ashley waited for Ferank to sit down before retaking her own chair. A surreptitious visual inspection revealed that – as had happened during her meeting in February – they had now become even more the center of Batarian interest with Ferank's arrival.

The young waitress appeared from behind the main counter and set a mini-datapad in front of each of them; directing her attention towards Greg, she asked, "May I bring water or a beverage for each of you?"

Greg nodded as he responded, "Water will be fine for now, thank you."

She smiled as she responded, "I'll be right back."

Ignoring the menu in front of him for the moment, Adams briefly inspected a datapad given to him by his captain before looking directly into the Batarian's lower pair of eyes. Tilting his head slightly to the left, he said, "I remain impressed by your work history, Ferank." After a brief pause, he added, "Since our original meeting, I've read some more about your wartime experiences; your good fortune in escaping a severely damaged cruiser before it burned up in Earth's atmosphere is even more impressive than your work history."

Ferank pressed his lips together in a thin smile. "Don't know how much luck, good fortune, or even the gods of my people had to do with my survival." He shook his head slightly as he added, "The Alliance Navy rescued me… dragged my lifepod into their ship when they just as easily could have ignored the damned thing."

He leaned back slightly as the waitress returned with a pitcher of water and three glasses. She filled each glass and promised to return in a few minutes to take their orders. The Batarian leaned forward again, picked up his glass and took several swallows of water. Dividing his attention between Ashley and Greg, he continued his story. "My first ever experience with Humans. People on that ship were all nicer to me than I had any right to expect." He set the glass down and studied it for a moment before retuning his gaze to Greg's face.

"Spectre Williams?" he said in a questioning tone. "It will be difficult for me to speak directly to you while we're in this place." He grinned slightly; still looking at Greg as if speaking to him, he added, "As you know, females of my race are never treated as equals in public, and it's not expected that males will lower themselves to deal with females of other races."

Ashley looked at Greg as she quietly responded. "That's quite alright… predictable, even. Mr Adams knows what qualifications are required to fill the position. My chief concern now with hiring a Batarian is how well you would get along with the rest of my crew, especially my new Systems Engineer. She's Alliance Navy… a Chief Petty Officer."

Garok frowned slightly for a moment, then took another swallow of water. Before he could respond, the waitress appeared to take their lunch orders; Greg ordered the special for Ashley and himself. Ferank ordered the Batarian-centric meat dish with B'tomak's Best Bitter while he thought about having to work beside a human female within the close confines of a frigate.

After several moments, he looked at Greg and stated, "I know Human vessels have crews of both genders. I never expected I'd be presented an opportunity to work on such a vessel, so never gave the question any serious thought until after our meeting in February."

"As a reminder, she's not the only woman on board, Mr Ferank. The ship's doctor is a woman, as is the weapons control specialist and several of the Marines on board." Finishing with the obvious, Ashley smirked slightly while concluding, "And then, there's me." She looked up as their meals arrived; Garok took a grateful swallow from his glass of ale.

"The Normandy has always been a home for multiple species, Garok." Ashley ate some of her soup before continuing. "With one exception, the ship is currently crewed by Humans, all of them either Alliance Marines or members of the navy. My position as a Council Spectre allows me a certain… latitude… in selecting personnel for key positions."

Greg gently slid the datapad across to rest in front of Garok's plate as Ashley continued in a low voice. "Take the datapad when you leave… review my offer once again. Nothing has changed since our lunch in February. I believe you'll agree the pay is more than you're accustomed to receiving as an engineer on the numerous freighters on which you have been a crew member. That said, you'll be dealing with cutting edge technology, working in a state-of-the-art frigate."

Ashley took a bite from her sandwich, chewed and swallowed, then tilted her head to the left after a sip from her beer glass. "As for Human opinions of Batarians, I can guarantee you will receive a mixed reception from my crew, and that's to be anticipated. Their view of Batarians has been shaped by many years of slaver and pirate encounters, with no help from the policies of the Hegemony. Should you accept my offer to work on the Normandy, it will be up to you to change everyone's perceptions of Batarians."

Garok silently ate his meal as he thought of everything this female had told him. Truth was, he was more than ready to settle into a steady job after months of working on different ships. Learning how the propulsion system of the Normandy functioned would be as much of a challenge as learning to peacefully rub shoulders with a Human – a female, no less! – in the engineering section of the ship… not to mention having to obey orders from a female captain.

"How much longer before the Normandy is back in service, Spectre?"

"The ship is due to arrive shortly… probably Thursday… Friday at the outside. First order of business will be a shakedown voyage, with an early morning departure on the 4th." Ashley finished her sandwich and took the last swallows of beer from her glass before concluding, "Truthfully, I need your answer by tomorrow, so I'll know if I can stop looking and move on to other tasks."

