Thanks the Coronavirus if today you have this chapter so early. Citadel arc incoming, not too long but quite important, you shall see why.

As always, I do not gain a single penny with this etc. etc. etc.

Chapter 19

The Citadel

Normandy Sr-2. Lena's room. 29 April 2185. 11 28 ship hour.

The room of Lena was a cluttered mess. Formal dresses, bras and lingeries of every type, mirrors and small jewels littered the floor like pieces of a forgotten treasure. The light of the room, sent to full power, glowed like the eyes of a living beast, leaving no place for darkness to hide.

And amidst this mixture of confusion and disorder, Lena stood tall, half-dressed in formal wear and sporting the biggest and most wicked snort of disappointment ever seen in a Claymore's face.

A bit lower, near her mid-section, another girl scurried herself in a desperate effort to bend the annoying piece of fabric covering the Claymore to her will, with the great disappointment of Lena

"Aw! Careful with those hands, I said!"

"And you stop wriggling like a child Lena! Good God, I swear you are worse than my mother's dog during bath day."

"You know that I hate these stupid formalities."

"And you also know that you cannot go and meet the Citadel in rags, or full battle armour!"

"Why not?! Armour is formal and elegant!"

"I hope you are sarcastic here, Lena."

A giddy voice giggled some steps away from the squabbling couple, looking at the spectacle as it was some artful play.

"Raina, you are not helping." Snarked Lena from behind. The Claymore tried to turn her head to make her order clear, but the new trap locking her in called formal dress prevented her from doing that.

"I know! But you both look so silly. Am I right, Mr Fluffy?"

The bear tightly gripped by the child's hands rocked back and forth under the girl's embrace. Lena swore at this.

"Manners Lena." Kelly scolded her. "If you behave like this now, what are you going to do in front of the Council?"

"Why do I have to meet those idiots anyway? Shepard refused to give me any details!"

"Beats me," replied Kelly cheerfully. "My theory is that they want to know exactly what are you. You stirred quite a ruckus in these two years, you know? Especially back on Illium." Absentmindedly Kelly touched her own scar placed on her leg, still reddish despite the days passed. "But you shall never know if you keep throwing tantrums like this."

Lena sighed but kept her mouth shut, swallowing what she honestly thought about that bunch of inbred imbeciles inside the Citadel and all of this damned dress up. Another small stab of pain hit her when Kelly brushed her dress across the abdomen, where the most recent wound received on the Broker's mission was still raw on her flesh.

"Sorry! Sorry!" quickly added Kelly "Is just...it is difficult to do it."

The girl's swift fingers trembled again when moving across Lena's waist, adjusting the dress she was now helping Lena to fit in. This time her gentle hands lightly trailed across Lena's skin without hurting her still healing flesh, something that made the Claymore's skin tingle with excitement.

The dress was an Asari handmade formal dress. One of the many bought, or gained as spoils of brutal conflict as Lena always joked about, back on Illium by her and Kelly. A black, sleeveless dress with matching gown that hugged Lena's body like a glove. The fabric was tight but comfy at the same time, all despite Lena's constant nagging about not being able to breathe. The Claymore's relatively ample bosom was slightly enchanted by the fabric lightly raising her chest thanks to an ingenious set of straps placed in tandem by a specific bra also bought back on that planet. Enough to be revealing, not enough to be of bad taste.

The zipper used to close the dress, and the biggest reason of Lena's complaint was on her back: small, challenging to grab by herself, and barely reaching her spine mid-section in height, meaning that all of her shoulders were naked for the eye to see. The end of the dress, in contrast to the scarcity of cloth on the top, was so long that created a small tail on the back on her feet.

Fashionable, Kelly called it. A great way to trip and break her neck called it Lena.

"And we are yet to start on the make-up with Kasumi," grumbled Lena softly. "Cursed Shepard and his orders to be at the best of my look for today."

"I am sure everything will turn out just fine Lena," Kelly reassured her. One last tug on the tail of the dress and the girl finally felt she was done. Kelly rose up from the floor and admired her handiwork.

It was mesmerizing, in her humble opinion: the black, velvety dress hugged her slender body snugly, leaving no room for imagination for any eye that dared to dart her, but at the same time enchanting the Claymore's toned to a killer degree. Especially her hips and flat stomach.

The black of the dress fit perfectly with the pearly white of Lena's skin, creating a beautiful contrast that it was impossible to not notice.

Lena still missed the make-up and small accessories promised by Kasumi, but even now Kelly could do almost nothing to stop the feeling on pride, and envy, swelling on her chest: her friend looked beyond stunning. With her toned legs, flat stomach, swelling breasts and perfectly shaped figure Lena looked like a professional model, and Kelly was sure that many heads on the Citadel would turn their heads today at her passage. The girl wondered just how many people would come and approach her. Talking, flirting, demanding, asking out.

Kelly had to swallow a lump of unwanted jealously before anyone noticed it.

"Well, that is about it." announced Kelly cheerfully, "I am leaving on Kasumi's capable hands now. And you Kelly, be ready in one hour. I promised you and your mother a day of studying on Illium, and this is what we shall do today."

