Chapter 6.
New Horizons' cargo bay was barely recognizable. The walls and ceiling displayed bed linens that had been modified to make colored streamers and drapes bringing an air of festivity to the normally plain room. The usual scattering of crates and workstations had been cleared and stowed, and in their place were tables and chairs set up in a "u" shape around a cleared section of deck. In that space stood the assembled crew, in dress uniforms standing in formation and eyes forward. At the opening of the "u" was a raised platform and it was upon that platform that all eyes now watched. Admiral Samantha Thibodaux in her own dress uniform, pressed black cloth, gleaming gold piping and a chest full of medals stood presiding over a most unusual ceremony. A first in her career.
Before her, one to each side were Fendala and Mavish. They stood facing each other holding hands, fur cleaned, brushed, and trimmed. He wore a modified dress uniform, tailored to fit his smaller statue, bearing commander's epaulettes on his shoulders marking him as an official military officer. She wore a simple white dress, embroidered with vines and flowers. It had been made from spare materials and sewn by the other women on the ship and given as a gift for the occasion. Her dark red mane of hair that ran the length of her body was braided with colored ribbons as was her tail which was as usual, wrapped around her waist forming a colorful belt over the white dress. Both wore expressions of happiness and love, eyes bright and shining, and mouths stretched wide in smiles.
"By the power vested in me as the commanding officer of the New Horizons, I now pronounce you married." Samantha ended the ceremony and the two LiThar leaned in and kissed. The assembled crew broke into load applause and cheers. Breaking the kiss, Mavish swept Fendala up in his arms, hopped off the stage and carried her to their waiting table. The crew parted to form a corridor for the newlywed couple to walk. Reaching the table, Mavish gently lowered her into the waiting chair before taking his own at Fendala's side. The crew broke up and took their own seats at the other tables, the senior officers taking places next to the couple at the head table and the mess crew emerged to begin serving dinner.
Nearly a year had passed since Vala had told them that they needed to go to OniThar. A lot had happened within the confines of the ship during those months. Good and bad. The crew had evolved in many ways and this was one of the results. While learning about their new allies, Fendala had become fascinated with the various mating and marriage customs that were presented. Her and Mavish being a couple had become well known to all within days of their first encounter, and after a few weeks, both had given up trying to keep it secret and came out to all. It was the first time that a LiThar couple had been celebrated in living memory. That open freedom of relationships was completely alien to the LiThar as they had always been forced to keep those details as secret as possible to prevent Akzunatai and those loyal to him to use it against them. Fendala began to question how relationships were celebrated in her new friends' societies. This eventually led to the discussion of mating rituals, bonding, marriage, and a host of other inquiries about relationship customs.
Fendala fell in love with the idea of marriage and the ceremonies associated with it. If she were to lead the LiThar forward to a new future, she wanted to do so by example. The entire crew leapt at the opportunity to celebrate a wedding and the fact that this was an historical moment made it even more special. Choosing to hold it when they were out of dark space and in range of OniThar, the New Horizons began their preparations. Being so far from home and on limited resources, creativity became the only mode of operation. Everyone donated what they could, and decorations soon were ready to be hung. The cooks broke out the special reserves of food and drink, items that were being saved for special occasions, and planned a small feast. Ship maintenance was doubled to allow for as many crew members as possible to attend. Those who could not be spared, would watch through the monitors and the ceremony was set to take place with part in one shift and part in the next to allow for all to participate at lease for a portion of it.
This wedding had become a source of pride, excitement and to many, the light at the end of the tunnel. Their time in dark space was wearing them down. Knowing that they were not going home, but instead further out and to battle had sowed the seeds of depression in many. Now they had been given a breath of fresh air. Something joyous to look forward to. A celebration of life.
Dinner was served. Delicious scents flooded the bay and soon mouths were full of savory flavors. Tastebuds that had gone numb with the same bland tastes of rations were awakened with rich tastes of favorite foods. Wine, beer and whiskeys were provided along with the food, not enough to allow for anyone to become inebriated, but enough to allow stress to fall off of shoulders, laughter to ring out and even the worst dancers stop caring to go out on the dance floor after the meal wrapped up.
Fendala and Mavish were not the only couple abord. Over the months, more couples had come out. Some had broken up since, others still together. Samantha and Lin Verel had given the emerging situation a lot of thought. Typically, there were no regulations against relationships other than those of superior and subordinate. Back home, if a situation developed that impacted the crew negatively, a Captain could dismiss the offenders easily with transfers to another ship or planet. That option was not available to deep space missions and they did not get much deeper into space than this one. Ultimately their decision came down to the fact that nothing they did would stop relationships from forming. If they banned them, it would simply drive those involved to secrecy potentially creating more problems than it would prevent. A compromise was reached. They would allow personal relationships; however, public displays of affection were not to take place. This was a military ship and protocol would be observed in that respect. They had called a meeting and informed the crew. To date, it had been largely successful. A few minor incidents, but overall, the results had been positive for morale.
Still, this was the first marriage ceremony she had performed. Vala and Angela had considered it, but Sam refused until Kris, John and Tali could be there. The girls had been on the fence about it for the same reasons and quickly accepted Sam's terms. Other couples were mainly holding off for similar reasons. They wanted their families there. Nelis had spoken out that weddings were mostly for families anyway. She knew where her heart lay and who had her love. That was all that mattered to her. When they got back, they could celebrate and make it legal, but in her heart, she was wed already. Both Meela and Robert had taken her hands at that statement and nodded in agreement. Sam still had some difficulty wrapping her head around that relationship.
Nelis Bevn and Meela Lind had started a friendly rivalry the day they met, the same they were assigned to Lexandrius' team. Constantly trying to outshine the other, the Drell girl and the Asari, both striving to be the best, their friendship blossomed quickly. Robert Johnson, the young human marine who Admiral Thibodaux had embarrassed in the gym, was equally competitive and it did not take long for the three of them to find common ground, respect, and appreciation for one another's skills. That respect led to a deep friendship as the three constantly worked together, pushing each other to reach the next level, and while to an outsider, their relationship appeared to be one of rivalry and hostility, they were becoming closer and closer daily.
That friendship had been put to a test one day when both Meela and Nelis had asked Robert on a date. Neither had talked to the other about those plans, and when word reached the other what had happened, the immediate reaction was predictable. They fought. Their fellow teammates tried to break them up but were quickly discouraged after a few punches were taken. Lexandrius had entered the gym and reacted instantly knocking both girls on their asses and before sending them to medical for treatment to their injuries and promising further punishment upon their return. After they had been cleared for duty, he had them assigned to cleaning the ship's wastewater reclaim system for the next two weeks. Those weeks restored their friendship as they worked through their feelings about Robert and each other. When they returned to regular duty, the young human marine never stood a chance and New Horizons gained their only thruple.
The other LiThar couple, Shethra and Thera watched all the proceedings with great interest. From the planning, to the decorations, clothing, and food to the words spoken and the dancing that followed. They had been asked if they wanted to get married as well, but they wanted this to be special and singularly for their friends. This was for Fendala and Mavish. Let them have it. Still, they liked what they saw and made a promise to each other that they would do the same one day. Maybe they would be the first LiThar to get married on OniThar where they could show just how special it was and lead the way for their people to follow.