She nervously clasped her hands together in her lap and looked at Greg, who glanced at her before adding, "If it helps you at all, Mr Ferank, I will be your immediate boss; Chief Yakovna answers to me as well. In all likelihood, you'll seldom have any need to deal directly with Captain Williams while on the ship."

"Five days until Normandy flies," he mused, half to himself. "Not much time to decide, Cap'n."

"You've already had two months to think about this, Mr Ferank… if you commit to working on the Normandy, you'll need to be ready to join the ship by this Saturday." She shrugged her shoulders slightly. Still appearing to address Greg, she added, "Say 'yes', and Commander Adams will update the access roster and send you the location and entry code for the Normandy dock, once she lands."

Truth be known, Garok had already made up his mind… not that he'd admit such to this female. He had instantly liked her direct manner of speaking, and that she… and this Greg Adams… seemed to know how to speak with a Batarian, put him at ease. "Let me have a day to make a final decision, Captain Williams. I'll contact you tomorrow with my answer."

Ash focused her full attention on Garok; nodding once, she said, "I look forward to hearing from you, Mr Ferank. Thank you for meeting with me… with us, today." Ashley rose from her chair and walked to the nearby counter to pay for their lunch.

Greg offered his hand across the table, which Garok took after a moment. "I hope you agree to come work for us, Mr Ferank. I believe we will all benefit." Releasing his hand, Greg rose and walked over to join his captain, leaving Garok Ferank to depart on his own.

As the pair left to return to the Alliance docks, Greg asked Ashley, "Think he'll say yes?"

Ashley smirked as she looked at her chief engineer. "That fellow will be your… our… next propulsion engineer, Greg… no doubt in my mind."

Council Fleet Docks, CGC, Widow System – 1 May 2189

Commander Ashley Williams, resplendent in her dress blue uniform, stepped out of the elevator on Deck Three and paused as the doors silently closed behind her. It feels strange to be back on this ship after flying the Nalotir for nearly 4 months, and the SILC did such a good job repairing the damages, it looks the same in here… almost. Checking her chrono confirmed she had arrived early for the short ceremony. She stepped up to the memorial wall and gazed at the engraved plaques, arranged in two columns, alphabetically by first name. God, she breathed in silent prayer, please grant me the strength to get through the next hour without breaking down completely.

The nameplates, being magnetically attached to the distressed steel backplate, were relatively easy to rearrange. An empty space now existed in the left column, between Caroline Grenado and Harvey J Gladstone, with Germeen Barret's name having been moved to sit beneath Charles Pressly's name, newly relocated to the right column; this would be the location for Propulsion Engineer Curt Manos' name.

After the intervening names in both columns had been moved down and over to their new locations, a space now existed between Kaidan Alenko's and Marcus Grieco's nameplates, ready to receive Kenneth Donnelly's freshly engraved marker. Kaidan. She ran her fingertips gently across the letters of his name. After all this time, your death still hurts me! It should have been me left behind on Virmire, Major. Why'd you have to be so damned noble? She swiped at the single tear that trickled down her cheek.

Taking a step back, she looked down to the bottom of each row. Marine Sergeant Scott Naughton's name would occupy a space below Rosamund Draven's name; the nameplate for his brother-in-arms, Private Sidney Lindemann, would be placed on the right column, below Rupert Gardner's nameplate.

The Spectre heaved a heavy sigh. Four crewmen killed in this most recent conflict… two of them victims of an eccentric, misguided genius. She closed her eyes to the reminder of thirty-four crew lost to hostile action… 21 had been lost when the SR-1 had been destroyed over Alchera in the Omega Nebula. The Collectors had killed or taken 7 crewmen. Bethany and James had died during the Reaper war… Beth needlessly so. She clenched her fists hard enough that her nails dug uncomfortably into her palms as she thought of Westie's death.

Just as Shepard had always done, Ashley had composed and hand-written the letters of condolences to each man's family or loved ones, then carefully placed them on top of their personal effects. The letter that left her numb… that nearly crushed her heart… was the one she had to write concerning Ken Donnelly's death; there was no one else in his life besides his wife, Gabby, six months pregnant with twins at the time. Ashley's personal delivery of the tragic news to Gabby, near the end of January, had triggered false labor pains in a very distraught mom-to-be, such that she had to spend the night in the maternity ward.

Williams had been pleased upon learning Gabby had been granted an extended medical leave-of-absence that enabled her relocation to Liara T'Soni's estate on Thessia. A boy and a girl! she mused, born middle of the night on the 15th of March. Ashley had been saddened to learn that Gabby was planning to resign from the Alliance Navy and intended to move into Kenneth's childhood home in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Wonder how she'll make a living for herself and her kids… not enough years in for a pension, and the Council sure-as-Hell won't provide any assistance. Damn! She'll be raising two children by herself, with no financial support and only a few of Ken's family – whom she hardly even knows – to help.

