Alliance shipyards, Normandy berth, Vancouver Island, Earth
The shuttle settled with a small jolt. Tash and Liselle reached for their bags on their way to the entrance which opened onto a busy dock. People were rushing in every direction and mini haulers beeped their way through the crowd.
Tash gave Liselle a broad grin, "so just what is this great plan about our sleeping arrangements. You know I'm in a bunk with two other officers which doesn't allow for much privacy."
"You leave that to me, but while I'm working on it I'm quite looking forward to being a little adventurous in our liaisons."
They began weaving their way towards the Normandy across the concourse, it's ramp guarded by two of the ships security team.
"Admiral Anderson wanted you to go straight to the CIC on your arrival Major," Petty Officer Green added a salute to his instructions as they passed.
Once inside the ship Liselle took Tash's bag and with a nod they parted.
"Come in," the door to Anderson's ready room was open but Tash knocked anyway.
"Major Mikhailovich reporting for duty, sir," Tash snapped a salute and stood to attention just inside the fairly small space.
"At ease Major," Anderson indicated the only other chair in the room and he turned towards her away from his console. "I know you were Shepard's exec for the last tour of duty and I would like you to continue in that position for me."
"I, um, well, sir… I was in that position because we really didn't have one and the situation was highly…"
"Unusual," Anderson interjected with a small smile, "yes mutiny does call for a certain kind of loyalty in an XO."
"Uh not to say Garrus… I mean Captain Vakarian would have but… "
Tash decided to shut up and stop rambling. She didn't know whether she wanted to be the XO but she certainly didn't want to blow it, just because she couldn't string sentences together. And this was Admiral Anderson, a huge personal hero of hers. She'd rather like him to think she was moderately capable.
"I know you haven't received any training for this position and we probably don't have much time," a wry smiled traced his lips, "I would imagine your Commander will be back on active duty as soon as she can browbeat her doctors. So, I'd like to give you a crash course, stripped down and bearing in mind our current situation."
She was surprised. She didn't have the training, or seniority and although Shepard had free reign with her crew when the Normandy was purely a Spectre vessel they were now returning to the Alliance Navy fleet. She didn't know whether she was pleased that Anderson thought she might be worthy of the job or if it was even something she wanted to do.
Commanding the ground teams played to her strength, the ones she'd learned while banished on her covert mission to Cerberus. She was a very capable merc having learnt that trade for the nearly ten years she'd been forced to be undercover by Alliance Intelligence Services. Which meant she didn't always do things by the Alliance book, but then neither did Shepard.
The executive officer on most ships would be the one to lead away teams, but Shepard had always led from the front. When Lawson had been the XO she had also gone on missions so would that be the same for her.
Then a thought crossed her mind, "Why Admiral, why would you spend time coaching me? Is it because you feel sorry for me, for all the time I was used like a disposable asset," then a powerful emotion crept up on her and she covered it over with a display of anger, "or maybe it's something to do with my father, some kind of reward for not being a snake like he was."
She stopped abruptly remembering where she was and who she was talking to but wasn't going to apologise. She didn't give a fuck about promotion or playing nice with someone who represented everything she'd hated for most of her adult life.
When Anderson spoke, it was in a quiet measured tone, "I am aware of how badly you've been treated but at some point, you will need to start trusting us again. As for why I'm willing to coach you and support you, well that is rather selfish on my part," he paused and Tash felt her anger draining away, "I made a promise to your Aunt Hannah that I would do everything I could to make sure you were treated fairly when you returned to active duty."
Tash felt something tighten in her chest and the muscles in her jaw clenched. A short nod was all she could muster as she fought to keep the grief from taking hold.
"And, I need to know Shepard has someone she can trust watching her back and running her ship and you come very highly recommended," he stood sensing she needed a little space to compose herself, "so get your gear stowed away and meet me back here in an hour and we'll get started."
She stood and looked into steady brown eyes and snapped a salute before leaving. Once back outside on the command deck she moved quickly to the elevator to find Liselle. Another thought struck her and helped push her sadness away, the XO had their own bunk.