Winding her way through the celebrating crew, Diana Allers made sure her cameras captured the day, leaving no detail out. Her cameras were V.I. assisted units that zoomed around the room covering every angle to ensure nothing went unnoticed with the exception of two units that hovered around her at all times, capturing instantly anything she directed and readily available for split second interviews. Using them the reporter had amassed an incredible collection of footage of the journey thus far. Observational footage and one on one interviews with both the original crew and the LiThar were enhanced with written documentation to create one of the most detailed journals in existence. Several of her reports, abridged to save data space yet still extremely informative, had been sent to the Council as part of their report packages. Both commanding officers agreed that her presentation of the LiThar were far better than anything they had written and would be of greater use to the Council. Diana was already a galaxy-wide famous reported, not only for her work abord the Normandy during the Reaper war, but also for works done both before and since those historical days.
This mission however was to be her crowning achievement and her final report. She was sixty-four years old this year and the way things were going, she anticipated being much closer to seventy by the time she returned home. Granted, human life spans averaged close to one hundred and sixty with some outliers closing in on a second century, but as much as she loved her job, she wanted to spend more time with her wife Liara and their family. She and Liara had discussed it and when this fight was over, they would retire somewhere and live their lives as they wanted. They had even discussed having more children. After a long a successful career, Diana was ready for a change.
Tonight, her mind was not on the future, but like most there, she was simply enjoying the party. Linking arms with two male crew members who were standing shyly to the side, she pulled them onto the dance floor and began to move in time with the music. The poor men she had dragged with her began their own awkward movements, slowly realizing that no one was paying much attention to how bad of dancers they were, and gradually let themselves relax and simply enjoy the dance. Diana smiled at them encouragingly and the last of their embarrassment faded.
Long did the celebration last. The shifts changed with those who had duty swapping with those coming off. With those new arrivals, the celebration got a second wind. Vala found herself spinning in Angela's arms as they once again danced across the bay floor. Both girls had their hair done up in ribbons to match those in Fendala's. They had been her bridal party, making sure the day went perfect. They had succeeded and now they celebrated. Round and round they spun, feet moving in time with the music, they glided across the floor, reveling in the joy of their friends and crewmates and the unrestrained happiness of the newly married couple. This is why we fight. This is why we sacrifice. The words came unbidden to Vala's mind, yet she admitted their truth.
This is love sweetheart. Angela's answering response was spoken inside their minds. Their linked connection allowing them to share these communications silently. Vala's eyes met Angela's and the two women smiled, then kissed. Angela stepped back, extended her arm and twirled Vala so the Quarian woman ended up back pressed against Angela's front and wrapped in the woman's arms. Laughing loudly, Vala's face shone with happiness surpassed only by the LiThar couple dancing across the room from them. They were flying directly towards danger. It was growing closer every day and they all knew that it would get far harder before their mission was over. For today though, none of it mattered. Today they laughed and loved and celebrated.
The current song came to an end and Samantha excused herself from the dance floor. Grabbing a glass of water, she made her way to the raised platform where Lin Verel and Reilus Lexandrius were standing watching the others. They were the senior most officers on the vessel. This was there family and those celebrating were as their children. Both men gave her a friendly nod as she arrived. "Good to see you letting yourself have fun Sam." Reilus spoke as she raised herself to sit on the edge of the platform. "You need to learn to do that more often."
"We all do Reilus." Came her reply. "It is hard though. I'm glad we did this. It helps remind us all why we are doing this. What it is we are fighting for."
"Very true Admiral." Lin Verel joined in. "After seeing what is headed towards home, I know a lot of the crew were not in a good frame of mind. This helps free them of that depression. At least for a time."
Sam nodded her agreement. A month after they had sent their message back home, their scanners picked up Akzunatai's approaching fleet. Fortunately, while dark space is, as far as they knew, uninhabited, it was not empty. Large rocks, were often found drifting free in the void, escaped from some galaxy to drift aimlessly. Luck must have smiled on them that day as they located one of these large rocks and placed their vessel behind it. Powering down to life supporting essentials only, the ship went dark and waited. A few days later, the single largest fleet they had ever seen flew past them.
Hundreds of thousands of vessels, small and large, of all shapes and designs paraded past them. Too far for them to see visually, even had a giant rock not been blocking the windows, but well within sensor range. Operating on low power, they were only able to get the most basic of scans, but those were enough to give them an idea of what was headed towards their homes. It had taken more than a day for the fleet to pass and they waited till three more had gone by before powering up and continuing towards OniThar with all the speed they could muster.
Deciding it was too risky to try to send a message, fear of interception and giving away their position being the key factors, they instead focused their energy into reaching their destination with all possible haste. It had still taken more than ten additional months to get here with more weeks to go. They were nearing the end of this stage of their journey. Soon they would begin in earnest to plan their moves on OniThar. Those were problems for tomorrow. Tonight, was time to relax.
Neela Voln, their Asari ambassador appeared at Samantha's side and handed her a drink of alcohol spiked punch which Sam took reluctantly. "Drink up Admiral. The boys are on duty in the morning and you deserve to indulge a little tonight." She lifted her glass in toast to the room in general before taking a long swallow of the cool liquid. Sam sighed but followed suit and drained her glass. Voln laughed and placing her empty glass on the raised platform, she grabbed Verel's hand and pulled him to the dance floor. "Come on Captain. I believe it is your duty to share a dance with your ambassador." Laughing the two of them whirled away into the crowd, finding their rhythm, and joining in the mass of gyrating bodies.
"What about you Commander?" Sam questioned the tall Turian. "Do you dance?"
In a graceful bow that surprised Sam, Lexandrius held out his hand and replied. "Of course, ma'am. Would you care to have this dance?" Sam placed her hand in his and giggled as he straightened and led them to the floor to join their companions.
The council chambers on the Citadel somehow always seemed to convey an atmosphere of solemnity which Miranda supposed was both appropriate and the point, yet she could not help but wish for some splashes of color among all the metallic greys and silver. Some flowers or drapes with colors, a rug, anything to bring some life into the plain room.
Miranda paused in her thoughts and chuckled silently. Where had those thoughts come from? She really had changed over the years. She tried to think back to the woman she had been before everything had changed. Before she was an Admiral and Liaison to the Council for the Shepard Academy. Before she was married and had children. Before the Reapers. Before Shepard. Her old life seemed alien to her now as if it were something she had observed.
At sixty-eight years old, outwardly she was the same woman. Her genetic engineering held off many of the normal ravages of time. They would happen eventually, but she still likely had another sixty-eight years to go before she would start seeing those changes. Tall and fit, a body designed to be perfect, topped with a head of luxurious dark brown hair framing a soft, gently rounded face and two light grey eyes that seemed to pierce into whomever she looked at. If she slipped into an old Cerberus uniform, she would exactly as she had over thirty years earlier when she led the Lazarus team to resurrect Shepard.
Inward, nothing was the same. Her wants and desires, beliefs and priorities were all different. She was different. Shepard had shown her a new way, a better way and started her on a path to a better life. She owed him everything, but he was not the only one to save her. Her sister Oriana, her wife Felicia Hannigan, her children Michael, and Kelley and all her friends from the Normandy and those she had made since. She had even come to accept that she too was responsible for the changes. All these others had helped in their ways, but it was ultimately she who listened and acted. It was Miranda who had wanted the changes. It was she who acted and she who made the changes. She was proud of who she had become, but no longer thought of herself as superior. She knew that her success was a group effort and that realization both humbled her and gave her strength.