A sound behind her roused her from her reverie. "Commander? Are you okay?" XO Leon Rensch had stepped out of the elevator and moved to stand beside Ashley. "I can almost feel the unhappiness radiating off of you."

Williams turned her head towards her XO as she replied, "Is it really that damned obvious, Leon?" Returning her gaze to the names on the wall, she said, "I am feeling sadness, Leon… heartache, grief, sorrow… there's a lot of words that could be used to describe how I'm currently feeling, and not a damned one of them is truly adequate." She huffed in wordless exasperation. "Until I stepped out of the elevator and really looked at this memorial, I couldn't imagine ever feeling such an overwhelming sense of loss!"

Rensch nodded in silent agreement as he studied the names, each bearing mute testimony to a life cut short by hostile action. The elevator doors silently slid open behind him – only the chatter and the sounds of footsteps alerting him to the arrival of more people. He looked around to see officers and specialists solemnly step out of the elevator and promptly moved to give them room to get by.

As the last two to join the group, Weapons Control Specialist Regina Hansen and Dr Karin Chakwas, walked around the elevator tower to stand with their shipmates, Leon moved quickly to join them as Ashley turned to face everyone.

Taking a parade rest stance, she said, "Thank you, all, for being here." The Spectre glanced around at the memorial wall before taking the time to silently look at each and every pair of eyes quietly watching her. In a solemn voice, she spoke about the wall behind her. "The majority of the names on this wall behind me – lost when the Collectors destroyed the Normandy SR1 over Alchera in 2183 – were placed there so they cannot be forgotten by those that serve on this ship." She noticed that Joker looked particularly unhappy at mention of the SR1.

"More names were added after the Collectors boarded this vessel and abducted or killed a majority of the crew." She paused briefly before continuing. "Three were added during the Reaper War." She could feel her throat tightening up but pushed ahead. "When I took command of this ship, I never dreamed in my wildest nightmares that I would be standing here today, about to oversee the addition of another name… let alone four, to this memorial… yet, here we are."

Bringing her hands around in front of her, she stared quietly at the four metal plates she had picked up from the engraver just this morning, each freshly inscribed with the name of one of their deceased shipmates… their comrades.

From the four, Ashley chose the plaque she needed… that of System's Engineer Kenneth Donnelly. With a heavy sigh, she nodded to her XO. "Mr Rensch? If you would?"

Leon took the nameplate from his captain, slowly took the few steps needed to stand within arm's reach of the wall, there to caress the metal plate once before positioning it above its designated spot. Once within a few centimeters of the backplate, Kenneth's marker seemingly leaped from his fingers and snapped into place with a click. It was done.

As Leon rejoined the assembled crew, Williams looked to Normandy's chief engineer and said in a near whisper, "Mr Adams, front and center." Greg moved to stand in front of his captain; she silently handed him the plate with Propulsion Engineer Curt Manos' name engraved in the polished surface.

Greg Adams, holding the plate in both hands, silently inspected it as he marveled at how something so light in weight could feel so damned heavy. Looking up again, he met Ashley's eyes for a moment before she gave him a quick nod and took two steps to her right, so Greg could get past her. After snapping Curt's marker into its place among the other names, he returned to stand with his crewmates.

Ashley next looked directly at Marine Corporal Sarah Campbell, coughed lightly in an effort to clear the lump in her throat, and said, "Sarah?" as she held out a third placard.

Other than the Spectre before her, Sarah was the last standing member of the original Marine contingent aboard the Normandy SR-2, serving since the Alliance began the refit of the vessel, even before Edi and Joker had lifted off from the Vancouver Navy Yard during the first wave of the Reaper's invasion. The young Marine solemnly moved past her crewmates and came to attention in front of her captain.

With only two of the four metal rectangles remaining, Ashley handed Sarah the plate bearing the name of Private Lindemann – keeping the one for Sergeant Naughton for herself. Together, Spectre Williams and Marine Corporal Campbell stepped up to the wall, where they solemnly placed each man's nameplate in its designated location among the rest of the honored crew members. Please let this be the last name I ever have to put up here.

As Sarah rejoined her shipmates, Ashley took two steps back and came to attention; after staring at all the names for several moments, she turned to face the assembled crew and said, "Thank you for being here today." After a brief pause, she added, "Dismissed."

