From Ashes
Chapter Thirty Four: Of Spectres and Ghosts
A/N: Right, so this chapter took some time to sort out. I didn't want to get right into the nitty gritty of Project Lazarus, and I have plans for some of our lovely side characters. Figured I would set some of them up right now and let the rest lead in as they come. Fair warning, this chapter jumps around a bit with each break, so when you see one of those lines, prepare for a scene change :)
As always, I can't thank you all enough for keeping up with this story. It's been a journey, going through spells where I just had to walk away from Mass Effect to get the love for the series and its wonderful side character back. Your reviews are my current drug of choice, so cheers for that :)
"Speculation on the disappearance of one of Illium's most competitive business moguls leaves stock brokers feeling uncertain of their future investments. Is Nassana Dantius planning something that will shake the foundations of her competitors? Our source within Dantius Corporation tells us more…"
The talk in Nos Astra had reached a new height in recent weeks. Dantius corporations' CEO and driving force had been seen departing the head office and no one had made mention of her return. Nassana managed a little laugh as the headline flashed across and an anchor read it aloud. Oh yes, she'd disappeared. She had taken a routine trip to the Citadel some weeks ago to sort out a possible business relationship with the Citadel and its fleet. Little had she known then that would be far from routine.
She had met with the current contract holder and a prospect, along with a negotiator, to try and pitch her company's new cannon that was still in development. That had gone well. It had made her competitor work doubly hard to try and out-think her. Fortunately, there were a few others in the running, and Nassana had a deal in place with Mallene Calis to add her company under Dantius Corporation's umbrella. That much had been hoped for, if not anticipated. No, what had been the twist in her routine visit had been the communication Nassana had received from one Commander Durand. The Alliance officer had requested a meeting at one of the docking bays when her ship arrived. The memory of that encounter was still enough to both chill her blood and make it boil.
"They've just cleared docking procedures."
A nameless C-Sec officer had announced when she had arrived. The SSV Darrington's crew were leaving in small groups, but she hadn't seen the woman who had called her to the dock. A couple people in what was sure to be dress uniform had departed and were making their way to one of the lifts. Admittedly, Nassana had to do a double take when she saw the second. The woman was older, but from the right angle, she could easily be identified as a close relative of Shepard's. They had the same face, gait, and presence. Nassana had later found out that had been Shepard's mother. When those who were leaving the ship had gone, a pair of men finally exited the cargo hatch with a container. Marked for priority transport, they were cleared through security and took the first available shuttle toward the presidium. Once her eyes focused on the ship again, Nassana found her contact walking toward her.
"Nassana Dantius."
"Commander Durand." They had wasted no time in a brief and blunt greeting. Neither, it seemed, had time for anything more formal.
"No doubt you're wondering what this is all about." Durand had started off. "I'd like to answer that, but I can't do it here." From the nearby terminal, she sent for a skycar. "I'll ask that you come with me to the new clinic on the presidium. I figured that we could talk on the way there."
When the skycar arrived, it opened to reveal no pilot. Durand had gone on to explain that the subject matter was far too sensitive to be discussed with anyone else. On some level, Nassana had appreciated that. Only a short while later, she understood the need for discretion.
"I mentioned your sister in our brief talk earlier." Durand went straight to the point once they were in the air. "We found this in a shipping container on Klensal. It appears that she was working with someone." The datapad that was passed on was damning. The message set her teeth on edge. Even now, she considered shattering the datapad that she had kept since that day. After she had read the message for the first time, Nassana had questioned the other woman.
"What makes you so certain that this has to do with me?"
"The implications aside, you mean?" Durand had offered a shrug along with that quip.
"Right…" Nassana had privately wondered just who all knew about her dealings with Shepard and Dahlia's fate.
"Look, I've been going over how this conversation could happen and how I should phrase this," Durand had finally said in a quiet voice. It was clear that something about the situation was unpleasant. It didn't take a mental invasion to figure that one out. "I have to ask you a question, and I wouldn't unless I felt it was completely necessary…"
"Go on." Whatever Nassana had been expecting, it wasn't what she had been about to hear.
"Have you had children recently?"