"Admiral Hannigan, please if you would, begin your presentation on the approaching force." Lanus Victus, the Turian Councilor spoke and the low buzzing hum of conversation that had filled the chamber faded as the dozens of galactic leaders and hundreds of Citadel civilians dropped their individual conversations to listen to the report. Miranda rose from her chair at the council table and began to speak.
"Three days ago, Observation Station Alpha reported a sudden increase in movement at the edge of their sensors. The next day, they confirmed dozens of individual ship signatures and yesterday there were hundreds. This morning, I received an update confirming that the invasion force we have been preparing for had indeed arrived. The numbers are yet to be confirmed, but early reports are already nearing one hundred thousand individual ship signatures. If even a quarter of those are carrier ships loaded with short range fighters as ours, we could easily be looking at millions of attack vessels racing towards our borders. At the current speeds they are travelling, the STG unit on OS Alpha estimates that the full force will be upon them in two weeks.
Following our instructions, they have begun evacuation protocols as they are in the direct path of the approaching fleet. They will back up all the data the station has collected and then destroy the computers so nothing can be accessed by the enemy. The station will be powered down and abandoned. Knowing that this would likely need to happen, the Geth have built additional stations that have been scattered around the galaxy's perimeter. Some of these are already active and will take over for Alpha once it has gone offline. Others are on standby. The plan is to move these around behind Akzunatai's forces to reestablish communications with the New Horizons.
Communications with our people on OniThar is critical. As such, those stations are being deployed with the best and most powerful communications arrays we have. It has been a joint effort to build them and I thank everyone who has put in the time. These new relays should allow us to communicate with them with minimal delays, reducing our wait time down to hours. No, it will not allow for us to help in any meaningful way, but it will allow us to know when they succeed in their mission. That success determines when we can throw our full might into defeating Akzunatai. Until we know that they have cut him from his power, we are on a defensive delay tactic. We buy them time and try to stay alive."
"Do we have any idea of what types of forces he plans to deploy?" Victus asked. To help streamline the briefing it was determined that he would be the sole person to ask questions for the Council. During Miranda's briefing, the others would send him questions which he would sort and ask.
"We can only speculate on that based on information the LiThar shared with us concerning his past conquests. In short, it does not matter. Our strategy is the same due to statistics. We simply do not have enough ships to go against him in a prolonged space battle. Post Reaper War, all our major fleets had been decimated. While the Turians and Alliance have rebuilt a substantial force, the Quarians and Geth, who previously had the other largest fleets, have reduced their military numbers. In the Quarian's case, a large portion of their fleet were civilian ships retrofitted for the war against the Geth. They had been in violation of Council law regarding dreadnaughts and so dismantled them after the Reapers were defeated. The Geth reduced their forces as a gesture of peace with the galaxy. What we have today, while still considerable, will not be enough to win a space battle.
Instead, we will force them to a ground fight. Rannoch is their target, so it is Rannoch where we will meet them in force. The Alliance and Turians will join the Quarians and Geth to harass and delay as best they can. Once that is no longer viable, they will have to switch to forcing them down to Rannoch where we will meet them. It is on the surface that we may have the advantage. All the council races have large standing armies, with the Krogan being at the forefront. Using Krogan muscle as our backbone, Asari for shielding and the Elcor as artillery, the other races can supplement their soldiers to the fight, and we stand a chance.
The Salarian STG teams and the Drell Special Forces will be our mobile units. Neither have the numbers needed for a standup fight however, they do have the skills to strike from the flanks and rear, at the very least providing distractions, but with some luck, they will be able to hit critical points in Akzunatai's forces. Supply lines, officers, command. Those are their targets.
Once, the enemy is on Rannoch, most of our fleet will join and boost the ground forces. The fighter squadrons will switch command to the Shepard Academy and join the fighters from there for aerial support. How many and how quickly that transition happens depends on what Akzunatai does. If he chooses to stay in space, our options become limited. Rannoch is well fortified but fighting ground to space is difficult at best. We must force Akzunatai to land his troops. That is key."
Questions from the assembled military leaders began to pour in. Lanus Victus and Cadall Baerallo did their best to answer with details and reassure doubt, yet neither their expertise in military strategy nor in diplomatic leadership could calm the unrest that was building. Those gathered wanted more. Needed more. Many were veterans of the Reaper War, several of the Krogan and Asari could date their experiences to wars that were over long before Miranda had been born. Hundreds of years of experience challenged and questioned what they were being told. For every question, the council answered, two more developed.
Miranda looked around the chamber and reassessed what she was witnessing. She knew many of those present and the rest she at least knew of them. These were not people who were in the dark, ignorant, or blind to the facts. They knew the situation, or at least as much as anyone did perhaps outside of the crew on the New Horizons. They also understood in any conflict you can only plan so far as your intelligence allows and even with the best intelligence, it is still mostly guess-work. Too many variables and changing circumstances prevented any plan from being perfect. This war would start with more unknowns than the Reaper War sixty years past.
That was when she realized what was happening. She cleared her mind of the turmoil of dozens of loud voices, shouting to be heard, arguing and on the verge of fighting and began to filter the noise. Beneath it all lay notes of fear. Voices yelling in frustration, trembled. Angry shouts masked the cracking voices of cries. She scanned individual faces instead of the blur of the crowd. Pale skin and wide eyes were everywhere. Several held stomachs and as if sick, others attempted to wipe tears from eyes that could not be stopped. They were afraid.
Miranda knew how they felt. In her mind, she was suddenly standing abord the Normandy listening to Commander Shepard tell them they were going on a suicide mission through the Omega Four relay. They had no way of knowing what waited for them, or how they were to accomplish their goal. At that time, they did not even know how they would pass through a relay from which no ship had returned that was not a Collector vessel. She too had been terrified. True, she had hidden it well, as did all aboard the Normandy, but in the privacy of her quarters, she had broken. Many sleepless nights she had lain awake, worrying, crying, screaming silently in frustration. She had done in private the same things these people were doing today.
It had taken one man to eradicate those fears from her. It was not an army, not a plan, a weapon, or drugs. One man. Someone who had stood in front of them all with confidence and honesty. Someone to provide a leaning post for his people. Someone to take away their fears and make them his own. John Shepard had done that for his team. Despite all those questions, all the doubt and uncertainty, opposition from even his own people, John Shepard had stood tall that day, spoke the truth. He had conveyed a confidence that inspired hope, and erased doubt. His words were not sugar coated, but real. He had taken their fear, their anxiety and doubt. Took it all and carried it himself, despite already harboring his own troubles. Miranda sighed. She wished John were here today.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Felicia. She had joined the audience seating to watch and was now barely visible as the crowd around her was largely on their feet in heated arguments, jostling and shifting as they strove to be recognized by the faltering council. Felicia had to contort her body to an uncomfortable angle to see around the group of Salarian STG agents who had joined in the general chaos. As Miranda's eyes found hers, she smiled, and Miranda could read the words on Felicia's lips: I love you. Three simple words that Miranda never tired of hearing. Miranda mouthed back the same. Felicia saw the love Miranda had for her, but also saw the doubt and uncertainty raging there. She knew what Miranda was struggling with internally. This was the moment she had both wanted and feared her entire life. Felicia knew that this was what Miranda's life was leading up to. Not what her father had wanted, perfection. No, this was bigger than that. Miranda was bigger than that. Felicia smiled at her wife and nodded.