"Are you sure about this?" Lena pouted with fear on her voice. "If anyone else tries to attack you because of me I..."

"Calm down, Lena." Kelly chided her. The girl felt her chest swelling in happiness at seeing Lena so worried about her but hid it to everyone, even herself "I shall not be alone. Jack, Jacob and Samara will accompany us for our protection. It was the only requirement from Shepard for this little trip. Besides, we are going to the Presidium. The most well-guarded place on the Citadel. A complete change from an abandoned road on the Illium space-dock.

"That may be, but still try to be careful. I do not wish to lose any of you."

Again, undesired feelings on Kelly's chest resurfaced for a split-second, and again Kelly clamped them down with brute force.

"Well, sure!...See you in an hour Raina, and you Lena, try to not enrage the Council," replied Kelly with a strained expression. Hurriedly, the girl moved toward the exit door to stop Lena in spotting the redness on her cheeks. Surprisingly, Raina followed her with a big grin on her face, opening the door for her.

A curios gest of gentleness, its reason revealed when the child moved closer toward Kelly and whispered to her.

"You enjoyed being able to touch mom like this?"

The boldness of such question almost made Kelly trip on her own footing, something that Lena's ever-attentive eyes caught immediately.

"Is all right there, Kelly?" she asked.

"Yes yes, all fine!" hurriedly replied Kelly "You and I are going to have a discussion this afternoon," she added sotto voice to Raina.

Raina grinned wickedly in response..


Citadel. Praesidium. 13 45 Citadel hour.

The loud, whirring sounds of dozens of cameras echoed inside the narrow road both Shepard and Lena was forced to use to move toward the Presidium. A clacking sound that grated the Claymore's eyes and made her desire to break all the infernal contraptions in half, alongside the people using them. All around the pair a picket of chosen C-sec operatives, armoured to the teeth, surrounded them as both shield and assurance that none of their supposed guests dared to do anything stupid. Like killing those annoying pests swarming the group, for example.

Paparazzi and journalists had called them Shepard once outside the ship. People that peeked inside other people's lives for a living, exposing every little secret and shame for the pleasure of an uncaring throng of eternal curios.

The mere idea of such vultures taking pictures of her, let alone delve into her past made the Claymore cringe in utter disgust. How can anyone decides to make such a job for a living was beyond her.

-I cannot believe that I'm missing Omega right now.- shuddered the Claymore while she shielded her face with an arm

-At least there the vultures were clear to see.-

"Spectre Shepard, what do you respond to journalist Jilani's accusations about being in league with Cerberus?"

"Is it true that the infamous Cerberus organization gifted you a new ship?"

"Is it true that the Ripper is a Cerberus experiment?"

And so on and so on and so on. Lena had to give to these swarming mass of flies: they were persistent if nothing else, Lena had to admit that. Many tried to break the cordon of C-sec agents in a desperate effort to come closer, despite the agent's best effort to stop them. One Salarian even attempted to use a drone for taking photos for the Goddesses' sake! The C-sec managed to shockwave it with an electrical discharge at the last second.

For ten minutes, this impromptu siege lasted until the group finally reached an elevator where the swarm was forced to back down, barely. One Asari almost lost her foot for trying to jump inside the elevator and have the last word with Lena.

Unsurprisingly to say, the ascension toward the Presidium was a quiet affair after this ruckus, and when they arrived the C-sec Leader, a grizzled Turian, told the pair to wait and left them alone.

"Is it always like this?" Lena asked Shepard once alone "Being hounded by these people every time you breathe?"

"Unfortunately." replied Shepard sighting "You need to understand Lena. Being famous makes people curious. The general populace wishes to know as much as possible about their celebrities, and chat and plot about it. But when you are infamous...things escalate on a whole new level."

Lena sighed heavily at this. Such life was not something she augured for Raina.

"That is just great. Well, moving on, do you have any idea why the Council summoned us?"

"For me, it is clear: I am, technically, still a Spectre of the Council, but at the same time, I supposedly have strong ties with Cerberus, a terrorist organization. Since my supposed resurrection, they have quietly hounded me, making sure I do not fall into unsavoury habits. They also want to learn something from Vasir's death probably. About you...well" Shepard looked at Lena with a small dose of unease

"They probably want to get a grip of what you are, but I do not neglect the possibility of them trying to detain you with some loophole."

"They wish!" scoffed Lena with a snark "As if they can stop me."

"They cannot." argued Shepard "But the entire C-sec group can. But you do not need to worry. With all their faults, the Council is not willing to resort to blatant crime. I hope, at least. And you shall not be alone."

"Of course I won't." cocked Lena's head "You shall be with me."

A small smile crept on Shepard's features, and the commander's eyes darted toward one of the many doors of the Presidium

"Not me, Lena."

"Oh?"

"You shall see." smiled Shepard "Ah, here is our chaperone, I bet."

And as if called, a Salarian white-collar dressed in an elaborate uniform and a dour expression came closer to Shepard and Lena. He looked old, considering the wrinkles in his scaly face, but his voice sprang fast as any Salarian Shepard had met.

"The Spectre authority will see Spectre Shepard now. Miss Lena must come with me."