Two weeks into Shepard's convalescence, T'Soni private estate, gardens – Thessia
Shepard felt the Thessian sun hot on her back as she leaned forward her hands on her knee's, working hard to steady her breathing. This was the third day she'd tried a two-hour run and her heart was pounding in her chest. She decided to walk back to the house cursing the fact that her doctors would be getting the data from her omni tool. They would know, as she did, that her lungs were still not functioning at optimal levels.
She decided to go straight for a shower and try to wash away the foul mood that always accompanied any set back to her recovery and return to duty.
From her study window Liara watched Shepard run across the open fields and into the formal gardens. She could see the strain in her lover's body, something that was never apparent before the explosion that which had claimed so much from them both. Her sadness deepened when Shepard stopped in the garden and bent double her shoulders heaving with the effort to breathe.
Two weeks was not a long time to recover from such a huge operation. And her lovers' cloned lungs still needed to build their own muscle and learn how to perform in their new body, there were no shortcuts for that. But she knew how much her bondmate hated feeling physically weak. So, of course, Shepard was pushing as hard as she could to get back to full fitness and Liara could do nothing to help except keep out of the way.
What she was trying to help with was her lovers' mental state, and thankfully that was going much better than the physical recovery.
She moved back behind her desk and waited for the next call to come through. Since her return she had been constantly in meetings and on vid conferences to re-establish her position in both Asari society and politics. Wielding diplomacy with one and threats with the other when necessary.
She was still dismissed by most of the Matriarchs as too young to be the head of one of the one hundred first families and far too inexperienced to be the head of a Republic. The sympathy for her from her Asams' death and her own misfortune, coupled with the glamour of being one of the Normandy crew who saved the Galactic Council, would only last for so long.
Asari politics, on the surface, were completely democratic with an electronic voting and referendum system that was the unique in the Galaxy. Titles like head of the first family in Thrassica were only as effective as the political power that came with it. As head of the first family of Thrassica she could not be removed or voted out. This was a social position defined by lineage. But each Republic had an elected council who then sent representatives to the Thessian Tad'Iyasa Gga which discussed and, when necessary, made the more immediate decisions informed by the public debates facilitated by Thessias' e-democracy.
Liara had found it difficult to explain the way it all worked to Shepard and in the end used the Systems Alliance as an analogy. The countries of Earth came together to make big decisions that affected the whole planet which was like the Tad'Iyasa Gga and the first one hundred families made longer term decisions like the Systems Alliance parliament. But there was no comparison for the Matriarchs SaM'kram Na or its most influential inner circle of the T'Ara who's role was to guide Thessia and the Asari over timescales marked in thousands of years.
She tried to quell her unease about how undemocratic the heart of her race's government truly was. But held onto something her bondmate had said, "it makes sense for your people that wisdom gained with great age should be valued. And individuals do have real power over their everyday lives."
Shepard also said that absolute power corrupts absolutely and that she hoped the Matriarchs weren't just a bunch of power hungry politicians because that was what had brought her own home planet close to the point of collapse in the early twenty first century.
The comm link pinged on her desk and she brought her mind back to her next call. And thoughts of why she was doing this; why she had picked up this mantle of responsibility rather than following her heart and staying by Shepard's side were pushed to one side.
Family room, T'Soni private residence, Thessia
Liara was content and happy and she wasn't going to think about it too much. Just enjoying the moment. Laid back on one of the large sofas with her feet nestled in Shepard's lap. She was receiving a foot massage while watching some old human vid that had her lover smiling and laughing. She'd take this moment and hold onto it for as long as possible.
"Am I interrupting you both," Garrus spoke from just inside the room.
"Of course not, come and join us," Liara indicated to the adjoining sofa.
"Hey old man," Shepard called leaning back to watch him as he joined them, "any news on your romance."
"What the hell are you making Liara watch," he said with a smile in his voice.
"This is human humour, and very popular, although I am still a little lost as to what is happening most of the time."
"This is classic adult cartoon humour. Although I may have misled you if you think all humans find this funny," she said with a cheeky grin muting the volume. "But for you to enjoy it we'd have to find your sense of humour and I've been told turian's don't have one."
"Well if we are going to impugn anyone's sense of humour I've had to put up with your attempts for the last few years. And I'm still waiting to be convinced humans have one that travels," his mandibles were twitching signalling his mirth.
"I'll have you know I have an excellent sense of humour… that and my charm has carried me through more than a few tricky situations."