"What?" Nassana had sworn she had misheard at the time, but she hadn't. "I don't see how that is any of your business."
"Like I said, I wouldn't have asked if I didn't think I had to."
"Even so, what makes you think that is relevant?"
"That datapad you're holding mentions your sister, and someone that she was working with thinks that she took something that your wealth can't replace." Durand had pointed out. "What all would fit into that category?"
"Very little would meet that criteria…" Nassana had admitted. "That aside, why assume it is a child?"
"Because that is what we found."
Those words had been both blunt and razor-sharp. Normally, anyone who had seen Nassana in person would assume that she was always at the top of her game, and that she was unreachable. That day, she might as well have been a homeless street kid on Omega. She felt irritably small, and her skin had gone cold. The assumption had been a shock, but there was a fact, equally as chilling, that reminded her that it was impossible.
"That is impossible." Nassana finally said, once she had regained some composure, Not waiting for the commander to respond, she continued. "My daughter was stillborn."
"What?"
That had caught Durand by surprise. She had looked away from the oncoming traffic; the skycar set to autopilot. Though she had said it in a quieter tone, there was no mistake that what Nassana had said had been heard. Her gray eyes searched Nassana's face for any sign of deception. Thankfully, this had been one of those times where the truth was paramount.
"She was stillborn." Nassana repeated quietly. "I can count on one hand how many people actually know that-"
"No one will hear it from me."
"I'm not sure I believe that," Nassana had meant it. She hadn't known the woman then. Really, it was still a stretch to say they knew one another now.
"I don't want to exercise a sore subject, but are you sure?"
"As sure as one could be after seeing a child not drawing a single breath." Patience had worn thin. It had been a crushing blow when she had seen the look on the doctor's face. Colour had drained, her hands had shaken, and she had focused more on the waving aquatic plants in a nearby fish tank rather than on the stuttering doctor's explanation that her daughter had not made it. "Why do you insist on going through with these questions?"
"Because, whether she was yours or not, there is a living infant that was left in a tank full of nutrients in a hellhole." Marie Durand looked back toward the clinic that they were approaching. "Someone went through a lot of trouble to pull this off. I want to find out who and why."
"That is what I saw being led away toward a shuttle…"
"Yes." Durand had nodded solemnly. "No one aboard the Darrington was well-versed in asari physiology, so they didn't want to try and drain the tank without proper safety measures."
"A simple test of biometric data will solve this." Nassana had thought it would be so simple.
"That's what I was hoping you would say."
That had taken place over a month ago. The news anchor had just finished the report on the story that had centered around her. The silence that followed was only broken by the sound of a baby's cry a few moments later. Rising from where she sat, Nassana Dantius crossed the open space in her penthouse to look down at the source. The four-month-old asari infant that lay in the crib looked up at her with wide and frightened eyes.
"It's alright, little one." She murmured, lifting her daughter from where she had been sleeping. She went back toward her own bed, where she had been winding down for the evening. It had been a long, but fulfilling, day. She had spent almost all of it just watching this little girl babbling and producing weak biotic fields. Settling back down in the place she had just vacated, Nassana felt a tiny hand close around two of her fingers.
"The monsters responsible for this will pay for their transgressions Of that, you can be damned certain."
"Hannah Shepard, mother of the late human spectre Seryna Shepard, speaks out for the first time since her return to the Citadel. Sources say that her disappearance is linked to strange activity in the Artemis Tau Cluster. It is also rumored that she has been promoted to the rank of Captain, and that she wishes to honor her daughter's memory by commanding a newly constructed ship in the Alliance's Fifth Fleet. Admiral Steven Hackett had this to say…"
"I hate interviews."
The man watched from across a sparsely populated bar as a recording came up on a nearby display. It had been just after he and Hannah had returned from Klensal's surface. He had been in his dress blues, and at the time, had thought that collar on his jacket would strangle him before the interview was over.
"You weather them well, at least."
"I look like an immovable wall." Hackett shrugged as he faced the woman across from him.
"You do not."
"Fine, an immovable wall with a beard."
"A properly trimmed beard." Hannah Shepard corrected. "Now, stop fussing about how you look in that interview and sit down." She had agreed to meet him at this bar to discuss something, and now that she was here, he was stalling. He wasn't used to it. Once he had sat down, she leveled him with a searching look.
