From Ashes
Chapter Eleven: Colony


Flashes of a relay, a dark planet, and the shores of Virmire did not litter Shepard's dreams that night. Instead, she had a peaceful and fitful sleep without any dreams. The only downside was that the morning came too soon. Stirring slightly, she blinked before turning her head slightly. She was alone. Sitting up carefully, she heard someone stirring about nearby. It didn't take long to know who it was.

"Finally awake, are you?"

"Good morning, Councilor." Shepard said as Tevos re-entered the bedroom and sat down. "You're up early. How long?"

"Only about five minutes." The councilor shifted position so that she was looking more directly at the spectre beside her. "You know, I was actually expecting last night to not have happened."

"When I first woke, I was under the same impression." Shepard admitted. "Typically, things that good don't happen during times like this."

"Well, now I know your opinion of the evening's events."

"I would have thought I made that pretty clear last night." Shepard let amusement slip into her tone.

"It is always good to confirm in the morning." The councilor admitted. "Seeing as I've had very few chances to do so."

"They always leave."

"And never return." The asari managed with a slight shake of the head. "But why should they? Notoriety, a headline for the morning gossip columns; what would be the point of it?"

"Oh, I could think of a few good reasons." The two moved closer; sharing a quick kiss before they were interrupted.

"Hey Commander?" Joker's voice came over Shepard's comm, and she nearly swore under her breath before answering.

"Go ahead, Joker."

"Just checking in. Noticed you didn't come back with the others last night. Preparations for the run to Feros are underway."

"Already?"

"Half past 08:00, Commander." Joker sounded a bit surprised. "Said you were hoping to head out around 09."

"That's right." Shepard had to keep her slight shock to a minimum. She hadn't expected to sleep in so late. "I'll be along in a bit. Be ready."

"Copy that, Commander. We'll be ready when you get here." The link was broken on his end, and Shepard was left to shake her head.

"Goddess, is it that late?"

"Seems so." Shepard confirmed the time before looking up again. "Just half past now."

"Typically, I would have been up and about more than two hours ago." Tevos admitted. "Then again, nothing about this morning has been typical."

"I can agree with you there." Shepard said as she finally stood and looked toward where she had left her uniform the previous night.

"Shower before you leave?"

"So long as I'm not alone." Shepard teased.

"As if I would allow that to happen."

So it was a brief but intense encounter that left both human and asari wondering just how far the other was willing to go. Both had had their backs to the cool tiled wall on at least one occasion, and Shepard could feel another consciousness in her mind more than once. Only when it was over and they were both retrieving various items of clothing from the previous night did they speak again.

"I could only imagine what it would be like if the gossip columnists got wind of this." Shepard mused.

"I could see the headline now: Conflict Of Interest." Tevos emphasized the words as she said them. "It would be the talk of the presidium, let alone the entire Citadel."

"Which is why they won't be hearing a word of it." Shepard added; finally straightening her uniform and running a hand through her nearly dry hair. "What they don't know won't hurt them."

"It will just cause them to search for someone else's personal life to pick apart."

"I suppose they have a job to do, but sometimes, we're better off without." Shepard muttered as she remembered the interview with the Westerlund News reporter, Khalisah Bint Sinan Al-Jilani.

"They have theirs, and so do we." The councilor had just checked a message that had come through on her terminal. "You must leave for Feros and I have to sort out those colonial surveys I mentioned."

"Sounds tedious."

"Indeed it is." Tevos nodded gravely. "It won't get any more interesting when I have to speak with those responsible for all of this." At this point, they had both checked themselves over and made sure everything was in order before they left the apartment, but on approach to the door, Tevos paused. In a less businesslike tone, she spoke quietly. "I hope to see you again."

"I think you will."

"You do know I was referring to a more personal sense than professional."

"I do," Using the pause in her own words, Shepard kissed the councilor again gently. "And so was I."


Shepard had returned to dock 422 near C-Sec and had boarded her ship to find Ashley Williams sitting with Joker on the bridge. The others were already aboard: Pressly, Adams, Tali, Garrus, Wrex, and Liara were at their posts, but when she turned to speak to Joker at the helm, he wasn't alone.

"Good morning, Skipper."