"Hum, the kind of charm that prefers huge explosions rather than technical finesse."
"If a job needs doing its worth doing really noisily leaving little usable debris behind I like to say," she paused and looked at him her serious tone betrayed by raised eyebrows and a smirk, "speaking of technical finesse do you need some tips for your new relationship? I know it's been a while."
Liara smiled watching the interchange between the two friends as they carried on with their easy banter. She thought back to a time when these two, like everyone else on the Normandy, were strangers to her. When she felt out of place lost in the social conventions of a multi-species group whose visual clues she found almost impossible to read.
At a pause in the conversation she spoke up, "how are things with Va'line?"
Garrus glanced down and took a deep breath, "they seem to be going well," he looked up, "and she wants me to be in my daughter's life."
"Oh man, you could have led with that," Shepard laughed.
Liara gave him a smile, "that is good news." Since his return from leave and the revelation that he had an asari daughter she had been researching Va'line Destar.
Destar's time on the Citadel when she met the young Garrus Vakarian, Citadel Security officer, had been the only time she had lived away from Thessia. The first daughter of a noted family she was being groomed to one day head up the family corporation. But that was a long way in the future and as a matron, Va'line still had a lot of freedom to pursue her own career.
Shepard laid Liara's feet down on the sofa and stood, "I'll go check to see how long dinner is going to be and wash up."
Garrus stared at her retreating back, "how is she doing."
"Much better I think," Liara moved into a sitting position, "but there is a part of her I still cannot reach."
She heard the sadness in her own voice and gave Garrus a small smile.
"Just give it time, you two have had a hell of a year. Are you doing better," he asked and she understood what he meant.
"Yes, but the dizzy spells and tiredness do not seem to be lessening. The healers have no long-term concerns but they do not expect my limbic system to return to normal until after I give birth."
It had been a blow to hear she would not be physically fit enough to return with Shepard to the Normandy. But it had avoided a potential argument as her bondmate had been adamant that she should remain on Thessia until their baby was born.
In all truth she had more than enough work to do and a lot of it she needed to be in Thrassica to carry out. That did not distract from her frustration and she was working hard in daily sessions of healing meditation to let go her anger at Shiala as it was a pointless use of her energy.
Shepard came back into the room moving quickly to stand in front of Liara, "I just got a call from Arcturus…," she rubbed the back of her neck a sign that she was tense and a little uncertain of how to proceed, "they've cleared me for duty with some limitations for on dirt side activities."
Liara and Shepard held each other's eyes for a few moments in silence. The mix of emotion churning between them like choppy water.
"When are you leaving," Liara fought to keep her tone light but knew she had failed.
"I'll wait for you in the dining room," Garrus said quietly and began to move to the doorway.
"No," Shepard said looking in his direction, "this involves you as well."
She saw the look of confusion pass over Liara's face and moved on quickly.
"Anderson has finished trials on the new tech and is on his way to pick me up."
"How long," Liara asked again a note of stress now clear in her voice.
"Two days," She felt a rush of panic. She would be leaving Liara, again, in two days. The blood started pumping in her ears and her breathing became shallow. And her only anchor were the steady blue eyes looking into her soul.
Liara could sense her lover's distress, standing she moved close putting her hands on the back of her bondmates head and when she spoke her voice was calm and strong, "I am safe Shepard, I will be here whenever you need me. And I will be with you wherever you go."
They rested their foreheads together and in the silence Shepard's breathing returned to normal. Garrus could see just how much his Commander was carrying and, in that instant, knew that she really couldn't do what the Galaxy demanded of her without Liara.
When they broke apart Shepard looked in his direction, "I need you to stay here with Liara, I need to know…"
"Whatever you need, Shepard," he looked at Liara, "as long as you don't mind seeing my ugly face every day."
She smiled widely, "if that is agreeable to you."
That night when Shepard finally slipped into a fitful sleep Liara allowed herself some quiet tears.
Hangar deck, SSV Normandy, Athena Nebulae
Shepard jumped out of the shuttle onto the hangar deck and handed off her bag to Carter, her personal aide, but half her mind was still on leaving Liara only hours earlier.
She knew her bondmate found their parting so soon after finding each other again as painful as she did. Shepard was still wounded at a soul level from loss and the things she had done since that fateful day on Illium.