Lena frowned at the idea of being separated, but Shepard reassured her with a smile.

"Do not be afraid Lena, it will be all right."

-Let's hope it will.- muttered Lena -But I doubt it.-


Council's room. 2 minutes later.

The door leading toward the Council opened with nary a sound, allowing Lena to enter inside what looked like a secluded room no more prominent than the Normandy's mess hall. Being a woman of the medieval age, Lena had expected to see the equivalent of a great hall filled with councilmember waiting for her for judgement, like back with the clergy on Rabona. She had expected to be called upon a throne, with a throng of jeering people waiting for her to be judged, maybe not even allowing her to speak in her defence.

Instead what she witnessed was the presence of a pair of steel chair placed in front of what looked at an elevated platform where four black lecterns, tall enough to cover a full-grown Turian up to his chest, was already covering four people formally dressed and looking at the Claymore with a mixed expression.

The first one was human. Maybe middle-aged, male, his skin a deep tan of brown, that one was the famous admiral Anderson that Shepard always spoke of. A soldier through and through, but capable of bending the rules when necessary and, most important of all, capable of listening before judging. Lena's best hope, according to Shepard.

On his right, the perfect opposite looked at her with twitching white mandibles and black fringes. Councillor Sparatus, the Turian representative. Not a bad person per se, despite his habit of speaking his mind with the grace of a sledgehammer. Harsh, direct and decide. Dangerous depending on the situation.

The Salarian, the Dalatrass called Valern, was the dangerous one. Covered in a gaudy dress of deep blue with red and gold stripes, the woman was the head behind the infamous STG, and a person utterly uncaring about things like honour. The stability of the Council, and the vantage gained from her people, was all she cared.

Tevros, the Asari councilwoman, was a wildcard. An aged matron dressed in red and white, the woman looked at Lena with an interesting mix of interest and wariness. Would she listen to her words, or try to detain her and wrestle her secrets from her flesh?

-Maybe both.- grimly thought Lena. Partially concealed, Lena still caught a glimpse of three armoured figures waiting on a darker corner of the room. Three Turian judging by the shapes and the Claymore was ready to bet that they were armed to the teeth.

"Miss Lena is here." announced the clerk to the room in general, indicating the first chair to the Claymore. Lena sat on it, feeling trapped inside a cage.

"So this is the one." began Sparatus bluntly. "The most infamous breach of Council Laws in three hundred years."

"Sparatus, don't be too blunt." added diplomatically "We are here to talk, not to accuse."

Sparatus's nostrils twitched but did not rebuff to his colleague.

"This Council meeting begins with the examination of case 23 784x2." began Valern with studied voice

"Discussing the case of human of unknown origin. Name Lena, surname unknown. Miss Lena, do you accept to begin the trial?"

"I do, councillor," answered Lena neutrally. He gave a vide eye at Sparatus.

-I'll be damned before I will grant you a chance to bite at me Turian.-

"I have to say, I am surprised to see such esteemed people like you taking a direct interest in someone so humble as a mere sellsword like me."

"I think you are underestimating the novelty of your case miss," replied Anderson.

"Very well, the subject has a right to call people testimonies for her defence" continued Valern in the meantime "As your employer, and Spectre of this esteemed organization, Shepard had contacted the people assigned for your defence."

"Am I under accuse of something?"

"No Miss Lena" quickly supplied Tevros "That was a poor choice of words I concur. But as my colleague said, you are an enigma. We wish to unravel this enigma also with the help of some people that learned about your condition."

"First testimony is Doctor Katrin Chackwas. Human doctor, enlisted into Alliance high command until two years ago, currently working with spectre Shepard," said Valern while looking at some files inside her Omni-tool. She looked calm, almost bored. Apparently, she had already made a decision in her mind and saw this process as nothing more of a farce

"Second testimony is"

But the moment her eyes read the name of the second testimony, all her composure shattered under a pair of flabbergasted eyes.

"Is something a problem?" asked Anderson when he noticed the change. The other fellow councilmen looked at their colleague with uncertainty. Evel Lena wondered what had Shepard done to rile the Salarian so much.

"Y..yes, apologies." blurted Valern "The second testimony is...doctor Mordin Solus. Ex STG officer, geneticist, professor and...world-wide scientist of the Salarian Union."

Lena could not stop a small smile from creeping on her face. Shepard must have known of the Salarian's reaction at this.

-Oh Shepard, you sly bastard.-

Both people called entered inside the room dressed in a full formal suit, for Katrin a grey business uniform, for Mordin a white dress that reminded Lena of a medical dress. Only far more expensive and elegant.

Both sported a gentle smile that betrayed the intention of fighting to the bitter end if necessary. Katrin even placed a hand on Lena's shoulders once they were on touching distance, like a mother reassuring her child.

"Our greeting to the esteemed Council!" Began Mordin toward the still surprised Councilmen "Spectre Shepard invited me to attend this esteemed council session thanks to my detailed knowledge of agent Lena's condition, knowledge acquired thanks to the agent's gracious help."