"Morning, Williams." Shepard greeted. Ashley was sitting off to Joker's right, and they had apparently been talking before their CO had cleared the airlock. "Status?"

"Engine's running, Commander." Joker reported promptly as he moved his hand across the holo keys. "Waiting for your say so."

"Let's do it." Shepard turned toward the galaxy map interface and was joined by Ashley as she proceeded away from the helm. "Sooner we find what's there, the sooner we can understand what he's up to and why." Addressing Ash directly, she continued. "Any new reports on the situation out there?"

"Nothing yet, Skipper. I even checked in with the embassy before final preparations. Udina hasn't heard anything, but ExoGeni is getting worried."

"Big surprise. They financed the project and have their people down there." Shepard muttered as they approached the galaxy map. She stepped up onto the platform and plotted course for the Attican Beta cluster before rejoining the chief and speaking again. "I wonder what they were looking for on Feros, anyway."

"Rumor has it," Ash began as they descended to the crew deck. "That they had people researching something…" She paused as they crossed to the mess and were about to sit down at the table outside the medbay; eyes on Kaidan's old post for a split second. "They may have been looking for prothean artifacts to assist with the cost."

"That would be a waste of time." Liara had been nearby and heard Ash's comment. "Feros has been colonized by a few species, and the first thing they all did was look for any relics of the Protheans."

"I thought as much." Ash nodded in agreement. "When I mentioned that to Udina, he just said that the other races could have missed something."

"There is a possibility of that." Liara admitted. "Many didn't find anything on Therum either. There was a ruin =, and it had detailed schematics of the barrier curtain that I had activated. That can be adapted to be applied to starships."

"Whatever they found, it's stirred something up." Ash said as she pulled up a star chart of the Theseus system. "Nothing else here to cause sudden lack of communications."

"No, but we had that same issue on Virmire when we were there." Shepard thought back. "The council lost communications with Kirrahe's team."

"So it's basically a given that Saren is involved." Ash guessed. "Makes sense. Udina mentioned that there were reports of him in that area, but what could he be looking for?"

"More than likely, the same thing we are;" Liara answered. "A means to interpret the information he has retrieved from the beacons."

"That reminds me…" Shepard thought back to last evening on the presidium. "Ash, do you remember what Kaidan said about that monument the last time we were near it: that he could hear something coming from it?"

"Yeah." Ash nodded. "I remember trying to listen for it, but I didn't hear anything except the sound of a distant engine."

"That was it." Shepard pointed out. "Anywhere else on that station, we can't hear its engines running, so why there?"

"I get the feeling you already know." Ash tilted her head to the side. "Go on."

"It wasn't the engines at all. In hindsight, that could be why it went undetected for so long…" Shepard thought aloud before getting back on point. "No; I was on the presidium last night late, and happened to remember what he said. On a hunch, I got closer to the relay monument and could feel something from it."

"Feel something?" Liara wondered.

"Like what?" Ash added; both looking at their CO with interest.

"At first, I wasn't sure, but I got as close as possible and actually touched it." Shepard explained. "On a whim; not sure what made me think of it."

"And?" Ash leaned forward slightly.

"And I saw something." Shepard relayed what she had seen, or what she could make sense of, and waited for their reactions.

"Wait…" Liara seemed to have taken it in first. "You're saying that the monument isn't actually a monument at all…"

"From what I think I saw, no, it's not." Shepard confirmed. "Of course, I could be mistaken. I hope I'll know more when we get to Feros."

"That wouldn't be good…" Ash commented. "Think about it: a relay right in the heart of the station… If someone or something chose to attack,"

"They could make an easy go of it, yeah." Shepard nodded gravely. "Makes you wonder if Saren knows about it."

"If he does, we're screwed." Ash managed with a slight frown. "He's been one step ahead of us since the get go."

"We caught him on Virmire." Shepard said in a more confident tone. "He's desperate now. He knows we're right behind him." And that was more or less true. Saren had been forced to bug out on Virmire with the nuke planted, Shepard's team, and the salarians there. Now it was just a matter of finding the means to interpret what the Protheans had left behind in their beacons and to stop Sovereign before it accomplished its goal: to ensure the return of the reapers and galactic annihilation.