A loud bang and a flash of light went off int eh chamber. The entire room fell silent instantly, many crouching to shield themselves and several biotic barriers could be seen suddenly surrounding groups of people. Civilians, military members, and the council all with shocked faces now stared directly at the source of the disturbance: Miranda. Admiral Miranda Hannigan stood tall in her dress uniform. The dark cloth trimmed in gold, admiral's insignia upon her shoulders and the left side of her chest covered in medals and ribbons, she appeared every inch a powerful, respected leader. Her right hand held in front of her a tiny ball of biotic energy, a biotic flashbang ready to be loosened again if the first did not achieve its purpose. She slowly rotated her gaze across the council and audience both, ensuring she had their undivided attention. Seeing that every eye was fixed firmly upon her, including the press and their cameras, she took a deep breath and began to speak.
"I know you are all worried. Scared. Uncertain. I know what we have given you is not much to go on. I know we are going into this war blind about our enemy. The situation is bad. At least as bad as the Reapers were." She paused for a moment. Those words were right, but not the right tone. The truth, facts were important, but so was talking to them as a friend. They had to be family. They had to believe that you cared about them, that you were in this with them. It was not enough to be a superior officer. You had to be a parent. Someone they looked to for answers and you had to deliver them, even when you did not know them. She knew what to say.
"The truth of the matter is that this fucking sucks. We are being drawn into a war that has nothing to do with us, we are simply caught in the middle. Once again, someone who thinks they can bully us into submission has come to our homes. Once again, we are told to submit or die by a being who wants to rule over us. To enslave us. To be worshipped as our god. Well, I have a response to a creature like that. Fuck you!
I know I am not alone in saying that I will never submit to slavery. Everyone in this room has fought against slavery, fought against injustice and those who would take advantage of others. We as a galactic community have vowed to help each other in keeping our freedoms and protecting those who cannot defend themselves. No, we have not always succeeded, nor is the system perfect, but we still try our best every day. Now, a new threat has arisen. At his core, Akzunatai is no different than any of tyrant we have faced before. Yes, he is powerful and commands a massive army, but we are not helpless. We are not weak. We are not alone."
Miranda knew that the next words she said were going to set policy and terms that had not yet fully been ratified. In one of Ambassador Voln's reports, she had informed them of Commander Mavish and Ambassador Fendala's agreement to an alliance with the council. As the LiThar did not have an official government, and Fendala's title was more assumption than official, the Council was uncertain as to if this would be accepted by the LiThar people. In addition, the Council was not certain on their side about an Alliance with a people they knew next to nothing about and whose home was in an entire other galaxy. The debate had rages with no consensus or even a clear majority reached. Time was up though for political debates. Miranda needed this alliance. The galaxy needed this alliance.
"The Council has accepted the LiThar people as an allied race. They have been granted a seat at the table. They have all the same rights, privileges, and responsibilities that we all share. They are of our galactic family and they are in trouble. After the Reaper War, we strengthened ourselves by staying united and instituting new laws to aid and protect one another so we would never be divided again. Today, our newest member is in desperate need and we will answer their call for aid so they will no longer be alone in this fight.
We have an advantage in this fight. We have troops behind enemy lines. The New Horizons is on a path to strike at the seat of Akzunatai's power. The LiThar are leading them to Akzunatai's base and it is there that they can break him and give us the opportunity to win. That is why we must do everything within our power to hold out as long as possible to give them time to succeed. Then we finish Akzunatai and destroy his army. There is not a maybe in this and no second chance. They will break Akzunatai and we will stop his army. We did it once before against the Reapers. We will do it again against Akzunatai and anyone else who thinks they can take our home. We will not be enslaved or destroyed. We will fight! Fight for our families, our friends, our children, and our future. We will not go quietly into that good night. Stand strong, stand united and we will win!"
By the time Miranda had finished speaking, the entire room was on its feet. Shouts and cheers mixing with clapping and stomping of feet. The room vibrated and echoed with the noise of hundreds of people who had found renewed hope. Miranda was stunned and excited at the same time. Was this what John had felt? She had no idea if her words were getting through as she spoke them. She worried what the Council was thinking and surprised they had not told her to shut and sit down. The thunderous applause continued, and she remained confidently standing, looking back at the audience with a smile of assurance. She could see the tension lift in their body language; hear hope in the tone of the voices and the see eagerness for action in their eyes. She had stoked the fires of victory. Taken their fears and doubts and gave them hope in return. She had done what she had been shown to do all those years ago aboard the Normandy.
Miranda turned towards the council and met Victus' eyes. Next to the Turian, Matriarch Aethyta and the Salarian Councilor, Cadall Baerallo looked back at her with approval on their faces. Down the length of the table, more faces smiled at her in approval. Quarian, Krogan, and Drell all gave her smiles and nods. Even those species whose faces did not convey emotion either because they wore environmental suits such as the Volus Councilor or they were not a traditionally expressive species such as the Elcor, they still showed indications of approval in their own ways. Miranda knew that she had just placed herself in the head position. She had become their support, their guide. The entire galaxy would now look to her for leadership in the coming war. Her eyes met Felicia's once again. Silently she prayed that this was a dream, that she would wake up and it would be thirty minutes earlier and she would not have spoken. She would just be Admiral Hannigan, Liaison to the Shepard Academy, only there to deliver the latest in intelligence and coordinate the Academy's role in the coming conflict. Felicia's face beamed in pride however and Miranda knew this was not a dream. A surprising calmness rolled over her body and her mind stilled. Miranda knew what she had to do. She knew what came next and how to handle it. The rest, well, she would deal with the rest as it came. She was ready.
Fuck you, John Shepard. She spoke inside her head, not for the first time as she stood at the council table looking out at the cheering crowd. Fuck you for doing this to me and thank you my friend.
James Vega watched as the last of the new anti-aircraft guns were secured on its turret. Forty-four of these monstrous guns ringed the Val'Shan Valley covering the city, academy, and farmland below. Each weapon could track, lock and fire on most targets sixty times in one minute, delivering rounds designed to disrupt shields and rip through the heavy armor of dreadnaughts, they were a ring of death protecting the Quarian capital. He grunted with satisfaction as the sound of the clamps fastening securely told him that the gun was set. The engineers would take over now to program the targeting systems and run it through the initial startup procedures before test firing. They were impressive weapons. Ones he was glad to be behind rather than in front of when the fighting started.
Walking away from the turret site, James was lost in his own thoughts. For years he had been trying to figure out what was bothering him. He was happy, had a great job, a wonderful family, and was a respected person both in the military and as a citizen of Rannoch and the galaxy in general. Still, despite all the good around him, he had constantly felt uncomfortable. Something was off, missing. He had talked to Kasumi about it several times with no solution, but he had learned he was not alone in his thoughts. She admitted to having similar feelings.
Entering their home, James pulled off his uniform and replaced it with jeans and a t-shirt. Walking down the hall from his bedroom, he stopped to look at the family photos on the wall. Pictures of his and Kasumi's childhood and families, then together on the Normandy with their friends. Promotion and award ceremonies, their wedding, and dozens of photos of their girls in various ages. At last he came to the most recent of the four Vegas together at the Shepard's a few months ago. They had been celebrating Bella's graduation and acceptance to the Rannoch College school for Marine Biology, a new program started by a few Asari scientists who had taken and interest in the oceanic life on the Quarian home world. In the picture, James had one arm around Kasumi and the other around Bella in her graduation cap and gown. Katie stood next to her sister, their heads leaning against each other and both smiling bright. Tali had taken the picture. They were all so happy. He had been filled with pride for his daughter. That night though, the uneasiness that he had been feeling increased.