"And I am here as the doctor that controlled agent Lena's medical condition since her meeting with Spectre Shepard." supplied Chackwas

"We hope to resolve any misunderstanding between agent Lena and the esteemed Council. May we ask what is the problem with agent Lena, esteemed councilmembers?"

It took some seconds for Lena to notice that Mordin was not talking in his usual way, quick and excited. This tone was calm, controlled, modulated. The sound of a cat ready to pounce.

It was genuinely scaring.

"Miss Lena has been summoned there, in our presence, to respond to our request concerning her nature," replied Tevros. "As a geneticist yourself, I am sure you are aware that the creations of clones or lab-created creatures are forbidden by Council law. We believe that Miss Lena is one of such creature, and as such, we deem necessary containing her for the good of her and the people of the Council races."

-Talk about being blunt!- thought Lena grimly. So much for clearing a misunderstanding

"During our investigations, we managed to gather some tissue samples of Miss Lena on Korlus, the ship Purgatory and Illium." Added Sparatus "No match in any kind of database was found. As if this human appeared out of thin air one day."

"We understand your reasonings, esteemed councilmen, but the theory of Cloning is simply impossible. Observe"

Mordin activates his Omni-tool, and a veritable stream of data appeared inside the room.

"The process of Cloning, no matter how advanced and skilled is done, always leave tracks. Chains of proteins, specific brain patterns, duplicated skin cells, accelerated body growth symptoms. But if you look at my data analysis, you shall find no such imperfection in agent Lena's body. The cells are properly old, not artificially grown. There is no trace of modification of the brain, so common in clones that need their neural pathways regrown from scratch and so on. Agent Lena graciously allowed me to gain limited insight on her condition through a medical exam, and I discovered that her peculiar condition is due to a pluricellular organism nested inside her brain."

The entire Council gasped at the notice, both in surprise and disbelief.

"A symbiotic relationship between two creature? Ludicrous" scoffed Sparatus

"I might not be a professional geneticist like you, Mr Solus, but even I know that such feat of genetic engineering is beyond any of us."

"It was, until now." replied Mordin "Look at the data I am sending now." another stream of info appeared inside the councilmembers Omni-tool. Lena recognized some of the texts as the exams done after the mission on Hock's vault.

"As you can see, agent Lena and this creature, called Yoki by the same agent, is nested on the subject's brain and stable. From there, the creature sends signals on the thyroid for hormone production and a purplish substance I called (). Agent Lena calls it Yoki energy, and it is used to strengthen bones and muscles. That is the source of agent Lena's extraordinary strength and resilience."

All councilmen turned toward Valern waiting for a confirmation.

"This is...beyond my knowledge." admitted the Salarian councilwoman "But the theory sounds fair. Would you allow us to receive a copy of the data and a sample of this...yoki to let our experts analyze them?"

Lena had no doubt about the answer

"Only the data. The yoki stays inside me."

Sparatus became incensed at this proposal. His mandibles flared and twitched angrily at Lena, and the councilman pointed the finger at the Claymore.

"And why do you refuse to let us discover the truth inside yourself, human? Do you fear we might use your strength against your people?"

"Colleague, please!" asked Anderson. The paranoia of the Turian about humans and their supposed ambitions was not new to the admiral.

"No, simply because this substance is highly unstable. I can control it, only because I survived years of torture and pain. Your people? Maybe, but nine out of ten volunteers will die in the process. That is for sure."

"I have to concur." Chackwas quickly capitalized the moment "If you look at a graphic I am currently sending, you shall see the entity of the physical damage suffered by agent Lena. As my checks suggest" Lena saw all the councilmen wince in horror when seeing a picture of her scar. Even Sparatus and Anderson, people of war, could not hide their discomfort.

"Agent Lena suffered from a painful and invasive surgery from the base of her nape to her lower body, resulting in a permanent wound that simply refused to close. More scans, and the agent's testimony, informed me that such surgery has been done at the age of thirteen. Beyond cruel, but necessary for the operation. The younger the body, the higher the chances it will adapt without breaking down."

"Goddess," whispered Tevros.

"Who did this to you?" asked Anderson

Lena sighted

"Councillor, I have no idea. The ones who kidnapped and turned me were bare of discussion."

"But you must know something." insisted Sparatus "Experiments like this one need laboratories, guards, contacts, people! All of this cannot simply be swept under the rug for the spirits' sake! And yet, in five years of work, I have never seen a report from our Spectres denouncing such a criminal syndicate in the entire galaxy."

"My colleague is right." added Valern "Intel always spring up, no matter how hard you try to push it down. So how can such a syndicate manage to avoid the eyes of both the Council Spectres and the secret services of all our races?"

"For that, I have no answer," said Lena, and it was partially correct.

Of course, the people in front of her didn't know about her planet or the fact that a fragment of humanity was somehow stuck in an unknown part of the galaxy, but the bit about knowing nothing of the Organization was real. After the destruction of the base on the island, any presence of the strange dark-cloaked men disappeared like mist. Only corpses were left, like the one of Dae, or Rimuto, but the rest? Gone.

"However I can tell you this, esteemed councilmembers: the day I shall discover where those bastard live, I shall let them know why I am called the Ripper."