"Hmmm." Ash hummed after a few moments of comfortable silence. "Speaking of you and that monument last night, we were wondering where you went."

"Took a walk around the presidium to clear my head and just decided to stay on the station last night." Shepard passed it off easily enough, but Ash didn't fall for it.

"Who with?" She asked with a knowing grin.

"Assuming I was with someone, Williams?" Shepard laughed at Ash's expression. "What, is it written on my forehead?"

"The nose knows, Skipper."

"It's a crime to wear perfume now?" Shepard played it off. It was fun to keep them guessing.

"In the time I've known you, you never have." Ash corrected.

"Alright," Shepard conceded. "Maybe I was with someone last night."

"Knew it." Ash accepted her victory.

"Whoever they were," Liara began with a passive tone. "They have good and expensive taste. It's an asari fragrance, but I'm unsure of the name."

"So," Ash crossed her arms as she leaned back in her chair. "Anyone we know?"

"Maybe." Shepard gave them that. "Not at liberty to say who, though."

"Well, one thing's for sure." Ash stood and prepared to head down to her station. "We know it wasn't Conrad Verner."

"Oh no." Shepard shook her head as she stood as well. "Never going to happen."

"There is something… odd… about that man." Liara used the most gentle word she could think of. "He seems too friendly, or bordering on obsessive."

"I'll lean more toward obsessive." Ashley said as she called the lift up. "Him saying he wanted a picture and that his wife would be so thrilled…"

"Yeah… he's a little off." Shepard said while the lift came up. "I'll be down there in a while."

"Copy that." Ash disappeared around the corner and headed down toward the cargo and engineering deck while Liara and Shepard remained in the mess. After a moment, Liara spoke again.

"I'd say you're not at liberty to discuss it."

"Hmm?"

"Who you were with last night." Liara clarified. "It certainly would seem like a conflict of interest."

"You played it as if you didn't know."

"Oh, I know." Liara allowed herself a small smile.

"So, what gave it away?" Shepard leaned against the wall nearest, while Liara answered.

"I did recognize the perfume; just a bit better than I let on." Liara began. "That, and there were other things."

"Such as?"

"She's been watching you carefully. At first, I assumed it was merely a professional sense."

"At first, it was." Shepard confirmed. "We talked about that briefly last night just after I remembered what Kaidan had said about the monument."

"How long has this been going on?"

"Literally just happened last night." Shepard admitted. "Curious to see where it's going."

"According to my mother," Liara straightened up from where she had been leaning against one of the chairs. "She is one of the honest ones."

"Honest politicians? I didn't think there was such a thing." Shepard joked.

"There are a few." Liara's lips twitched with amusement. "Far between, but a few."

"Oh, just remembered." Shepard recalled the councilor's query in regard to Benezia's followers. "Did her files have anything on her remaining followers? The commandos that left Noveria said there were still a few left."

"I did see something, but there is no exact number." Liara accesed her omni tool quickly to double check. "She made a note that Saren requested a few go with him to Feros, so those may be the last. Otherwise, I think they're accounted for."

"Hitting the Widow relay now, Commander. ETA to the Hercules system: five minutes." Joker announced over the comm just then.

"Copy that, Joker. When we get there, go into FTL. We need to get to Feros as quickly as possible."

"Understood."

"That should cut our travel time considerably." Liara commented. "I wish we knew what we were in for when we touch down."

"You and me both." Shepard turned toward the lift then. "I'll let them know to be ready. I want all hands on this one."

"Understood." Liara headed for the medbay to finish up something on her terminal while Shepard descended onto the engineering deck. Once there, she saw that Tali, Garrus, and Wrex were all in the cargo hold along with Ash; the latter was wiping down a rifle carefully.

"Shepard." Wrex greeted in his usual fashion.

"Wrex." She did the same as she went to stand near the krogan. "We're hitting the relay and should be in the Hercules system within five minutes." Shepard started. "After that, it shouldn't be long until we reach the Theseus system. Joker's engaging the FTL drive."

"Makes sense." Garrus mused. "Wouldn't be wise to go on a slow cruise through the cluster to get to Feros. Saren could be gone by the time we get there."