Liara's strength and kindness would only carry her so far on her journey of recovery. Until Cerberus and Harper were dead she knew there would be little time to heal. And she needed to find her son or find out what had happened to him. With that thought the image of Kai Leng came hard and strong into her mind accompanied by the physical urge to rip him apart with her own hands.
A voice snapped her back from her thoughts, "Are you ok Commander?"
She noted her clenched fists, tight jaw and rough breathing that the visceral thoughts had invoked. Steadying herself she looked at her aide, "yeah just a little re-entry turbulence. Good to see you, how have things been."
They began walking towards the elevators at the back of the deck.
"Well we have more ground troops then we've ever had so accommodation is a bit tight. And Admiral Anderson has been running us ragged with drills. Oh, the Admiral would like to see you on the command deck."
In the elevator Shepard hit the pad, "how many Normandy crew decided to stay."
"All of them Commander," Carter's voice showed her surprise.
Shepard smiled, "Good to know I haven't scarred you all too badly yet."
Her words were rewarded by a huge smile and her aide stood to attention as Shepard made to leave, "all the way, Ma'am, we're with you till the end."
In equal parts Shepard felt pride and gratitude and on the other side of the scales responsibility, doubt and panic.
The command deck felt like home, hell the Normandy felt as much like home as Liara's estate did. Anderson was talking to one of the specialist but stopped as soon as he saw her.
"Welcome back Commander, you look much better than the last time I saw you."
"Thank you, Admiral," they exchanged salutes and she added quietly, "I'm sorry I was so pissed at you and Admiral Hackett on Arcturus."
"You were hurting, nothing more to be said. Now let me get you up to speed and then you can drop me off on the Citadel."
They moved to the oval of command stations and Anderson replaced the 3d laser projection of the Galaxy with the Normandy.
"The stealth shielding has been applied to every area of the ship, almost painted on, and is comprised of nanites. We had to place the equipment that runs and controls it on the storage deck, it just wouldn't fit in engineering."
"How much storage have we lost. It was always on the low side and with all the extra crew and potentially extended mission times we may run into issues."
"Agreed. Serrice Council did a solid job getting the unit as small as possible but you have lost about a quarter of your storage," he turned to look at her, "one of the priority missions you have straight out the gate is identifying appropriate supply and fuel dumps. We can't trust that any of our existing sites won't be compromised."
She nodded, "and we'll need to find a way to keep their locations out of official records but accessible to ships that need them when the shit hits the fan."
They stood in silence for a moment and next time she spoke it was in a lighter tone.
"So, you kept the paint job. I thought our phoenix would have been painted over with Alliance blue.
Anderson gave her a broad grin, "well she is still a joint Navy Spectre vessel but… the time has come for you to take that promotion because we need you to run a wolf pack. And as its new and will be off the books for most of its activity we're giving it a non-naval designation. Phoenix squadron."
"But sir…"
"You can run your wolf pack any way you want Shepard. You have a lot of ground to cover and even though we've increased the ground team you have on the Normandy you will benefit from the extra boots from the other frigates," he lowered his voice and leaned in slightly, "the promotion doesn't take you any further away from the fight."
"I just feel I don't deserve it," she wasn't looking at him but at the image of the Normandy.
"Well if I can't convince you that you have, earn it from here on."
"I'll do my best, sir."
Two hours later, conference room, Normandy
Shepard had received a full security briefing from Anderson and carried out a tour of the ship. She had then gone through the reports on the three ships that would be under her command in the newly formed Phoenix wolf pack before calling her senior officers to a meeting.
When she entered the conference room everyone was waiting for her. The humans and turian's stood to attention while Skark her krogan battlemaster smashed his fists together and Senna gave her a Siari welcome greeting.
"At ease everyone," she sat and leaned her elbows on the table her hands clasped and took them all in.
She was touched that Skark had decided to stay on this assignment. Wrex had given him the chance to rotate out and back to Tuchunka but the old battlemaster had pledged his allegiance to her and was going to stay until the job was done. Grunt was on Tuchunka with Wrex being properly inducted into the Clan. Wrex had not hesitated when Shepard asked him to adopt the tank born krogan much against the wishes of some of his own clan elders. But from the brief updates she had received, Wrex was not much of a writer, he was doing very well and a considered a brave and gifted fighter.