The chilling sound of Lena's voice silenced everyone inside the room. A fearful gaze escaped from Tevros's trained face and the Claymore heard Sparatus mumble

"And they wonder why I want to see her in chains."

"Anyway!" quickly intervened Mordin to defuse the situation "We drifted away from the main topic. Agent Lena is neither a Clone nor a lab-creature. She is human, albeit with a symbiotic parasite inside her. As such, she is protected by all rights and conventions granted by both the Alliance governorship and Council laws."

Anderson accepted the Mordin's proposal with a half-smile, while Tevros and Valern muttered something but refused to say anything out loud.

Sparatus, on the other hand, refused to relent

"Doctor, what you say is right, but these are not ordinary circumstances. Forgive me for saying this, but, despite the painful circumstances, we simply cannot allow you to stay away. Not like this. We have been informed about the bounty placed on her head. And the tidal wave of bounty hunters and slavers coming for her. The harsh truth is that within her rest a power too dangerous to let it loose, and that she should be detained for her own good."

Lena blurted out in revulsion, and some colour disappeared from Chackwas. Mordin stood silent, waiting for others' response.

"As much as I hate to say, I'm in league with Sparatus." confessed Anderson "The idea is disgusting, but sound. If someone like the Terminus crime lords, or the Batarian Hegemony, would manage to get their hands on Miss Lena, the damage would be incalculable."

"And let's not forget the potential benefits of this...yoki" added Valern

"properly harnessed, this substance might grant a breakthrough of medical knowledge never seen in millennia."

"Are you truly that ready to shit on your own principles that easily?!" cried Lena outraged. Behind her, the three guards in the dark prepared their guns in silence.

"If it is for the betterment of our people, yes!" replied Sparatus, even more hotly. "If I have to break the laws, and then pay the price for this, then I shall do it gladly human. Make no mistake, I find no pleasure in this, but unless someone finds a better solution, I will press for this end."

"Maybe I have an idea." intervened Tevros to quiet everyone's minds. All heads turned toward her now, waiting for her to speak

"While Valern and Sparatus's idea has some merits, the true problem we have just discovered is the possible existence of an unknown criminal ring of expert geneticists intent of creating more people like you, Miss Lena. As such, our efforts should be focused first in finding them, and later in how to deal with their unfortunate prisoners."

explained the Asari

"But we know nothing!" argued Valern "Even by focusing the full force of the STG, Blackwatch, Alliance secret service and matriarch council from now on this sole matter, assuming we somehow convince them all to cooperate together for more than five seconds, it would still take months, even weeks, to find a trace of such elusive people."

"Valern is right!" added Anderson "Just the sheer logistical size of this task would take weeks."

"But maybe we have a trace, only the one who witnessed it cannot see it properly." replied Tevros with a strange smile "Miss Lena, would you accept to let one of out agent perform a mind-meld with one of ours agents?"

Lena's skin stiffened, and her hairs straightened up like soldiers on stand by at the mere idea. To repeat what many Asari did to her, forcefully, back on Omega, filled the Claymore with utter disgust. Her mind played inside her the coarse laughter of many Asari mercenaries, killers and slavers that took her like a doll and left her to rot. Their touch, their ugly, black eyes...

"Lena?" asked Ckackwas preoccupied. Even the councilmembers noticed the sudden change.

"You have no idea what your people did to me back on Omega." gnarled Lena softly "How many time your people took me like a piece of meat, body and mind." this time the Claymore raised the voice, eliciting a reaction of surprise from the Council

"And now you want me to repeat the same process?!"

"I see," understood Anderson gravely.

"I...I had no idea that..." mumbled surprised Tevros, and she was. Her skin became slightly purple in embarrassment and shame after understanding what Lena had implied, and her head lowered slightly.

"And I am truly sorry for hearing this. Omega is...the haven of the worst the Council races have to offer and...I regret to discover that my people...fellow Asari...did such a thing. But please, I beg you to reconsider. The person who shall meld with you is not a slaver or a rapist. She is a professional therapist, well known among the Citadel, and will use the utmost respect in the process, I assure you."

"Assuming Lena accept, and I am very sceptical about this," asked Chackwas "What shall happen next? Will you still try to detain her."

"No no!" assured Tevros "After prying inside her mind, and gaining the intel necessary to begin an investigation, we would drop the case."

"Wait for a moment, Tevros, what?" protested Sparatus.

"She is working with Shepard, and Shepard works for us." Tevros interrupted him "Despite all our misgivings, I do not believe Shepard as a traitor. Not after what he did against Saren two years ago. So, as long as she works with our Spectre, I believe we can come to an agreement."

"A bit dangerous...but acceptable." concurred Valern

"Shepard is not a traitor, and I find this proposal sound." finished Anderson. Sparatus sighed in defeat.

"Very well. It is not my preferred course of action, but I remit myself to the majority's decision...assuming Miss Lena accept our proposal."

Lena's teeth gnashed in tension at the mere idea of doing this, but now she had the prospect of avoiding the spectre of a jail. Not only for her but for Raina. A chance of having at least some weight off her back and the potential help of the Council, however meagre it would be.