"As it stands, he may still be." Shepard admitted. "We don't know how fast that ship, Sovereign, is. We know it's massive and could easily tear us apart; that's bad enough."

"What's the plan when we get to Feros, Skipper?" Ash had finished cleaning the rifle and had replaced it into her weapons locker. "Small team, or are we all in?"

"I want everyone in on this one." Shepard repeated what she had said to Liara. "I don't know what's going on down there, and I don't want us to be limited." She had just gotten done speaking when the ship just barely shifted slightly. "Looks like we hit the relay."

"Should be in the Hercules system soon, then." Garrus quipped. "Still can't figure what would make an entire colony go dark like this." He thought for a moment before speaking again. "I spoke to that volus in the markets, Shepard; the one that asked if you were headed out to the colonies when we spoke to him the first time. He mentioned a salesman of his wasn't checking in on Feros."

"That was just after I had become a spectre." Shepard frowned. "The colony's been dark since then…"

"Saren couldn't have been there the whole time." Tali spoke up. "We encountered him on Virmire, so it could be possible that he had the geth there looking for something; like he did with Benezia on Noveria."

"Wouldn't do for him to stay in one place," Wrex added. "Especially a colony like Feros. More than likely, he spent more time at that facility on Virmire."

"We'll get him." Ash muttered. "He'll pay for everything he and that reaper have done."

"Engaging FTL drive now." Joker's words filled the cargo hold. "ETA to Feros twenty minutes."

"Gear up, people." Shepard said as she turned back toward the lift to prepare in her cabin. "Meet me in the comm room in fifteen."

After taking the lift back up, Shepard entered her cabin where her own weapons locker was stored. She had opted for it to be in here rather than down on the engineering deck before the run to Therum. Combat fatigues still on, she went to securing her armor. Boots, underarmor, legs, chestplate, shoulder guards, gloves, and gauntlets were checked and locked into place to complete the hardsuit. She chose to leave her helmet where it was. Feros had a bereathable atmosphere, and she couldn't thnk of another reason to have it; aside from extra protection. Once that was done, she checked to ensure the weapons pack was secured before leaving her cabin again. Walking up toward the lift and the stairwell, she found the door open. Liara, Ashley, and Wrex had exited while the lift was preparing to go back down. All three were armed for moderate to heavy combat; though none had helmets.

"Others up here yet?" Shepard asked as they all headed up the stairwell toward the command deck.

"Waiting on the lift to go back down." Ash supplied. "Ready for this?"

"We'll have to be." They exited onto the command deck and entered the comm room; Ash and Liara taking seats on either side of Shepard while Wrex took Liara's other side. It was he who had made that last comment. "Whatever Saren wants here, ithas to be protected or hidden."

"Why do you say that?" Ash raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing on this planet really worth having that's been found already." Wrex shrugged. "Been here before with a few others. They were hoping to find something that would make them rich. I was just a hired gun."

"I'll assume that was before the humans came in four years ago, Wrex." Garrus chimed in as he and Tali entered the comm room. "Rumor has it that ExoGeni has run a tight ship since they started funding the project."

"Considering that ExoGeni was behind one of the Rachni drone experiments we found, I don't like the sound of that." Shepard frowned. It was true that Cerberus was responsible for the ones in the Styx-Theta cluster and for the infested freighter they boarded, but there had been another planet out in the Kepler Verge that had traces of Rachni and an ExoGeni outpost had been in the middle of it.

"Beginning docking procedures, Commander. So far, no hails or any outgoing messages from the outpost. Real friendly bunch." Joker commented dryly as the last two sat down.

"Possible that comms are down, Joker." Shepard replied. "Either way, it's a better welcome than we got on Noveria."

"Anything is better than the welcome we got on Noveria."

"As I mentioned earlier," Shepard addressed the assembled crew while Joker continued to move toward the docking bay in the port. "I want all of you out there this time. Regardless of what's out there, we need to get things done fast. Saren is still ahead of us, and I'm not about to let him or Sovereign get away with what they're planning. Can't give any specific orders at the moment, but we'll know more when we get on the ground."

"Signs of geth activity, Commander. Scanners picked up a few dropships in the viscinity." Joker added.

"So we're going in hot." Ash cracked her knuckles. "Sounds like this op is getting off to a real good start."