Leaving the pictures behind, he wondered outside to the grill, filled it with charcoal and struck a match. Flames leapt from the black bricks and he felt the heat of those flames as they burned. The sound of the front door opening and closing told him Kasumi was home and a minute later, she stepped from the kitchen to the back patio, where she kissed her husband before handing him a beer she had grabbed from the fridge. James took a drink, letting the cold, refreshing liquid flow into him. That was when he noticed Kasumi was carrying a data pad. "Hey babe. Thanks for the cerveza. What is on the pad?"
Kasumi looked at the pad in her hand then back up at her husband with a sad smile on her face and eyes slightly moist with the threat of tears. James, not blind to his wife's emotions saw her face and immediately took her in his arms, hugging and guiding her to the nearby chairs. "What is it Kas? What does it say?"
"I got it right before I left my office." She began slowly at first, then the words tumbled out of her mouth. "My uncle, Itsuki Goto died a couple of months ago. They found his will and apparently he left me the family estate."
"Mi cielo, I'm sorry to hear. What took them so long to notify you? Its not like we are hard to find." James held her tight in his arms for a minute before relaxing to let her answer.
"They did not know I was his niece until recently." Kasumi replied and then saw that James would need some further explaining. "Uncle Itsuki was my last living relative and the last of the Goto family as his brothers and sisters have all died years ago. Many of the Gotos were killed by the Reapers with only he and me surviving. I had not thought of him in years to be honest.
He was reclusive to the estate his entire life. It was rather easy for him to do so as our estate is an island of the Japanese coast that until the invention of sky cars, was only accessible by boat. I spent a lot of my childhood growing up there. It is a beautiful place James, or at least it was. I do not know if it still is, but when you are there, it is as though you were transported back centuries to rural Japan. Isolated from the world, only minimal technology was allowed to be established there. In fact, only one room in the entire house has electricity. It is there that the phone and computer are kept, but rarely used. We used candles and lamps to see at night, and it was worth it. The stars! Nowhere else on Earth could you see such clear, expansive stars! It was looking up at those stars from the gardens on that rock that I knew I wanted to leave Earth one day to see the galaxy. I knew my future was up in that void and that one day I would go find it." Kasumi took James' hands in hers and looked him in the eyes. Love shone from her narrow eyes to meet the same from his own. "It took me a few years, but I found it. I found you and we have those girls."
James leaned forward and kissed Kasumi again. He knew there was a "but" coming and he was beginning to think he knew what it was. He also was beginning to think, he wanted it too.
"For a couple of years, you and I have been talking about feeling uneasy, as though it may be time for something new, something different. Now, I may have that. With Uncle Itsuki passing the Goto estate to me, I now own a private island in the Pacific Ocean on Earth. Maybe, we could retire and move there? The girls are grown. Katie is happy in her teaching job and I expect that a wedding may soon be in order if things continue to go well. Now that Bella has moved out to go to school, we could seriously think about going somewhere else. I don't know if this is the solution, but I think I want to try."
Kasumi looked at James trying to discern what he was thinking. She believed that he would go along with her idea, if for no other reason than to make her happy, but she wanted this to make him happy also. If they were to make this kind of change, she wanted it to be what they both wanted. She had another reason as well, but she wanted to see how he reacted to this first.
James first thought she was crazy to think of moving to Earth. They had their lives here, their family, their jobs, but the longer he let the words roll in his head, the more they sounded right. Retirement. A word he was once certain he would never consider now spoke to his heart as the most wonderful thing he could imagine. No more military. No more fighting. Just spending time with his wife, making love, and enjoying time together. Fishing, and grilling afterwards. Sipping beer while sitting on a beach watching the sunset. Visiting their daughters and perhaps even future grandchildren. Yes, he was ready. Just one thing had to be finished first.
"Once this war is done. Once Akzunatai is no longer a threat, I'm ready to retire. Kas, I think that is what has been wrong. It is time for the next chapter of my life and do not think the Alliance has a role in it. I want to spend it with you. We can do what we want, when and how we want to do it. If you want to go to your family's home, well that sounds great to me. I love Rannoch, but I do miss Earth. I just wish the girls were not grown. It would have been nice to have had more time to spend with them."
Kasumi had watched James as he spoke. She saw the sincerity in his eyes. Hope rekindle along with a desire for life once more. She felt it also. "Well, babe." She responded. "I have a bit of more good news for you then." James tilted his head questioning. "We are going to have another child. I'm pregnant."
Silence filled the patio as James' mouth dropped open. Neither moved for a couple of minutes then a huge smile broke out across James' face. Laughing joyously, he leapt his feet and pulled Kasumi into his arms, lifting her from the ground, spinning them both in circles. She let out a squeal of excitement as she found herself suddenly airborne then quickly joined him in laughter. Stopping their spin, James lowered Kasumi back to her feet then took her head in his hands and kissed her. It was a deep, passionate kiss. One filled with love and desire that was quickly building into hunger. She kissed him back with equal intensity, her hands running over the hard muscles of his back and shoulders while his found her ass and gave it a squeeze. The fire on the grill was forgotten as the backdoor slammed shut behind them.
Alarms were ringing as dozens of monitors flashed with urgent messages and alerts of incoming emergency notices. At workstations and desktops spread around the room, data pads lay scattered, their screens showing snippets of reports from across the galaxy. In the middle of the room, at a lone computer terminal, an exhausted Asari woman sat reading through the incoming messages, extracting the important bits of information and relaying those quickly out to those who needed that particular piece of information. No matter how quickly she worked however, the messages arrived faster than she could process.
Liara truly was exhausted. Her blue skin had paled some as she had been isolated in her office for weeks, frantically working to stay on top of the ever changing military and political situations. She had lost weight, was sick and the bags under her eyes spoke volumes on her lack of sleep. The war had not yet started, but it was banging on the door. She was determined to make sure her friends had all o the information she could give them.
Liara T'Soni-Allers was the Shadow Broker. The galaxy's top information trader. Taking over the position in secret after she and John Shepard had defeated the former broker, she had used the immense wealth of information and resources available to her to aid in defeating the Reapers. After the war had ended, she was able to use her influence to aid the decimated governments in keeping the peace until their own information networks were reestablished.
As the galaxy restored order, she found more time to pursuit her own interests. Archeology was still her primary interest and after nearly a decade of acting as a spy, she was ready to return to it full time. Using her agents as scouts, she was able to maintain her network of information gathering, but that information now also contained the discovered locations of ancient ruins scattered around the galaxy. As her focus was still on the Protheans, most of the sites were related to their race, however she kept her "eyes and ears" open for rumors or signs of remains from earlier civilizations.
She had a unique in site to some of those rumors through Javik. Though the last Prothean was a soldier, not a scientist, and he had only known war, he had shared with her the stories he did know as well as recreating maps of the Prothean Empire which showed where they had settled. Liara did not have specifics on what she was looking for, but after learning that the Reapers were a product of the Leviathans, she wanted to find out if she could discover more on their culture.