But having an odious Asari prying into her mind? Again after two years of freedom from them? Was the price truly worth it?

Lena already knew the answer, unfortunately.

"Lena?" asked Chackwas, concerned. The councilmembers patiently waited for the Claymore's response, refusing to add even more pressure. Even Sparatus kept himself shut.

Seconds passed, and the Claymore's grip on the chair tightened even harder, to the point that the armrest holding her hands began to creak and buckle.

"Miss Lena." Tevros finally tried to say "I can give you."

Crack! The armrest holding Lena's right fist shattered under the Claymore's iron grip with a dry sound of splintered metal. Small shards embedded themselves inside Lena's palm, making her grunt in pain and rage. The shattered remnants of the once fully functional chair handle fell on the floor in a fine mist of splintered debris, alongside droplets of blood.

"God's damnit Miss!" cursed in surprise Anderson

"That chair was made in pure steel, steel made by our mega-forges!" gawked Sparatus. Valern kept herself quiet, but her Omni-tool was working at full power. Tevros's eyes became saucers.

"Fine!" growled Lena, more against herself

"What?" asked Tevros

"I said fine!" roared Lena even harder "I shall let one of your cursed brain-fuckers enter inside me, just this time, and she will look only at my furthest past, nothing else. Anything more and I do not respond of my actions."

Tevros sighed in relief at this notice

"I am pleased to hear this, and assure you."

"Don't!" interrupted her Lena immediately "don't say another word. Just... don't." a loud sight of fear, and regret, escaped from the Claymore's lips

"Let's just get done with this."


Citadel. Praesidium. Museum of the Unification. Same moment

"And this is the Union room, where all the history of the Citadel Races, their most important moments, events and artefacts are stored for all the people to see them." blared an artificial voice. The speakers were everywhere inside the room, allowing any visitors to hear warnings and announcements despite the position they were in, and this was good considering the size of the place.

The museum, as befitting for a building containing the knowledge of hundreds of history of so many races, was massive. At least fifty rooms big and small according to the maps taped everywhere inside the building. Only this room, rectangular in space, was massive, five times the Normandy Mess halls at least. Hundreds of people, Asari, Humans, Turian, Salarian, even some Krogans, both alone, in couples and families milled around the place. Dozens of glass cases kept in artificial-made vacuum spaces ancient relicts for the people to see. A military suit used by the Asari's first team that entered inside the Citadel; a gun from the first contact war; photos from the first Council meeting in history and so on and so on. Where no finds could be exposed, holographic projections allowed the guests to revoke the ancient moment of past history. Like the history of the Turian race, or the legends of the Asari Goddess. Or the tale of Man-kind.

And amidst all this treasure trove of knowledge, Raina felt bored as hell.

"Come on, Raina, try to show more interest!" Kelly chided her, but the child wanted to have none of it

"I do not even know a tenth of what these things are saying. What is France? What is the Skillian blitz? All this history is like Latin to me! Can't we go to a funnier place?"

"Oh, come to one Raina! Give history a chance! History can be fun if you allow it to sweep you away." Kasumi said behind her. It felt strange to see the usual cheerful thief not covered with her normal attire for once. Instead of her typical cloaked appearance, the girl sported a trashy, form-fitting red and white T-shirt with the words -Robin Hood is in the house!- matched with blue trousers. Her oriental features were now in full display, allowing Raina to see her entire face for the first time, face paint included.

She was not the only one: just behind the thief Jacob and Jack kept a steady watch of the group, unarmed for now (museum rule), but more than capable of blasting any fool with their biotics. They were also dressed for the occasion, much for Jack's chagrin that had been forced to wear a pair of jeans and a shirt that covered most of the tattoos. Convincing her took longer than Lena with the make-up.

The only one not in formal dress was Samara, currently looking at a low-relief depicting the Goddess, but no one in the Museum dared to stop her. The moment a guard tried to stop her at the entrance, the entire Asari staff petitioned for her, convincing the head of the Museum to let her in. Truth to be told, most of the Asari guests looked more interested in her rather than the Museum now, but no one dared to approach her. Yet.

"Kasumi, are you interested in the Museum, or the artefacts you might steal?" snarked Raina back to the girl.

"You wound me, Raina!" replied Kasumi with fake sorrow. She even mimicked herself fainting from shok "I would never steal from a Museum. Unless is a Museum like the one possessed by Hock!"

"I swear, I thought Lena was overstating when she said that you needed to pick up the slack! But now I see she was right. You need to study more Raina. Otherwise, you might have some problems in the future." added Kelly back

Rain pouted

"I do not need this history. I will become a warrior like mum, or maybe an engineer, like teacher Tali."

"And yet, both these roads need the supplicant to be wise in many fields of life, Raina." intervened all of a sudden Samara. They hadn't even noticed her coming close, proof of her quickness of feet.

"Do you think the order of the Justicars accept fool, loud-mouthed children into their ranks, or that ignorant person proud of their vices are respected in the galaxy?"

The words were soft, just like her visage, but they still cut like steel.

"Learn, now that your mother and friends are there. You might mourn these days once you become older."