"Now, what's this about commanding a newly constructed ship in the Fifth Fleet?"
"I knew they couldn't keep that quiet for too long." Steven shook his head with a last look toward the newscast. "It's a science vessel with a focus on exploration and development." He transferred a file from his omni tool to a datapad lying on the table. "The Tarsis was just released from dry dock, and she won't see battle unless it is absolutely necessary."
"Is that your way of offering protection?" Hannah looked over the specs of the ship and nodded in approval; still raising a questioning eyebrow.
"You don't need my protection." Hackett waved her off. "You've proven that time and time again;" He took a sip of his drink then. "Sometimes, more than I'd care to admit." He earned a twitch of the mouth from her for that quip. The slightest hint of a smile was enough to make him relax a bit. "It's something I remember you mentioning some years back."
"And this just happened to become a priority." She offered with a knowing look. "The last thing on the Alliance's agenda right now is exploration. They're still trying to get back on proper footing after the attack on the Citadel."
"True, but they are also looking into advanced technology." Hackett reminded her. "The fact that a fleet of AI-based warships are on their way to the galaxy's edge didn't go over well. Our R&D division is still looking for an edge."
"Who is the lead researcher?" Hannah had gone through the initial data on the ship and its prospective crew.
"At the moment, it looks like Doctor Juliana Beynham is interested. She was looking into geth technology while on Feros."
"I see." Hannah frowned slightly as she saw the projected course. "The Armstrong Nebula…" She muttered under her breath. He could just hear it as the music playing hit a low spot. "Following in her footsteps."
"What?"
"Nothing." She quickly recovered, but she made it too obvious. "It's just that was one of the last places she went before…"
"I know." He offered with an apologetic look. Her next words surprised him, though.
"I'll take it."
"What?" Hackett blinked. "Just like that?" When he received a nod in return, he shrugged. "And here I thought there would have to be some convincing involved."
"Something about it just feels right." Hannah leaned back in her chair, taking a long sip of wine before finishing her thought. "I can't put my finger on it, but it does; almost makes me feel closer to her somehow…"
He said nothing. They had talked for some tie after the Darrington's return to the Citadel a month ago. It had become a common thing to see them out together or speaking over holo. Lately however, he had avoided mentioning anything about Seryna. The press had been hounding Hannah enough without him adding to the constant reminder. There were times when he would have the younger Shepard's image mounted in one of the holo frames in his quarters, and it would be on his mind to speak to her mother about something that had crossed his mind. He had always talked himself out of it.
"Steven?"
"Hmm?" He looked up to see that Hannah was eyeing him almost nervously.
"I've held off on asking about this because I know that you've had a lot going on over the last weeks." She began. "I suppose another part of me is worried about the answer, as well."
"Go on."
"Have there been any efforts put toward recovering her body?"
He had known that this question would come. If she had asked hm a few days ago, he wouldn't have had an answer for her, but as it happened, he did.
"I have someone looking into that right now, actually." He said slowly, casting an eye around to see if anyone had heard. He had gotten used to seeing people crane their necks to see or strain their ears to hear when something about Seryna was being discussed. "Doctor Liara T'Soni contacted me a few days ago."
"She was the asari that was with her in pursuit of Saren."
"Yes." Hackett remembered the conversation vividly. "She expressed an interest in doing it, but she also knew that any Alliance personnel would be obligated to return to duty. It was also mentioned that the non-human crew would also be returning to their homeworlds or the Migrant Fleet, in the quarian's case."
"She's going through with it alone?" Hannah's question came in a sharp tone. "Have there been any efforts by the Alliance to attempt this?"
"As far as I am aware, no." He answered sadly. "They were cautioned against it, given where it happened." He knew that would spark anger or indignation, at the very least. He had spoken with Alliance Command about retrieving her body and had been given the same answer as Ashley Williams, Karin Chakwas, and Charles Pressly: The Council is not welcome in the Terminus Systems, and it would be suspicious if an Alliance ship crossed that line without proper clearances.