The thought made her both proud and saddened, she would miss her krogan son.
Both Evictus the ex C-Sec officer and Senna ex Citadel defence force and a Captain of Commandos on Thessia had also stayed to serve on what was now a part Alliance ship. These were officers she had fought alongside and would happily have watching her back.
In engineering there were few changes just the addition of a few extra specialists under the steady eye of Adams her engineering officer.
It was in her information and intelligence analysis section that she recognised weaknesses. The team worked well but no one stood out as either a leader or who could take all the pieces and put them together. She had EDI of course but there were still some elements of human analysis that could not be replicated even by the most adaptive of artificial intelligence.
She missed Ish and his death amongst others still haunted her. She missed Kasumi but her talents were much better utilised by the Shadow Broker network. And of course, she missed Liara every moment for much more than her analytical abilities.
Realising she had been silent for longer than was comfortable for her team she said, "it's good to be back with you. And I have to thank you for deciding to stay and for some of you re-joining the Alliance Navy. I want to congratulate our new executive officer Lieutenant Commander Mikhailovich, who will still have some training to do on the navy side of things. But you should all know I trust her with my ship and my life."
There was a round of various cheers and congratulations and Shepard smiled as Tash appeared to blush slightly.
"Some changes I need to make you aware of. First, I will be taking a promotion to Captain and we will be heading up a wolf pack to carry out our next set of missions. I want the three of you," she indicated her ground force team commanders, "to start working on increasing our krogan, turian and asari numbers so we can integrate across all the frigates in our wolf pack."
There was now total silence in the room and she knew they were saving their questions until the end of her briefing, as it should be.
"As you know Alliance frigates are slightly smaller than the improved Normandy point two zero but they offer higher ground force numbers than we do. So, we'll be looking to have a ratio of around forty humans to a twenty strong multi-species addition. We'll stick to turian, krogan and asari combat troops for now.
"Secondly, we will be testing our full stealth mode under combat conditions on our first tour. We will be infiltrating Batarian space and finding out exactly what they are up to. This will mean extended periods of discomfort given the technical requirements for running fully cloaked. Questions?"
The meeting continued for over an hour and when she finally dismissed her team she felt confident and in control. It was a good start. And she would have plenty to tell Liara later on their daily vid call.
Liara's office, Thrassican Republic capital mansion, Thessia
She tried not to think about the moment of their parting and it felt much longer ago than two weeks. The physical wrench they had both experienced. That final meld on the lawn before Shepard jumped on the shuttle taking her to the Normandy. Back to her duty, into danger, away from Liara.
The bed felt empty and she was having trouble sleeping again. It was too soon, they had hardly had any time together. There were wounds that still needed healing. Edges that needed smoothed back into place inside both of them.
And yet she knew it was what Shepard needed. To get back to doing, hunting, destroying those who had harmed her family. It didn't make the cost any easier to bear.
A knock on her door pulled her from her brooding.
"Come in," Kasumi and the director of operations for the Republic came in and after exchanging Siari greetings they sat in the chairs across from Liara's desk.
She smiled, "thank you for joining me. I believe you have some concerns about my plans?"
Matriarch Fenestra T'Soni was a very senior member of the family and had served the Republic for the last three hundred years. If lineage had been only slightly different or Liara had been deemed too young to head up the family and lead the Republic she would have been next in line.
Liara had always felt very intimidated by the Matriarch when she was growing up. A stern and imposing figure, who had challenged her mother when she disagreed with issues relating to the Republic or the family estate.
Trying to remember how Benezia had dealt with the Matriarch she remembered long conversations usually ending in agreement. But she was not her mother so would need to navigate her own relationship with Lady Fenestra.
"What you are planning is going to cost an enormous amount of credits given the timescales you have set out and the amount of work required. I can see no immediate, or long-term, benefit to either the Estate or the Republic. And we may even have to liquidate some assets and holdings to accomplish what you intend." Fenestra sat ramrod straight in her chair, hands in her lap. Her tone was matter of fact as she fixed all her attention on Liara.
"Yes," Liara understood completely what Fenestra's point was but was not going to start justifying herself, she had paid some attention while she was growing up.
"So, you understand this cannot be done."