"Learned by experience priestess?" asked jack snarkily

"I have three daughters. I love them still, but now I cannot even see them thanks to my foolishness, and I regret spending so little time with them in the past. So yes, Jack. I learned this by experience."

The strain between the Justicar's words was such that even a brazen girl like Jack refused to bite back and merely shrugged.

"Well, she is right." supplied Jacob with more gentleness. "As good as you might be, the Alliance will not accept you if you cannot pass a basic test of general knowledge."

"Oh come on now, stop you people." Kelly instinctively wrapped her arms around Raina now visibly distraught "I think she has learned her lesson."

"Well well well!" said another voice outside their little group all of a sudden.

"Didn't know you had what it takes to be a Mother Hen, Kelly. Although going back to our days at Uni, I should not be surprised!"

All heads turned toward the source of this new voice and saw a pretty human girl with tanned skin and raven black hairs looking at the group with brown, mischievous eyes.

Dressed in casual, form-fitting clothing, the new arrival moved toward Kelly as if she knew her from a long time, her mischevious smile never faltering despite her current company.

The moment Kelly saw that face, she recognized the person in front of her, no matter the years passed.

"Sammy? Samantha Traynor?" asked a flabbergasted Kelly. The stranger nodded playfully and come closer.

"Yup! Your old university buddy and preferred wingwoman is here Kelly! How about a hug to celebrate?"

Samantha didn't even wait for an answer and locked Kelly in a playful hug

"I missed you, princess."

Kelly's escort came closer and watched the new arrival warily, especially Jack, but refused to act for now. Raina hid behind Kasumi, unnerved by this new arrival.

"Sammy," stuttered Kelly worried "I am glad to see you again, but why are you there? You never enjoyed the museums."

"Oh come on, Kelly? Is this a way to greet an old friend?" Samantha replied feigning wounded

"Sammy. I am serious. You work with the Alliance, and me...well, you know that the corporation I work with is accused of siding with Cerberus?"

"Oh, you mean that stuff? Please Kelly!" answered Samantha with a grin "I know you. You like people too much to care about this human suprematist bullshit! You are a Cerberus follower as much as I am straight! Although there is an additional reason for me being here, except seeing an old friend." Samantha came closer to Kelly's ears, in a fake conspiratorial tone

"They asked me to approach you so we can devise a plan to catch the Ripper together."

A tattoed hand snaked immediately against Samantha's throat, clamping it in a vice of steel. Samantha felt the air escape from her lungs and a pair of brown eyes gazing at her in rage.

"What did you just fucking say you little bitch?!" snarled Jack showing her teeth. Immediately Kasumi activated her Omni-tool and partially covered the deed with a short circuit on the nearest glass case. Most heads inside the room, including the warders, turned toward the sudden noise, but not all. A pair of Turians were looking at the group with worried looks already.

"Jack, stop, please!" begged Kelly while her friend struggled in vain under Jack's grip "Samantha loves to jokes, she always does this to everyone."

"Let the human go Jack, now! Or you shall face me here and now," warned Samara.

Jack snarled and sputtered but relented, allowing Samantha to breathe again.

"Try another stunt like this, and I will tear you a new asshole, bitch!" threatened Jack without the slightest hint of remorse. Jacob and Kasumi sighted of relief at this.

"Well..." blurted Samantha, coffing loudly for some seconds. The entire group sneakily moved a bit away from the short circuit still raging inside the glass panes sabotaged by Kasumi where now a small throng, coupled with some wardens, were milling around. Once she managed to regain some form of breathing, away from the people she spoke. "Your friend is quite rough. Sure is a good idea of keeping her around?"

"Jack is not rough, only overprotective!" protested Raina still behind Kasumi's legs

"Besides, you began by saying that you wished to kidnap my mother!"

A look of genuine surprise appeared on Samantha's face that now looked at the child with new eyes.

"Your mother? Wait...the Ripper has a daughter?"

A chilling silence answered to her words. Raina retreated even more behind Kasumi's legs, and again Jack showed signs of being ready to pounce at Samantha on the first occasion. A small corona of biotics appeared across the girl's hands, followed by a loud rumble far too resembling one of a lion.

"Ehm, Sammy, can we speak in private for a second? Only you and me?" offered Kelly to her friend in an effort to defuse the problem. Samantha nodded and allowed Kelly to drag her toward a more secluded place of the Museum. An adjacent room reserved for the Hanar history and currently mostly empty.

"The moment I see something fishy I use my biotic." threatened Jack before letting them disappear. Still, she did not follow them, and that was enough for Kelly.

Now alone in this new room, the light sound of splashing water coming from many computers and holographic movies showing the history of the Hanar people, Kelly began to interrogate her friend.

"Sammy, why are you there. Truly?"

"So the Ripper has a daughter." murmured Samantha more to herself "Now this is an interesting piece of trivia. The Alliance suspected it after seeing the record pict of her living with a child, but we never managed to confirm it."

"Don't you dare to suggest to take her instead of Lena. And stop calling her the Ripper for christ's sake!" threatened Kelly in response, surprising both Samantha and herself with this outburst

"They had already suffered enough as it is, they do not need to be hounded by the Alliance too!"