"As for her going at it alone, I can't be sure." Hackett finally added. "She said that it was simply something she felt she had to do. Whether she will have assistance from other sources, I have yet to hear."
"She was seeing someone."
"What?" He felt as if this was the day to ask that question. So many things had caught him off-guard in this conversation alone. He had heard her clearly, but it had been the abrupt and sudden way she had said it that had thrown him off.
"She was seeing someone." Hannah repeated, this time in a more normal tone.
"Really?" It hit him then that he hadn't really stopped to think about her love life. In every situation, he had spoken to her as a superior officer. He'd never really taken time to just talk. Then again, he hadn't really had the time to set aside. Now, he wished he had.
"I knew before all of this happened." Hannah clarified. "We took some time to talk, and she mentioned who it was." She placed her half-full glass down next to the abandoned datapad. "I never really knew just how close they were until yesterday."
He remained silent. The way Hannah talked, it seemed that the two had been close, and that there was more to tell about this. He wondered who it was that had caught Seryna's eye. His unspoken question was answered by her mother's wandering gaze. It had left him and was now on two people standing at the bar. They were n the newly reconstructed embassy lounge. While not where it used to be, the bar had grown in size, but its patrons were few and far between at the moment. He had seen both people before. One was a male turian that had spoken during the hearing that had taken place in regard to Admiral Kahoku and events on Nodacrux. Nihlus Kryik had been well-spoken and seemed to highly respect his fellow spectre. The other, Steven had only seen in vids and had heard about her from David Anderson. She was the one Hannah was watching discretely, but closely.
"She and…" He didn't have to finish the question. Hannah nodded.
"I met her for the first time yesterday."
"You say they were close?"
"They were."
He sighed. Even if it was something he didn't know anything about, Steven Hackett found comfort in the fact that there had been someone special in the younger Shepard's life. It was one of the things he had found most rewarding, when he had finally allowed himself the time for it. Having someone closer than a friend or colleague meant that you had touched their life in some way and that they, in turn, had touched yours. Personal barriers were some of the hardest to let down. To think that she had experienced anything close to what he had when he had finally let his walls down for the woman across from him, was a comfort in its own way.
"Good."
It had been three months since she had left the Citadel; at least two since she had any contact with any of her former crew. Liara T'Soni had been in contact with no one familiar since departing the station, but she had made progress. Her travels had taken her to Omega. It had been her first stop in her search for Shepard after rumours of her survival had surfaced. Though she didn't believe them at all, she had followed the trail in attempt to at least recover the body. It was something that she and the others had shown interest in before, but no one had been willing to give them any assistance.
Omega, while seedy, was a wealth of information. Had she been in a better state of mind, Liara would have wanted to find out many things the denizens of Omega had to offer. Unfortunately, her purpose had been limited and narrow. She had met with a drell, a Cerberus operative, and even the show-stopping Pirate Queen herself. Aria was a mystery on her own, but Liara's worst conversations had been with the Cerberus operative, Miranda.
All the while Lawson was offering information, Liara thought back on the run-ins with Cerberus that she had experienced while aboard the Normandy. Experiments, conspiracies, and a suspicion of murdering an Alliance admiral were at the top of her list. Even the rachni that had been swarming the listening posts in the Styx-Theta cluster had surfaced when she had a spare moment to think. No, Liara had agreed with Shepard on her opinion of the shadowy organization: they were not to be trusted. Unfortunately, it came out that Feron, the drell that had assisted her on her search, had been working for Cerberus as well.
Feron, someone she had found she couldn't trust at times, had ultimately sacrificed himself so that she could escape with Shepard's body. It had been something that she couldn't wrap her head around, but it had stayed with her. She hadn't been thee when Seryna had gone to the bridge to make sure that Joker, Pressly, and Selyna had made it off of the smoldering skeleton that was the SR1. It had been a nauseating feeling to know that she, along with the others, had been helpless to do anything. That same feeling had hit her as she had departed with Shepard's body. Feron's fate rested with the Shadow Broker, and it was a well-known fact that he, or they, as so many thought, didn't leave loose ends.