When they learned of Akzunatai, and how he had influenced the creation and evolution of the Leviathans, Liara had doubled her efforts to learn what she could of the elusive species. She had begun to position more agents along the edges of the galaxy, both to explore and to act as an early warning system against Akzunatai's reconnaissance. There had not been much activity regarding Akzunatai, though she had gained some leads on possible Prothean and Leviathan ruins previous unknown. It was not until these recent weeks that her agents began to pay off militarily.
It had begun slowly at first; a sighting of an unknown craft, or a partially intercepted transmission, but within days she was swamped. More and more messages were pouring in and the last twenty-four hours had her struggling to keep up. As Akzunatai's vanguard approached the edges of the Milky Way she knew that this was just the beginning. She also knew that she would need help.
Almost as if in answer to the unspoken plea, the door slid open and three young women entered the room accompanied by the delicious scents of cooked food and fresh coffee. Two of the women were human, one slightly older, but still young, in her early thirties and the other middle twenties. The third was an Asari also still in her twenties. They were of course Liara and Diana's daughters.
The oldest was Leya. Born a few months before the end of the Reaper War, her parents had been killed in the fighting in Australia. She, along with twenty other children, had been rescued by the Australian military evacuating Sydney and taken to a refugee bunker. It was there that the Alliance had found them months later, in poor health, but alive. She had been placed in an adoption program with hundreds of thousands of other displaced children and it was from there that Liara and Diana had adopted her a few years later when she was five. That was the same year the other two women were born.
Both Liara and Diana had chosen to bear children. They had wanted to have children of both genetic make ups, however since Asari only bore Asari children, Diana had become pregnant as well. This was another first for the galaxy, a Human woman bearing an Asari child. As the Asari are all female, they had not had need of another species to bear their children. As with Kris and Samantha's same sex pregnancies, Jardin Solus, Mordin Solus' nephew, found a way to do what was thought impossible. The result was Jaina, a Human-Asari hybrid and her sister, Inala an Asari.
Inala was a typical Asari child: A beautiful girl, light blue skin, and the trademark Asari scalp crests. Even though she was Asari in all ways, she still resembled her human mother Diana in the face and eyes, a resemblance that only grew as she aged. Jaina though was unique in her appearance. While Asari always bore Asari children regardless of the father species, Inala was the expected result. Jaina on the other hand, was not a normal result of procreation. Previously, humans had not successfully given birth to hybrid species, thus as with the Shepard children, Jaina was the first of a new species. Since humans and Asari are outwardly a similar, physically she was normal with a few exceptions. The most obvious was that she was blue. Or blue tinted would be more accurate. Her skin was close to that of her mother's, but a blue tinge could be seen, especially when she blushed. When humans blush, it is their red blood rushing through veins and capillaries that causes their skin to turn red. Asari however have purple blood which makes their blush appear blue or purple depending upon their skin tone. Jaina had inherited the purple colored blood of her Asari mother and as a result, her skin pigment had a slight bluish tinge that darkened when she blushed.
The next most obvious difference was on her head. While she maintained a full head of hair, either side of her head had a single scalp crest. Starting just forward of her ears, and narrower than a normal Asari, the crests arched over her ears to slope down and back to the rear of her head. The rest of her head was covered in the dark brown hair of her human mother. Long and straight it flowed, restrained only by a single tight band pulling it into a ponytail at the back of her head. She too had inherited the biotic abilities inherent to Asari and from what the doctors could tell, their long-life spans as well.
All three women were highly intelligent and well educated with both of their parents placing importance on learning. Leya had gone into social work after college, wanting to help other orphans like herself find a home or at the very least, still have a good life. Even though the Reaper War was long over, and those orphaned long grown into adults, the galaxy still had its share of those needing help. Leya had always considered herself extremely fortunate that she had been saved and wanted to give back what she could. Inala found herself following close in her mother Liara's steps, finding passion in history and archeology, she was currently working on her doctorate in archeology with a focus on pre-historic Quarian civilizations. Jaina was also working on her doctorate, though hers was in biology. She wanted to study mutations and evolution. Inspired largely by her own unique situation and that of her friends, the Shepard children, she wanted to expand upon Jardin Solus' work on interspecies reproduction. She had been accepted into the leading college on Sur'Kesh to study directly under Doctor Solus.
The girls entered the room and looked around at the mess before them. The room itself was not excessively big, after all it was part of the basement of their house, but the space had been well organized. Two of the walls were completely covered in computer consoles and monitors. A desk sitting in front of them created a workstation for Liara to analyze data in comfort. The third wall contained bookshelves and a small wet bar with cabinets for dishes and a warmer for food. Next to the bar, a door led to a restroom. The last wall contained the door the girls had just walked though as well as a work board with articles, and notes pinned to it for quick reference. The only space not given over to the Shadow Broker was a small shelf over the bar. It was upon this that three pictures rested. The first being of Liara and Diana at a park on Earth sometime after the Reaper War. They were obviously in love and smiling happily. The second was of the three girls, taken at the younger siblings' graduation, all three had their arms around each other and were in the middle of laughing at the faces Diana had been making at Liara from behind the camera. The last was of the party that John Shepard had thrown at his apartment during the Reaper War. This was what Liara used to ground herself, remind herself what she was fighting for and to keep her on the righteous path with the power at her command.
The Shadow Broker was indeed powerful. With agents in every government and at all corners of the galaxy, the broker had access to the secrets of the galaxy and with a simple command, could topple entire civilizations. That was the very basis upon which Liara's predecessor had operated. He had used the threat of such action to hold power while buying and selling his information to those he deemed worthy. Liara had admitted on multiple occasions that she could see the appeal to such a power. That was why she had established the shrine. The people in those pictures were who she was fighting for in her own special way. They were also her anchors, the ones that kept her from going too far and too deep. Now, three of them had come to her in person.
"Mom, this is ridiculous. You need to stop and eat something now." Leya spoke in a commanding tone as her mother looked up in surprise at her daughters' sudden arrival. "When Inala told me that you had isolated yourself down here and were refusing to take care of yourself, I first though that she was overreacting. Then both she and Jaina called me and said I needed to come home right away. Luckily, I had plenty of vacation time saved up and I was able to come with little issue. Now that I am here, you are going to stop what you are doing, Inala and Jaina will take over, you will sit down with me and eat and talk to me as a mother. Then you will shower and sleep while we take care of all this."
Liara watched her eldest with wide eyes and a mixture of shock, confusion, and resistance upon her face. Being the eldest by five years, Leya often took the lead in sibling matters. The Asari had a natural order to authority in their society with elders being shown respect and authority until they show they are not worthy of it. Leya, while not an Asari, had been raised in that culture more than a human one and so it had become natural for the younger sister to let Leya lead. When Inala and Jaina had failed to get their mother to listen to them, they called for Leya. It was rare that all three of them would fully agree on something, so for Liara to see all three standing in unity, reason finally broke through her mind.
She stood facing her daughters, mind racing with arguments and the girls posed to counter any protest when the breakthrough finally happened. Her shoulders dropped, she let out her breath and her stomach gave a loud rumble at the smell of cooked food. Lowering her head in shame, Liara placed the data pad she had been holding on the console, moved away from the computers and over to her daughters. Eyes wet with tears as stress and shame flooded her body, she quickly wrapped her arms around Leya, embracing her in a tight hug, before reaching past her to grab at the other two girls, bringing them in close for a long needed group hug.