"Best way to go." Wrex waved his hand in dismissal of the thought of a calm op. "Go in with guns blazing that way people know you're not to be messed with."

"In this case, I don't think it's the colonists we have to worry about." Shepard ventured. "They are trying to make their way on a frontier world that's been picked over."

"We're secure, Commander." Joker's last report came over the comm.

"Good." Rising from the chair, Shepard headed for the portside hatch toward the bow. "Let's find out what's going on here."

Leaving the ship, they all saw the state of the structure they were in. From the draftiness, it was assumed they were in one of the higher-elevated buildings. Feros' cities consisted of skyscrapers and skyway bridges that kept its inhabitants from the ground. Why was anyone's guess. At the front of the ship stood a man; civilian clothing and lack of a firearm suggested he was not part of the military or colony's defense. On approach, he extended his hand to Shepard and spoke in a slightly choppy tone.

"We saw your ship. Fai Dan wants to speak with you immediately."

"Who is Fai Dan?"

"He is our leader." Shepard didn't seem to be the only one who noticed the man's hesitation when he called Fai Dan their leader. Garrus and Ash shifted slightly. They listened as he continued speaking, regardless. "He needs your help to prepare for the Geth. They're making another push. Please, up the stairs and past the freighter-" He had just finished speaking when there was a digital gurgling sound from behind. Shepard moved past him in time to see a geth trooper moving from cover.

"Get down." She motioned for the others to advance while the man moved behind a stone pillar. The geth moved forward; three following it. Shepard aimed her rifle at the first. "Take them out but keep an eye out for civilians." Some AI hacking and a few shots later, the geth were neutralized and the man that had greeted them emerged again with the all clear.

"Thank you for that." He motioned toward the geth bodies. "It's been this way for the last several days. My name is David."

"Commander Shepard." Shepard shook his hand again. "I'm a spectre."

"Then you'll definitely be a big help in repelling the geth." David managed while walking back to his post. "Fai Dan said help would come, but I didn't expect this. Should be clear the rest of the way."

"Thanks."

They advanced up the stairs, having to take out one lingering crawler before emerging out onto the main level. From there, Shepard could see barricades set up, a water pumping station, power generator, the freighter, and a few people tending them. Just by the freighter, there was a salarian examining his omni tool carefully. As they walked past the barricades, little snippits of conversation could be heard.

"Get down to the tunnels, and make sure they're secure." One man a the barricade shouted.

"B-But what if I find geth down there?" The one standing with him questioned.

"Are you saying you won't go?"

"This is bloody senseless…" A blonde woman managed while adjusting the grip on her pistol. "We won't last if this holds up."

"At least we've actually got some soldiers coming in." The man beside her managed. "Our numbers are getting thin. We're not cut out for this."

"Well," A woman monitoring the water station added. "If the geth don't kill us, we'll starve or die of thirst. Water's still a no go."

"Won't really matter anyway without power." Another woman nearby sighed. "Without that, the water won't come from the reservoirs."

As Shepard and the others went on, they heard the salarian mention something about being afraid no one would last long here. From the looks of things, he was right. The outpost was a wreck: buildings were smoking from recent fires, people were lying on the ground either dead or wounded, and the rest were going about their business like theyhad no other choice. Finally getting into a secluded corner, Shepard addressed her team.

"This is worse than I expected."

"Something's off, though." Ash muttered as she looked at a pair of men walking past what appeared to be a dead body. "They're just leaving the dead out here for nothing; like they don't see them anymore."

"Maybe this Fai Dan has more information." Garrus suggested. "David said he was their leader, so he might know more."

"Let's hope so." Tali added. "This whole situation is wrong." After that coment, they rounded the freighter and found two people standing by a large doorway that lead to more stairs. One was a man in civilian clothing, and the other was a woman in light armor. Approaching the man, Shepard didn't have to speak first; he had already looked up and seen them.

"Ah Commander, I can't tell you how thankful we are that someone's come to help us." He extended his hand, and Shepard took it. "I am Fai Dan, head of the Zhu's Hope outpost.

"You're a bit late, aren't you?" It was the woman who spoke this time. Eyes dark and nearly bloodshot from lack of sleep, she spoke with a more hostile tone.