Now, she sat in a quiet corner of a dark club on the Citadel. Those three months had left their mark on her. She had once seen herself as a scientist that didn't know much about other species, aside from what she had read. It had left her unsure and timid. That was a far cry from what she felt now. Any innocence that had been left after the battle of the Citadel had been taken away and left to rot in the limitless void. The stars had burned it away, and the shadowy alleys of Omega's mining district had swallowed what was left. As she sipped a bitter drink, Liara felt it burn her chilled insides. Now, two bodies weighed on her conscience: Feron's, and Shepard's. One may still be alive, but the other…
"Liara?"
She looked up sharply, her mind still focused on everything that had happened over the last several weeks. Ashley Williams, clad in Alliance casuals, had approached. She looked the same. Her tanned skin showed some signs of age, but everything else seemed to remain as it had been. Her expression shifted from curious to concerned as she regarded the asari.
"Ashley."
"We've been worried." Ashley started off as she sat down. "We've all tried contacting you over the last few months. Anderson said that you'd left the Citadel. Where have you been?"
"That's actually what I contacted you about." Even her own voice sounded less youthful now. Liara could hear what could be considered cold confidence breaking through. She didn't like it. "Have you heard from the others?"
"Wrex is back on Tuchanka. He said that he was going to whip his people back into shape." Ashley shrugged. "Sounds like a long shot, but maybe he can do it." She paused for a second, as if gauging Liara's reaction. There was nothing to give it away. "Garrus returned to C-Sec. He had thought of going for that Spectre training, but I guess he decided against it. As far as I know, he's here somewhere. Tali went back to the Migrant Fleet though. I've heard from her a few times, but not as much as I'd like." She then brought the conversation back around to the point. "Look, something's off. I can't put my finger on it, but you don't seem like yourself. What's been going on?"
"I found her."
"You what/" The question was asked as Ashley leaned forward in her chair. "You…" She looked almost disbelieving. "You mean-"
"Yes."
"Where? How?"
"It's a long story." Liara answered simply. She didn't want to go into detail about any of it. "Suffice it to say, I found her."
"Where is she?"
"She's gone."
"Gone?" Ashley blinked. "I thought you said that you'd found her."
"I did."
"Okay," Ashley placed both arms on the table and crossed them in a serious pose. "Seriously, what's going on with you? I know it's been a while, but people don't just change like you have. What happened?"
"I found her, but I didn't bring her back." Liara answered sharply.
"Where did you find her?"
"On Omega." Liara sighed. She would have to reveal some of what happened. Ashley wouldn't let it go. Part of her wished the human would just drop it, but another part of her was thankful that she wouldn't just accept things for what they were. "The Shadow Broker was making a deal with the Collectors."
"Collectors? You mean those people Selyna mentioned?"
"They wanted her body, and the Broker was going to give it to them."
"What the actual…" Ashley stared at her. "Are you serious?"
"I stole her body from them."
"You went, on your own, and-"
"I wasn't alone." She shook her head. She knew this was where the conversation would take a down-turn. "I was assisted by someone."
"Who?"
"A former agent for the Shadow Broker."
"How'd you turn them?"
"I didn't. Cerberus did."
"Cerberus?" There it was, that note of disapproval and distaste. "You mean those black-box freaks who did experiments on Rachni, creepers, and reaper husks?" Liara nodded, and Ashley frowned. Her next question left Liara feeling highly uncomfortable.
"Liara, where is she?"
"I gave her to them." Though a knot was rising in her throat, Liara didn't back down when she answered.
"To…" Ashley didn't have to finish her question to know. She slowly pushed her chair back and stood fro the table. "You gave her body to…"
"I did."
"How could you?" The disbelief that had risen gave way to anger in Ashley's voice and expression. "You… You know what they did. You saw their work for yourself. What in God's name possessed you to give her over to them?"
"I couldn't let her go." It had been something that had been sitting at the back of her throat. The words she didn't want to admit, what she couldn't admit, were right there in the open now. While there were no outward romantic feelings for the woman, Liara had made a connection that only an asari could when the two had joined in attempt to work out what the beacons' warnings had meant. There had been a pull toward Seryna Shepard that Liara couldn't deny. While she had seen others express their grief outwardly, she had held hers at bay. In the end, it had wreaked havoc on her mind and body. It had made her physically ill at times and had left her feeling numb on other occasions. Putting voice to this thought, though it would never convey how she felt properly, hadn't been easy; it certainly hadn't been meant for Ashley. While she trusted and had become close with the Alliance marine, she knew that Ashley would never fully understand why she had gone to such lengths… Why she had finally agreed to do what she had done.