"I do not understand that Lady Fenestra, in fact you just told me what we would need to do to make it happen."
The silence stretched out and the Matriarch stared straight into Liara's eyes as the tension grew.
"These plans have not been taken the Thrassican council of Matriarchs."
Another statement that held more than a little judgment and threat. Liara was aware that Fenestra was one of a number of the Republic's Matriarchs who believed she was too young and inexperienced and far too heavily influenced by her human bondmate to lead Thrassica, or the T'Soni family.
"These decisions are within my authority."
The Matriarch pursed her lips, "perhaps, given the cost of this project we should ask for a discussion on the e-forum and take a vote," the ghost of a tightening of jaw muscle accompanied her words.
"That would set a dangerous precedent do you not think?" Liara's tone was light and she leaned forward on the desk tilting her head a little, "you obviously don't believe the threat that is coming is real."
"I have not been privy to all the information available. However, if the threat was credible the T'Ara would be sharing their concerns and making plans for a Thessia wide response."
"You would risk our people, our Republic, while the T'Ara and the Matriarchs argue over secrets and lies. I am not prepared to wait until it is too late to at least try to preserve our civilisation. And so, unless there are any practical reasons we cannot start the work I suggest we stop arguing and get started."
"There are other ways we can prepare for the highly remote possibility that invaders manage to…"
Liara slammed her palms down on the top of the desk hard and both Fenestra and Kasumi jumped, "my mother may have put up with your interfering but I will not. You are a servant of the Republic and this family. And I have made my wishes clear," Liara fixed the Matriarch with her own stare, "if you are unhappy carrying out my orders you can be replaced."
Fenestra seemed to sag a little in her chair and blood drained from her face, "I have never been spoken to…," catching the look on Liara's face she continued, "but my duty is, as you pointed out, to serve and so that is what I will do."
The Matriarch stood and turned to head for the door pausing to say over her shoulder, "I had expected more courtesy from Lady Benezia's successor."
Liara let out a huge sigh and realised she had been rigid with tension.
"Well she wasn't too happy," the smile evident in Kasumi's soft tone, "and aren't you supposed to spend more than thirty minutes discussing a decision, find consensus, rather than issue orders."
"Yes, that is the asari way. Perhaps I have been around Shepard too much," Liara relaxed back into her chair, "I need you to make sure this work is being carried out without delay."
"Me, but that's not going to go down well. A human looking over the shoulder of a Matriarch, the second in line to the throne Matriarch at that."
"I will conform to asari social and political conventions when it helps achieve our goals and if I have the patience. But we don't have time for things to move at the usual asari decision making pace," she held Kasumi's gaze, "we both know we are on borrowed time. I cannot let Fenestra or anyone else get in the way."
With a short nod Kasumi agreed, "OK well you'd better let me see the full plans so I know what I'm looking for," she paused and carried on in a softer tone. "You got the idea from where you were being held?"
Liara had a flash of memory, standing on the edge of the landing platform and making a decision to jump if she didn't get rescued. She could feel the cold biting her face and the clean smell of the mountain air. Shaking off her thoughts she brought herself back to the present.
"Yes, and I have since found that we have quite a few scattered around our wilderness areas. We need to identify more but they must be undetectable. And we will need much larger supply storage. Hiding our population for over a hundred years will take ingenuity and preparation," her mind went back to her planning and all the things they needed to accomplish quickly and quietly, "they may even stay longer trying to purge the Galaxy this time given asari and krogan age spans."
"We'll get it done, those bastards won't win this time."
Liara nodded at her friends' assertion but she knew the Protheans had tried exactly the same thing and failed and they had an entire Galaxy under their control.
One week after taking command of the wolf pack, Normandy command deck, Attican Traverse, Maroon Sea
"Run it again," Tash said over comms after receiving a nod from Shepard.
They were running search and rescue drills on a planet in the Matano system. It was a harsh environment with a lot of electromagnetic interference from its atmosphere making both communication to and between ground teams difficult.
Shepard was determined that the squadron would function as efficiently as the individual ships that made it up. And at the moment they were trying to coordinate a search for their teams in low atmosphere not using emergency tracking systems.
She was pleased at the way Tash had really stepped up into her new role. When on duty she was an exemplary executive officer always on the same wavelength as her Captain but also willing to challenge and offer alternative ways to look at the challenges confronting them.