"I'm so happy you are here sweetheart." Liara began as the other girls began to shed their own tears. "I'm so happy you all are. Thank you for this. I love you all so much."
"We love you too mom." Jaina responded. "But damn. Maybe you should take that shower before eating! How long has it been?"
Three hours later, showered and fed, Liara and Leya were sitting on the couch upstairs watching the sun fade through the curtains while they caught up. Jaina and Inala were still below in the lair, as Liara's office had come to be called, cleaning and sorting through the mess of notes and messages. They would not take action on any until their mom had a chance to look at them and make final decisions, but they were able to start making better sense of a lot of it and prioritize which Liara should address first. Leya had been away from home for a long time. Her sisters understood and gave her and Liara some time alone.
"It really is good to see you Leya." Liara said as they settled themselves on the couch. "It has been far too long since you have been home. I know you are busy with your job, but vids just are not the same."
"I know mom." Came the sullen reply. "After momma Di left on this mission, I had a hard time wanting to be here. I had grown used to her being gone often in pursuit of stories for work, but this is different. I always knew she was coming back before. Now I don't." Leya fell silent. And Liara could hear the pain in her voice. Leya and Diana were close. As a child, Leya had been fascinated by the work Diana did in investigative reporting and for many years, especially through early schooling, both she and Diana thought that a career in journalism was where Leya was headed. Then Diana reported on a slaver gang. That gang had been terrorizing new settlers of all races as they attempted to resettle some of the lost colonies. Thousands of people had been killed and hundreds enslaved by this gang. Eventually, the gang had been cornered, captured, or destroyed. While the threat was over, it was too late for many. The children left orphaned, adults crippled, and left to find their way and lack of resources the Council had to act with, resulted in a massive population of outcasts.
Leya had been seventeen the morning she read that article. It had been twelve years since she herself had been in the same position and with every word she read, images of her past life flooded her thoughts. Her biological parents had been killed by the reapers. Her family destroyed and her life in ruin. Then she had been saved. Suddenly she knew what she wanted to do with her life. She wanted to help those that for whatever reason, the galaxy could or would not. She applied for and was granted an internship with an Asari children's home on Thessia which was the galaxy's largest orphanage and while working there, completed her degree in psychology. Many of her clients had been traumatized and being able to provide them with sound consul and guidance had helped her in setting those people she worked with onto a successful path.
"I miss her too sweetheart." Came Liara's reply. Her own voice was sad and filled with longing. "I do not like thinking about her being away or if she is coming back either. That is why I get obsessed with my work. It helps to block out the thoughts and feelings. At least, it used to. Now, I don't know. We are really in the fight now. It is literally on our borders and they should be nearly to OniThar if not already. Our lives are about to become dangerous, and it scares me.
I know this is not the first war I have been through, but before I did not have a family. I had my friends and people I cared for of course, but they are not my wife, or my daughters. The four of you are my life and my world. Every decision I make I now weigh against how it might affect you. It makes me more determined, but also makes it all more personal. My decisions have faces now." Liara paused. Her eyes lowered to the couch cushions, taking in their subtle patterns of various shades of brown and greys. She had been conflicted about the words she wanted to speak. She had argued with herself for years over them, but in the past few months, she felt her resolve hardening. She looked back at her daughter to find Leya watching her with care and compassion. Liara now saw exactly why Leya was so good at her job. Caring for people and concern over their wellbeing were foremost in her actions. Liara could both see and feel it emanating from her eldest as they sat together. Liara's mind cleared, she took a breath and whispered. "It is time I retired as the Shadow Broker."
Leya nodded in response to her mother's words. They were ones that the whole family had wanted to hear for years. "What will happen to the role if you stop?"
"I do not know. Likely, someone else will assume the position, but it will take time and they will have to start over from scratch. What made the Broker so successful, also makes it fragile. No one knows who the Broker is by design, nor do they know other agents. Each agent was kept isolated, both by the broker and by their own actions. I can mislead them for a long time. Assign the agents to tasks that keep them carrying on normally. It has never been unusual for the Broker to not contact them for months or years at a time. If the process continued, there was not a need. The less contact, the less the risk of exposure. I can use that secrecy to end it. The only hard copies of any part of the Broker's work is in my possession. I can destroy that. Then set up a dummy system to receive the bogus reports, destroying them upon reception. There would be no indication the Broker is not receiving them. At least for a time. By then, the damage will be done. The Broker gone. The uncertainty of what was happening should keep anyone with ambitions to take over unsure and cautious for some time."
"That sounds good mom, but are you sure? I want you out. So do Jaina and Inala, and I know momma Di does also, but are you certain? What happens if the galaxy needs the Broker?"
"The galaxy never needed the Broker Leya." Liara replied to her daughter. "The Broker was created by those wanting power and influence over others. It was just another form of domination for untold years until John and I stopped it. Since then, while it has been a useful tool, the dangers far outweigh the benefits. Within the first few hours of taking over as the Broker I had realized how devastating it could be. I told John as much, but we needed the network against the Collectors and the Reapers. Since then, I have continued to run the network more for my own interests than anything hugely beneficial to the galaxy until recently. Now, it is more redundant than leading. I have done that deliberately in hopes that the day would come when I could stop with a clear mind. I will keep it running through this war, but the day the war ends, so too will the Shadow Broker."
"That is great to hear mom." Jaina spoke as she and Inala entered the room. "It is time for you to live your life for you and momma Di. We are grown and can take care of ourselves. The galaxy can take care of itself too. You already fought one war. When mom comes home, the two of you go have fun. You have earned it, and we want you to be happy." Jaina finished speaking as they joined the sister and mother on the couch. The three girls were smiling as they watched Liara. They had been wanting for years for her to let the Broker go. They had seen how unhappy she had been, how stressed, anxious, and depressed. After Diana had left it had gotten worse.
"Thank you, my loves." Liara said, her voice heavy with grief, she could see the pain that she had put them through and heard the pleading in their voices. "I know that it has been hard on you at times and that I probably suffered as a mother as a result. I am sorry for that."
"No need to apologize mom." Inala responded. "You were a great mother. You were there for us, with us. Sure, sometimes things came up that prevented you from always being available, but so did momma Di, and so it is with every parent. We do not regret what happened in our lives because of you being the Broker. We regret what happened in yours. It has been your life, your happiness and your time that was sacrificed, not ours. You owe the apology to yourself."
Liara was shocked at her daughter's words. She had not thought of it that way before. She had always believed that she had been hurting those around her. Her own pains she had dismissed as meaningless. Suddenly she saw it differently. A warm sensation flooded her body and with it a new resolve filled her. She was making the right decisions. It was time to let the Broker go. It was time to just be Liara, wife and mother. It was her time now. Hers and her family. "My beautiful, smart daughters. I am so very, very proud of you. When did you all become so wise?"
"Mom." Leya replied. "Everything we are is because of you and momma Di. If we are beautiful, smart, and wise, it is because you made us this way. With the two of you as our mother's, we could never be anything else."
The women hugged and tears were in every eye. A change was coming to the T'Soni-Allers family. The future was bright and exciting. They just had to get through a war first.
The clock tower of the administration building at the Shepard Academy offered panoramic views of the Academy grounds that Garrus had always enjoyed. From their he could observe the cadets marching and drilling without them being aware he was watching. It had provided him a different perspective of how their training was progressing and over the years, it had become an invaluable tool that he took advantage of. The grounds below him today however were much different than those in the past with the most obvious being the dozens of ships departing the airfield to join the fleet amassing above Rannoch.