"I get it…" Ashley finally said after a moment. She seemed to have read something in Liara's expression that had said more than her words could. "I do, but Cerberus? What could they possibly be able to do with-"
"Try to bring her back." The answer was abrupt and Liara found herself rising to her feet as well as she said it.
"You don't know that they can." Ashley challenged. "You don't even know if that's really what they want to do."
"I can only go by their word." Liara's tone grew icy. "The Illusive Man's goal is clear: He wanted to bring her back."
"What will he do to achieve that?" Ashley didn't back down. "Build some half-human cyborg with her brain under its skullcap? How could you trust them!"
"My other alternative was to let the Alliance bury a body that they didn't even want to retrieve." Liara snapped. With those words, she was giving herself hope that she couldn't afford to spend. Miranda had told her that it was barely a possibility to bring her back in the shape that her body was in. Liara herself had seen it, and that image had been the source of her nightmares for the last week. Every night, she would see that looming out of the darkness when she closed her eyes to sleep. Even now, it had taken a strong sedative to sleep for the last two days. Otherwise, she was sure she would have been a right sight. Finally, shaking that thought, she looked Ashley in the eye again.
"Given the choice, which would you have done: tried to find a way to bring her back, or simply buried a body?"
"I…" The answer she clearly wanted to give was on the edge of her tongue, but Liara saw Ashley visibly swallow it. She was thinking about it now; traces of conflict were clouding her dark eyes and making her lips turn down in a frown. Finally, she raised a hand to her face and pressed it lightly to it. "I, I don't know…"
Liara stood there, watching Ashley's reaction, and she couldn't find it within herself to be angry. Part of her wanted to do what she had done to the Broker's outpost on Alingon: to let her biotics flare and let that anger, pain, and guilt escape in a flurry of biotic waves. The more sensible part, one that was gaining more of a foothold while in the presence of a friend, would not let her. She knew Ashley's conflict. It was something she had felt when preparing to leave the Cerberus facility. She was leaving Seryna in the hands of people who had done nothing but destroy and harm. She was also leaving her with people who had the resources to try and restore her. It had been a hard thing to do, walking through that airlock, but she kept telling herself that they would do their best to bring her back… They had to.
"Look," Ashley finally said, lowering her hand from her face. Her eyes were misted over slightly. "I would do anything to bring her back," She emphasized the word, her teeth bared. "But I can't trust them."
"I don't trust them either." Liara said quietly as she watched Ashley turn and walk away. When the marine had gone, she dripped back into her chair and downed the remainder of her drink; her eyes burning, but not from the alcohol.
"But I couldn't let her go…"
"Tela."
"Councilor."
Two asari met late one evening in a briefing room in the asari embassy. One had just returned from Illium and the other from Thessia. They had intended to discuss this matter over holo, but it seemed that something had happened to cause the spectre to want to meet in person. So, here they were.
"I assume You've found something."
"I have." Tela removed an OSD and inserted it into a nearby console. After verifying her biometrics, the images appeared on the display. She had been on Illium tracking some missing information that had been lifted from the Citadel's Ministry of Finance some weeks prior, and there had been a volus on the asari world that had information for her. That was not what this was about, however. "She was talking with them again."
"Doctor T'Soni." Tevos looked at one of the small segments of recorded footage that was playing. Though she couldn't understand what was being said, she could see Benezia's daughter speaking with someone that had been identified as an agent for the Shadow Broker.
"Whatever she is getting involved in, it isn't good." Vasir commented flatly. She knew more on the subject, but it wasn't the time to show her hand. "Has she had any contact with you?"
"Not since she expressed her interest in a matter some months ago." Tevos had been one of the ones that Liara had contacted about seeking out Seryna's body. It had been a delicate mater for both of them, and Tevos had appreciated that. Still, she had to admit that the few times she had seen Liara since she had returned to the Citadel, something had changed.