"Arcelia." Fai Dan addressed the woman with a slightly sharp tone before turning back to Shepard. "I'm sorry, Commander. We've all been on edge since they-" He was cut off by the sound of another geth coming from around the corner near the stairs.

"Watch out!" The one called Arcelia drew her weapon and pointed it around the large stone block that they were standing near. There were three geth units approaching from the stairs nearest. "We've got geth in the tower!"

"Protect the heart of the colony!" Fai Dan shouted. The few people that were nearby drew their weapons, though it was clear they weren't trained on how to use them.

"Garrus, Ash, head back toward the entrance. Make sure there aren't any that way." Shepard ordered. "Wrex, stay here with Arcelia and Fai Dan. Liara, Tali, and I will go on up into the tower and see if there are more up there. Move."

The former two split with the rest and headed back to the main entrance near the barricades. Shepard, Wrex, Arcelia, Tali, and Liara fought off the geth that had come from the stairs and then Wrex stayed behind while Shepard, Tali, and Liara advanced into the tower. After keeping a woman on the stairs from being torn apart by a juggernaut-class geth, the three emerged onto a level plane where there were several more units and a geth dropship. Biotics flaring and guns blazing, the there moved forward and went on a full frontal assault. Taking cover when they needed it, they managed to sabotage and destroy the units that remained. Only when that was done did the dropship finally pick up and leave the area through a hole it had created in the structure sometime earlier.

"It seems we are clear." Liara said while she examined the pulse rifle one of the troopers had dropped. "We should report to Fai Dan and find out what else is going on here. "Surely the geth wouldn't just assault this colony for no reason."

"Take that with us." Tali indicated the rifle. "We can repair it and adapt it. The one you took earlier seems to be functioning well, Shepard." She addressed the spectre with that last.

"It has." Shepard inspected the rifle she had confiscated from a geth in the Armstrong Nebula a while back. "Accurate and it seems to have a lower cooldown." The three headed back across the expanse and down the stairs back to where Wrex and Arcelia stood with their guns loaded. "We're clear, Wrex."

"Good." The battlemaster grunted while still not lowering his gun.

"The tower is secure…" Fai Dan breathed a slight sigh of relief as Shepard and the others approached him again. "Thank you, Commander."

"I'm just thankful we didn't lose anyone." Shepard managed while she saw a man assisting the woman from earlier into the freighter to attend to her minor injuries. "The geth could have easily taken you out had they not given warning."

"They may be slowed, but they'll come back." Arcelia assured them with a tired slump of the shoulders. "They always come back…"

"What do they want?" Garrus and Ash had returned. "Surely you don't have anything that they might want."

"That's just it; we don't know what they want." Arcelia addressed the turian. "The colonists here are just a bunch of civilians. The researchers are back at the main ExoGeni building. It's just up the skyway."

"They just showed up and started shooting." Fai Dan confirmed. "We hoped that the others at the main settlement would know more, but…"

"But somehow they can't," Arcelia said a little harshly "Or won't communicate with us. Every time we try to get through, there's nothing."

"I take it you work for ExoGeni." Shepard addressed her again. "You work with security?"

"I'm a rent-a-cop." Arcelia ground out. "I was hired to keep kids from putting graffiti all over the prefabs and buildings. Since the attacks, I've been here running on adrenaline and trying to keep this outpost functional with Fai Dan."

"Believe me, I appreciate it." Fai Dan added. "We don't have military training, and most of these people don't really know how to be accurate with a service pistol."

"Can you tell us anything about the geth and their defenses?" Tali asked.

"I wouldn't know mucn, but I assume they have more fortified areas than the command post." Fai Dan offered.

"They landed at least one ship at the ExoGeni building at the main settlement." Arcelia volunteered. "When the initial attack happened, I was on the skyway closest to this outpost. There are several walking tanks, prime, and juggernaut units on the skyway now. You're in for a hard fight if you're headed that way."

"I didn't expect this to be easy." Shepard said quietly. "Nothing about this mission has been."


A/N: Already working on chapter 12: Species 37: The Thorian. Thanks for reading, guys. As always, any questions? Review or message. :)

Cheers!