Those ships were the last of the five hundred fighters and dozens of reconnaissance ships that had been constructed at the Academy. Many had departed the day before and the rest had been lifting off in waves every few hours all day. The fighters were all Geth ships, designed for swift and tactical strikes, piloted by Geth who could eject into the vacuum of space and be recovered later if required. This allowed them to carry out what would be considered "suicide runs" to any other race. They were a deadly last resort measure.
Garrus watched as the last of the ships rose through the air, gradually shrinking in size till they disappeared in the bright, blue sky. Before the last ship had lifted off, he found himself no longer alone. A single human female had climbed the stairs to the tower and joined the Turian in his observations. She had walked straight to him and lifting his arm, she maneuvered her body so they were pressed together side-by-side and let rested the taller Turian's arm on her shoulder so his forearm draped across her chest. Garrus smiled and sighed as his wife snuggled close. Snuggled may be the wrong word he thought as the stiff plates of the armor they both war prevented their bodies from touching, but Garrus could smell Ashley's hair as the valley breeze carried her scent to his sensitive nose and he took comfort in that sensation. Tightening his arm, he pulled her against him in a hug.
It was rare that they both got to spend time together in this location. Normally, one of them would be on duty with the cadets and usually when they were both off duty, they were home. Their routine had changed lately though. The entire Academy's had in fact. There were no more Cadets under their watch. All had been promoted early to active duty. They now either stood sentry duty or were resting. The new protocols went into effect only a few days earlier, but they had been preparing for months. In a brief ceremony, the lives of one-thousand cadets changed from theory to reality. Academy uniforms were changed out for armor, training rifles with real and duty shifts now meant patrolling against a real enemy intent on killing them and not drill instructors testing their observation skills.
Across the once familiar landscape where practice targets and obstacle courses once dominated, barricades stood in front of gates that were secured shut and missile batteries swiveled upon armored turrets. Where once instructors barked commands and insults as cadets struggled to overcome their challenges, fearful whispers could be heard when he walked past. Still, spirits and morale were high overall. Many of the former cadets were young, green, and never seen war. They were excited and ready to prove themselves. While fears were whispered in the dark, shouts and cheers rose during the day.
Garrus was a soldier to the core. Ashley was the same. Both born and raised before joining and living a military life. This was what they knew, what they lived and what their futures were. Retirement would only come when old age made them feeble or death in battle claimed them. Both had made their peace with this. They knew what was coming. They knew what their odds were. Fears were a given, but neither showed them. They were leaders and they would lead by example. Tonight, they would talk, as they did most nights together in bed, where only the darkness could hear and see their worries, troubles, and insecurities. Here at the academy, even high up in the tower, they knew they could be seen and therefore, as the couple watched the last of the ships fade into the Rannoch skies, they showed nothing but confidence and steadfast resolve.
Garrus Vakarian and Ashley Williams, two of the famed Normandy Crew, were far more than mere drill instructors to those within the Academy walls. They were heroes. Legends. Symbols of power and hope. They were also in charge of the Academy. James had been called to lead the ground troops the Academy had provided, those who had already graduated yet were still stationed there for various reasons, and as such would be in the midst of battle away from the Academy grounds. That left the Academy's defense to Garrus and Ashley and the one thousand cadets under their command. Not a command either took lightly under normal circumstances, they now played a vital role in upcoming war.
The Shepard Academy was always intended to be more than just a galactic special force training command. When Rannoch was resettled after the Reaper War and the Capital, Val'Shan founded, The Quarians knew that they would need protection as well as alliances in rebuilding their civilization. Out of those early talks came the Academy, and with it, a powerful shield to the newborn city. Placed alongside the river, Ril Azhana with its rear to the great sea, Solom Azhana and its remaining side to the valley's steep cliffs, its tall walls and taller towers commanded control of the valley floor.
Within those walls was the vast complex of the training facility as well as the experimental division that had established itself as the leading developer in ship design and interstellar communications. As such, it contained not only one of the most powerful long-range communications towers, but also the largest airfield on Rannoch. Both would be crucial in the coming war and it was those that made the defense of the Academy a heavy weight upon the Turian and his Human wife.
None of this was why Garrus had climbed the tower this day. At least not the main reason. Hours away, at the edge of the galaxy where the fleet was massing, were his two sons. He and Ashley had adopter two kids after the war. One Human, Richard and the other Turian, Braxus. Both born in 2187 during the Reaper war, they were now in their thirties and serving aboard Quarian military ships. Like their parents, they were both excellent soldiers, moving through the ranks rapidly and deservedly from enlisted grunts to both making Lieutenant in the past year. They were strong, intelligent, and well-liked by their peers. They had a bright future ahead of them. Garrus hoped it was not about to end prematurely.
He and Ashley both knew the costs the military demanded. They did not fear it, but they respected it. It was not a life for everyone. Not a cost everyone was willing to pay. They were. They had seen it firsthand in their friends, family, and comrades. They knew that every mission could be the one their own ticket was punched. They knew, and they went anyway. It was who they are. It was who their sons are. That did not stop Garrus from worrying. He was a father. Those were his children. He worried for them.
Ashley's thoughts were the same as her husbands. That was one of the things that she loved about their relationship; they did not have to speak to know what the other was thinking. They were both socially awkward with personal things and yet, they fully understood each other. It had taken time. Years in fact as ingrained biases had to be broken and minds opened before they could finally see what was in front of them. Each other. Ashley slid her arm around Garrus' waist, wishing they were not wearing armor and that her pistol was not putting pressure on her hip as it was smashed between her thigh and his.
"Tali called." She spoke in a quiet voice. "She and John invited us to dinner tonight. James and Kasumi will be there also."
"Final meal before battle?"
"Something like that. I guess." She replied
"What time?"
"In about an hour. That is one of the reasons I came to find you."
"What was the other?"
"I just wanted to be with you. I do not think we will have too many more opportunities for quiet, alone time after tonight. I wanted to get in some before it was too late." Ashley sighed and leaned even more into Garrus' body, at least as much as the armor allowed. "I love you, Garrus."
"I love you too, Ash." Garrus replied. He did not think he had ever spoken more truer words in his life.
From a cave in the side of a low mountain range, they watched the ship descend through the OniThar atmosphere, rapidly diving toward the cover provided by this arm of the great volcanic range that fenced in Akzunatai's main fortress. Formed ages ago when Akzunatai had first come to OniThar and set the continent ablaze with his rage, the mountains had long since cooled, the forests grown back, if not as majestic as they once had been, and the waters in the rivers and lakes that dotted the landscape were no longer poisoned. The native wildlife had returned and from an outside perspective, one would not know that this was a planet at war.
Keeping out of site, but where they could see all, the two LiThar watched the strange ship vanish beneath the tree canopy and go silent. For several moments they remained frozen in place, watching where the ship vanished before looking at each other with surprise and worry mirrored in each other's face. Retreating into the rear of the cave, they quickly woke and explained to their two other companions what they had seen. Weapons were passed out, packs with food and supplies shouldered and all four LiThar went racing down the mountain. One pair raced away from the ship while the other went toward the spot where it had landed. Anxiety gripped them. Curiosity drove them forward. Nothing had been normal the past year on OniThar. Now, another change was happening. Good or bad, they would just have to wait and see.