"I'll advise that, if she contacts you, you keep your guard up."
"Who is that that she is talking to?"
"Some salarian." Tela brushed off the question. She knew well who it was, but it wasn't something that needed airing. The salarian was an associate of Tazzik, the Shadow Broker's go-to for problems that needed solving. Tazzik either had the resources to get it done, or he would slaughter anyone who stood in his way to ensure it was sorted. "I don't know him. I've just seen him associating with the wrong people."
"Do you think she is in danger?"
"If she is, she put herself there." Vasir answered almost smugly. "Only she can get herself out of it." She added as an afterthought.
"All of this started after she left the station." Tevos finally decided to let Vasir in on what she knew. "She was in search of-"
"Shepard's remains, yes." Tela answered. She was well aware of what T'Soni was doing. She'd been informed. "It's interesting, because I found something else out in my recent investigations. She then shifted to another set of files, both still and recorded. "You'll remember this incident." She indicated an image of herself and a fair-skinned woman in an interrogation room. When the councilor nodded, Tela enlarged a piece of recorded video. It was of that same blonde hacking into a terminal in the Spectre office. "The bitch was looking into Shepard's classified files. To top it all off, she was revealed to be a Cerberus agent."
"I remember you mentioning a Cerberus agent in your report, but…" Tevos racked her brain; she couldn't remember anything mentioned about what the woman had been after. "She wanted Shepard's classified file?"
"Seems there is a lot of interest in a dead woman." Tela shrugged.
Tevos had to suppress a cringe at the remark. Tela Vasir was an excellent spectre, but she was also cold. She had learned to be.
"What are your thoughts on this?"
"I don't know." Tela shrugged again, while crossing her arms. "I'll look a little further into it. I've still got some work to do on Illium, so I'll be heading there first thing in the morning." She removed the OSD and pocketed it. "There's something else you should know." She then added. "T'Soni has set up shop on Illium. She has an apartment and an office in Nos Astra. The latter overlooks the trading floor. I hear she is trying to make it as an information broker."
Without a word, Tela left the room. Not long after, a slight flicker caught Tevos' eye. When she turned fully around, she was facing a turian. "It seems that you were correct."
"She isn't telling you the whole truth." Nihlus Kryik offered quietly. "Suggestions?"
"Follow her." Tevos had known Vasir for a long time. She had actually been the one to suggest her as a spectre candidate. As such, she knew when something was amiss. "Discretely."
"I assumed as much." He nodded curtly. "I will leave for Illium soon. With luck, I will be in place before she arrives."
"Your contacts there, they are still trustworthy?"
"Solid." Nihlus assured. "Sketchy, as far as records are concerned, but dependable."
"You know who that salarian was, don't you?"
"An associate of a very dangerous contact that works for the Shadow Broker exclusively." Nihlus didn't name names, but he confirmed that he knew them.. "The fact that Liara T'Soni is in contact with them is troubling."
"Be careful."
"That goes without saying."
Sometime later, when Tevos had heard from both operatives, she received a message that was tagged as low priority. At first, she thought nothing of it, having been in a meeting regarding a possible negotiation with the chief of the Krogan clan, Urdnot. When her terminal chimed again, to signal that a message was still waiting, she opened it. There was only one line of text and an attached image. The text was puzzling, but the image made the meaning very clear.
A friendly reminder of what happens to those that find themselves chasing shadows.
As soon as she had read the words, the image loaded. For a few long seconds, she stared at it. Her eyes took in every pixel, but her brain couldn't process it. As that thought occurred to her, it all clicked. She forced her chair back, stood away from her desk, and fought the urge to scream. Biting her lip to stop herself, she could do nothing but stand there as her mind wrapped itself around what she was seeing.
Discoloured and mangled flesh clung to pieces of bone while dark blood outlined the mass. As if on cue, the image, or vid as it turned out, shifted from that to what could only be described as the skeletal remains of a face. Skin clung to the skull, and odd amounts of discoloured hair fell limp from that. As an afterthought, a piece of armor was visible, or rather had been placed there as a means of identification.
It was her armor.