T'Sere Shipwrights, Thessia, Athena Nebula – 3 May 2189

Gabriella Donnelly had provided them with complete design schematics for a new propulsion system a mere three weeks after her visit – and it had taken the T'Sere engineering department less than three days to complete their evaluation; the designs were quite simply that good. Now, Tralis was speaking with Lady Sashia, extolling upon the virtues of this newly discovered and extremely bright propulsion engineer. "It truly is amazing, Sash! I mean, she did say she had already spent time studying the ship designs… but to turn out full schematics so quickly? It's obvious to me she already had a design in mind before she ever came to us."

"And it's honestly that good?" Sashia's face held a wry smile; it wasn't very often that she got to see Tralis so out-of-sorts. "What has you more surprised, the speed of delivery or the quality of the design?"

"To answer your first question, yes, absolutely!" Tralis blinked a couple of times as she thought about the other question before finally shrugging and continuing, "As for your second… yes, both. Her design is… elegant and efficient, and unlike anything we've ever seen before. It is a complete replacement, not a redesign by any means." Tralis' eyes flashed brightly. "I think I can honestly say Ms Donnelly may very well be the best thing to happen to T'Sere Shipwrights since… well, since bringing Judea aboard."

At that, Sashia sat back in her chair in surprise. "Seriously? You're comparing her to the golden child of T'Sere Shipwrights? Now, that grabs my attention." She leaned forward again, crossed her arms on her desk and very matter-of-factly stated, "If that's truly the case, then I would certainly hope you have already drafted an acceptance message and a contract for hire… both ready for my validation?"

A huge grin spread across Tralis' face as she eagerly slid a datapad across the desk. "But, of course." Her grin faded as she got into the details. "You'll see it is patterned very much after Judea's… with a standard payment for design development, coupled with our regular sales commission percentage, once the vessel goes on the open market. There is, however, one rather costly exception… a one-time security installment bonus."

Tralis paused when Sashia's head popped up as she asked, "A… security installment bonus? Can you please tell me what that is and why we are doing it?"

The Director of Operations quickly explained about Gabby's unique situation – regarding having recently given birth to twins and wanting to raise them at the deceased father's ancestral home… in Sol… which was rather antiquated and needed a significant security upgrade to guard against industrial espionage. "If anyone other than Judea had requested this, or if Ms Donnelly's design was any less than what we saw during the review, I never would have brought this to you." Tralis met the eyes of the House Matriarch and gave an infinitesimal shrug. "Bringing Gabriella Donnelly on board is worth every single credit I've included in that package."

Without hesitation, Sashia glanced back down at the datapad, flipped through the display to the very bottom and pressed her thumb firmly to the screen. Upon hearing the quiet registration beep, she slid the datapad back across the desk to Tralis. "Then, by all means, send this to her and get started on her house no later than Monday. Oh! And see if we can get our standard security company to do the work… I'm not sure I want some Terran company installing our security algorithms."

"Understood, Sash… and I'll see it's done immediately." Tralis grinned, "We certainly pay them enough creds every year for them to do us this one favor. I don't believe we've ever asked them for anything special, so convincing them to help this once shouldn't be too difficult. I will call Gabby personally, to let her know she has the contract."

T'Soni Country Estate, Thessia, Athena Nebula – 3 May 2189

Judea Voni could barely contain her excitement as she hurried to Gabby's quarters on the second floor. As the door to her room was ajar, the Asari barely paused to knock before rushing in to the room, where she found the new mother relaxing in a rocking chair as she contentedly looked through a technical manual depicting the latest advancements in FTL propulsion theory.

"Gabby, there's a call for you in the comms center. It's T'Sere! Their Operations Director wants to speak with you!" Seeing the Human's hesitant look, she quickly added, "You know where the comms center is, Gabby… I'll stay here with your children." With a shooing motion of her hands, Judea said "Go!"

Within a couple of minutes, Gabby was sitting in front of a monitor, staring nervously at the image of Matriarch Tralis, who came right to the point. "Ms Donnelly, I have good news for you! Lady Sashia wants you to become our newest propulsion design engineer! All the details are in the proposed contract I am transmitting to you."

Gabby's mouth fell as she tried to absorb what this matriarch had just told her. Recovering quickly, she asked, "You're going to use my design? That's wonderful, Matriarch! When would you like me to begin work?"

"With your permission, our security firm will immediately be dispatched to your home on Terra, where they will harden all the entry points and windows against physical and electronic surveillance. I cannot imagine it will take them much time, so… perhaps by the first of June?"

"So soon? My gosh… I hadn't dared to hope!" Eyes brimming with moisture, she squeaked, "Of course you have my permission, for whatever you deem necessary! I'll begin making arrangements to return to Earth!" Swallowing hard against the sudden lump in her throat, she added, "Thank you so much! This means everything to me!"

The Asari chuckled good-naturedly at Gabby's reaction, concluding with, "Thank you, Gabriella Donnelly. I foresee a long and profitable association for you and T'Sere Shipwrights!"