Samantha made a thoughtful face at this idea

"Yes, you are right" she concurred "I doubt even the Grissom Academy might help her. Ok, Kelly, I will not spill the bean to my superiors. It was part of the plan anyway so no biggie, but you must confirm all the juicy gossips I heard about her, and you."

"Gossips?! What are you talking about? Nothing is happening between Lena and me!"

Kelly, Kelly, Kelly!" sing-sang Samantha back to her friend

"Did you really thought that you could get away with that little stunt you and the Rip- Lena pulled back on Illium? The video of you two winning the hardest joust in the fair reached Youtube 6.0 in less than a minute and gained millions of followers in less than a day. Here, take a look."

Samantha activated her Omni-tool on her right arm and clicked on a pre-recorded program made for the occasion. A video took from the Extranet called

-Amazon carrying her bride.-

It was a full reproduction of Lena dragging Kelly bridal style across the entire joust on Illium, completed with a final dash and blaring sounds of victory. The comments down the video were a feast for any would be gossiper.

-Oh God!- thought Kelly in fright

"Amazing eh!?" asked Samantha wryly "Didn't know you swung that way like me."

"Sammy, put this inside that thick skull of yours: Lena and I are NOT dating! She is a client I am helping with my counselling work, just like many others inside Spectre Shepard's ship. At best we are just friends, nothing more."

"Friends. Sure." Samantha remarked, eyeing Kelly. One hand tapped her ears, and the earrings clasped on the lobes "Kelly, a friend does not gift expensive jewellery like your earrings to another friend. And yes" She quickly added after seeing Kelly's face "I also know about that, just as I know." Samantha gave a playful tug to Kelly's leg, where she knew was the scar left by the Batarian slaver "That a Batarian asshole took you hostage and tried to use you as leverage against Lena, and that Lena shot herself in the chest only to protect you. Are you still going to pretend that you are only friends?"

Kelly's cheek became red in embarrassment, and Samantha kept going with a wicked grin.

"She even let you drag her daughter around, apparently, and I have to say: you looked like a perfect mom a minute ago. Maybe she is using her daughter to test you, see if you are suitable for her. How old is she by the way?"

"Again with...you know what? I am done trying to change your mind. Talking about something else, do you mind explaining to me why are you there once and for all?"

"Ah, that? Simple. The higher up in the Alliance high command discovered that you and I have a history that goes back to the Uni, and some egg head had a great thought. -Ehi, this Samantha fellow working for us in the communication branch is thick and thin with the Ripper's supposed girlfriend. Why don't we send her to test the water and see if she can convince this Kelly to make her supposed girlfriend flip the bridge and join us? What could possibly go wrong?-" mocked Samantha with a perfect imitation of a white-collar leader.

"What a load of crap, but I accepted anyway because it gave me the chance to see an old friend, and ask her about her new gorgeous lover. I have to say, what a catch you found: blond, tall, super fit, stunning face, super brave and energetic to booth. I am almost jealous. Sure you can handle her? People like her are quite energetic in bed. I know it by experience and as strong as she is, I am afraid she might break you."

A flashing image of Lena lying in wait on her bed, naked and inviting, suddenly appeared inside Kelly's mind and refused to move away no matter how hard she tried. Truth to be told, the girl had never seen the Claymore naked: every time an occasion arrived, from the first time they met during Hock's mission to the changing halls on Illium to this day when the Claymore refused to come out the bathroom until she was at least half dressed, Lena always refused to let Kelly see her, even though they were both girls.

According to Chackwas, it was because of some kind of scar that ran across her chest, but Kelly failed to understand how could a warrior like Lena be fretting over a mere scar. Shepard, Garrus, Grunt, Jack and the others had hundreds of them and never made a fuss about it.

A stigma maybe? A memory tied to her past that still refused to tell her? Kelly knew that Mordin, Shepard and Chackwas had to grasp the reason. They had to with all the checkups and analysis they did to her, but the trio never said a word about it. They kept the secret as any professional should do.

"And here's come the usual worrywart." exclaimed Samantha all of a sudden "You really haven't changed one bit. Last time I saw you like this was when you were too afraid to confess to that cute boy back during our freshman year."

"You are never going to let me forget that day eh?!" asked Kelly with a sigh

"Never!" answered Samantha grinning

"So, Kelly. We both know each other enough, so let's cut to the chase. You are in love with this girl, yes or not?"

"I...I" mumbled Kelly "Oh for pit's sake! Yes, I have feelings for her, satisfied!? She is my client, I am supposed to be detached from her, but the more I chatted with her, the more I desired to become closer. Meaning that I broke every oath I made after receiving my decree by lusting toward one of my clients."

"Don't be such a drama queen now Kelly!" Samantha chided her "Now, back to pressing questions. When are you going to officiate your wedding, because I am your best woman, no question about that, and I really want to kiss the Ripper's lips."

"Oh dear!" cursed Kelly lightly "Sammy, old friend?"

"Yes?" asked Samantha.

"Shut up!"

Samantha's grin became even more prominent.

See ya. Tell me if it was good, or bad, as always.