Off duty she still partied hard but Shepard wouldn't fault her for that. She wanted her crew to have as much of a social life as possible. Their work was going to be hard, dangerous and unremitting. They would be the tip of the spear and would necessarily see the worst that the coming war would have to offer.
Her omni tool pinged informing her she had a vid message. When she checked it a surge of panic flooded her system causing her breathing to quicken. Without a word she moved quickly to the small ready room just off the command deck and once inside she hit receive.
The call was coming in on her most private and secure channel and the only living person who had access was Liara for emergency purposes. Her mother had obviously had access but she would never call her daughter again.
She stared at a static laden screen which showed a shadowed and heavily distorted outline of what looked like a human but could also have been an asari.
The voice was equally distorted and she couldn't work out a single detail about the speaker from their voice.
"Shepard, I know you're wondering how I have the details for this comms channel. And I'm sorry but I can't tell you that right now, or who I am. I'm here to help you. And I need you to trust me, for now."
Shepard muted her end of the call, "EDI use my private QEC to Liara, I want to know she's safe, do it immediately and make sure you speak to her or Garrus."
"Of course, Shepard, I am also trying to trace this call but it is proving extremely difficult."
She un-muted her end of the call, "I don't talk to people who won't show themselves, at least tell me where you are?"
"I understand your concerns, better than you might imagine. I know EDI will be trying to track the source of this call and although I have covered my tracks very well, EDI is exceptional and I wouldn't want to try to beat her at poker. So, I will make this short."
"What do you want, and know that if you try to threaten any of my family I will hunt…"
"You down and tear you to pieces with my own hands. Yes, Commander I'm familiar with what you would do to anyone who would try to hurt those you love. I am not a threat to you or… Liara. And I don't want anything from you, I have information that might help you in your fight against Cerberus."
Shepard thought there was a pause before this stranger said Liara's name. Was it a veiled threat, who the fuck was this and how had they hacked her comms?
"I am sending you the coordinates to a Cerberus base. It was decommissioned a few years ago but was used by a black ops group recently for a project that might interest you. I will send you other coordinates as I find them."
"Why?"
There was silence for almost a minute and Shepard thought perhaps she wouldn't get an answer at all.
"Because I am going to help you destroy Cerberus and find your son."
The connection ended shortly followed by a message package with coordinates for a planet in the Terminus system.
"Did you get anything EDI?"
"No Shepard the call was actively bouncing all over the net. But I have confirmed from Garrus that he has eyes on Liara and she is safe in a meeting with representatives of the Thrassican council."
"I want you to analyse the call and try to clean the static. I need to know who that is."
"Yes Shepard."
She returned to the command deck and stood in front of her console opposite Tash. The 3D image of planet beneath them floating above the space the oval of command stations made. Its surface showing real time volcanic activity and storms that reflected her own inner state.
"Everything OK boss," Tash's voice brought her back to the present.
"Not sure. Recall everyone and get the squadron ready for travel then meet me in the conference room. We may have an important piece of intelligence or an invitation to a trap."
Two days later, outside a deserted and partially destroyed research facility, Naskral, Shrike Abyssal
Shepard indicated to the tech team they could enter the facility and she removed her helmet enjoying the late afternoon sun and a feint breeze.
They had cleared the set of buildings with the fire team but as her unknown source had said it was decommissioned. Complete with eight dead bodies and one room that was extensively damaged.
"What do you think?" She asked when her XO came to join her.
"Well definitely a Cerberus base. Although some of the equipment in there was pretty old. One thing Harper likes is shiny tech. But it does look as if it was used for some kind of cloning experiment."
"Yeah, same tank set up Grunt was in," Shepard looked at Tash, "so is this a source from inside Cerberus do you think?"
"I honestly don't know. This could also be some kind of long game head fuck Harper is playing with you."
"Yeah, he does like to play games. What worries me is this source, whoever it is, having my private comm codes."
"Everyone is on high alert on Thessia, nothing is going to get through Liara's security. And no one is going to get anywhere near you unless they want one hell of a fire fight."
Shepard looked around and noticed the perimeter that was in place not just around their objective but specifically around her.
She smiled at her cousin and they went back into the buildings to see if their tech team had uncovered anything useful.