When that hit her, what she saw became a blur. Her eyes burned, heart raced, and her insides lurched.
What she was seeing was all that was left.
They body had been found.
Her body had been found.
She could feel something scalding her throat, and she had just enough time to turn and wrap her hands around a bin before dry heaving. Bile never came, but it might as well have. She went through the motions of being physically ill with nothing to show for it but the pain. Hot waves of nausea crashed over her for the next few moments, and by the time they had slowed, she was left shaking. Despite herself, Tevos found her eyes returning to the slowly moving recording. She couldn't not look.
Through the fog that was still settled over her mind from what she had just seen, questions began to surface. Was this real? Was it really her? If it was, who had recovered the body? Who had sent this message? Most importantly, why had they done it? Her actions hadn't gone unnoticed, it seemed. As these questions were circling her head, she was aware of her office door opening and her assistant speaking to her.
"Councilor? Goddess, what happened?"
"Contact Executor Palin."
It was all she could manage. Taking a few calming breaths after her assistant had left the room, she turned her back on her terminal's display; its contents still filtering through her mind's eye in slow and agonizing motion.
She would know who had done this. She would have C-Sec go to whatever limits necessary to trace the message…
She would have a word with Liara T'Soni.
2183
[Alchera] Arrival = Successful
Trajectory analysis = Positive.
Biometric Analysis = Positive
Genetic Profile = Shepard, Commander.
Success.
Threat Detected.
Threat Identification = Positive.
Threat Level = Moderate.
Threat Identifier = Blue Suns Mercenary Band.
Chance of Locating this Platform = 27.22%
Platform Spotted.
Damage Sustained.
Chance of Repair = 100%
Sustainability = Positive.
Source of Repair = (N7) Chestplate.
Former Owner = Shepard, Commander.
Shepard, Commander. We have successfully located a point of origin. Query: Remains are missing. Why? Query: Blue Suns' presence detected. Why? Query: Follow Blue Suns' vessel? (Y/N)
Consensus = Follow.
[Omega] Arrival = Successful
Trajectory Calculation = Positive.
Chance of Critical Hit = 94.89%
Success.
We have successfully spared (ASARI) Liara T'Soni + (DRELL) Feron.
Observation of (ASARI) Liara T'Soni + (DRELL) Feron = Successful
We witnessed Liara T'Soni make contact with Cerberus operative. Query: Why? Cerberus' interest in Shepard, Commander = Unknown.
[Citadel] Arrival = Unsuccessful
We have gained limited remote access to Citadel Surveillance. We will observe. Arrival of (ASARI) Liara T'Soni = Immanent.
Observation of (ASARI) Liara T'Soni + (HUMAN) Ashley Williams = Successful.
We have learned that Shepard, Commander's remains were transferred to Cerberus. (ASARI) Liara T'Soni's motive = Personal.
2185
[Therum] Evidence of Arrival + Departure = Negative.
[Noveria] Evidence of Arrival + Departure = Negative.
[Virmire] Evidence of Arrival + Departure = Negative.
[Feros] Evidence of Arrival + Departure = Negative.
[Ilos] Evidence of Arrival + Departure = Negative.
Analysis: Encounter with Shepard, Commander in Former Locations = False.
We have traversed Primary locations during pursuit of (SPECTRE) Saren Arterius. We will analyze secondary locations.
[Intai'sei] Arrival = Successful
Trajectory = Positive
Success.
We have located housing belonging to Shepard, Commander. Last arrival time = Unknown.
Alert: Vehicle approaching. Classification = Shuttle.
Initial scans complete. Threat assessment = 0.
Biometric analysis Complete: Subject = Unknown.
We have observed (ASARI) Unknown entering housing belonging to Shepard, Commander. Initial Observation = Inconclusive. Query: Relation? (Y/N)
Consensus: Further observation is required.
Summary: Initial attempts to make contact with or locate Shepard, Commander have yielded no results.
Patience is required. The search must continue.
A?N 2: Well, there you have it. This is a bridge chapter berween the events of the prologue of Mass Effect: 2 and the in-game events. I'm sure you can guess who that last bit is about. :) Anyway, enjoy. Next chapter, Shepard awakens.
