Ch 22: For the Empire

Abandoned Palladium Mine, Binthu, Yangtze – 7 Oct 2190

Surprising Aelia, Security Chief Ruso Lukens strode into her office unannounced, without even a knock. In all the years she had known him, he had never done such a thing, and the look on his face caused her immediate concern. "What's happened?"

He stopped in front of her desk and drew a deep breath. "We have a problem. Our scouts have reported a new style of ship in the sector… and our records indicate it could quite likely be of Rachni design."

"Rachni? Here?" Aelia asked as she stood in astonishment, nearly knocking over her chair. "We know through the news broadcasts Shepard somehow garnered their support for the Reaper War, but why are they in the Voyager Cluster? Do they now have a treaty, allowing them to reside within Alliance space? They have never had a presence in this part of the galaxy! This is not exactly a welcome surprise. So… what do we do?"

"We lay low, at least for now. It is only a couple of scout ships, and they do not appear aggressive. As soon as we detected them, our automated defense processes kicked in, just as when any ship enters our watch perimeter, and terminated all outgoing signal traffic, with everything going into silent mode." Ruso shrugged and shook his head. "The ships did not react, so we can only hope the automated process silenced our traffic fast enough that our position has not been compromised. We can also hope they are now friendly, since they worked willingly with the races of this time."

Aelia shook her head. "No. We cannot trust our security… and potentially our very survival… to hope. We must act." She didn't hesitate to meet Chief Lukens' gaze. "I assume you already spoke to Jorè, and he had the same assessment, else you would not be standing before me, so… recommendations?"

"Astute, as always, Aelia," Lukens smiled in appreciation of the First Female. "He agrees we lay low until we are absolutely positive the ships have departed the system, and are not sitting somewhere watching for us, waiting to see if we jump. And it's not like we don't have eyes out there. We still have our scout ship watching the relay… which detected their initial arrival."

Lukens paused, realizing the First Female – based on her expression – was expecting something more. "However, we could start packing… quietly… with message runners for queries and aid requests, no comms. But, before any of that happens, Jorè does want to speak with you and Arick. I believe he has been considering moving to the other colony to reunite our people, and the presence of the Rachni in this sector does change our current situation; there is no argument on that point. Our rebirth project has been running for nearly two years, and both colonies have grown substantially so, just perhaps, we would have sufficient numbers to dissuade them from attacking us, should they prove hostile."

"Sufficient numbers?" Aelia frowned. "More than half of those numbers are children under the age of two! What kind of idiot would be afraid of attacking children?"

Ruso actually laughed. "It's not the children they should be afraid of; beside the fact that it would likely ignite galactic outrage, it is also our parents and guardians who now have so much more to fight for, in order to protect our children's futures. The Rachni have to realize we would be backed into a corner, and it would be a fight to the death. Not many would care to fight such a well-armed, desperate people."

"The Rachni are not just anyone… but it is Jorè's decision to make, so I will wait for his invitation. In the meantime, I will speak with Arick to see how he feels about it."

Ruso nodded. "I assumed you would say as much, so I will accompany you, as I have not yet notified him. Jorè instructed that I come here first, to speak with you… seeing as you are second in command. Your input matters greatly."

"Thank you." Aelia walked around her desk and began to head toward the doorway in which Ruso stood. "If you are ready, then, there is no time like the present to get Arick's opinion on the matter. Let us go."

"If our end is in the stars, better we die together than apart." Arick crossed his arms in defiance. "But the Rachni? Who would have thought?" He looked again to Ruso. "Are we positive?"

"As much as one can be after not seeing them for some 50,000 years." Ruso shrugged. "We know from listening to all the news media broadcast through the galaxy that not only did they survive, but they also fought for Shepard in the war. And the vessel's design was familiar enough for our scanners to identify it as Rachni. That is more than enough for me."

"Rachni or not, we still need to do something, if someone… anyone… is scanning the planets here," insisted Aelia. "And if Jorè honestly thinks we should recombine forces, I will not disagree with him…." Her eyes moved to the scientist as she continued, "or with your statement, Arick. If this fight comes, I want our people to be together."

Arick gave a brisk nod of agreement. "Did Jorè have any other recommendations?"

"No, he did not." Ruso glanced between the two, continuing, "He said he would be looking to the two of you for advice… and alternate options if you did not agree with the reunification. I believe he will be pleased that you agree with his assessment."

"So, how do we move forward, Chief?" Arick cocked is head, awaiting instructions.

"I will deliver the decision to Jorè, so you can get started on preparations. Before anything else, make sure all the back-ups are current and download our genetic research data to transportable drives, so we have multiple copies… just in case. Then, prep the remaining egg-bank for transfer to ship power… but don't actually move anything, until we get the all-clear. Use runners to send messages for the interim period." He paused, then acknowledged the other possible outcome. "Eventually, the comms will come off silent and you will receive either the go-ahead… or the attack warning. We simply have to trust everyone will react accordingly when that time comes." He smiled. "For the Empire."

Nodding almost in unison, both automatically responded, "For the Empire."

Aelia found it difficult to concentrate on her work, so it was a good thing all she was doing was creating backups of her entire system. Message traffic, memos, daily logs… everything was going onto a secondary drive so she would not lose the history of everything she had done during their time on Binthu.

"For the Empire." She said the words aloud, again, just to hear them… and they still felt as odd as they did a couple of hours ago, after Ruso's prompt. She huffed. "What does that even mean anymore? We are no longer an empire… and based on everything I've heard of the new world order, we never will be."

She started in shocked surprise when she heard Jorè clear his throat behind her. Turning to the colonial administrator she sighed and shook her head. "I suppose you heard that."

"Yes, I did… but you need not worry about it." He shrugged rather casually, given what could easily be construed as traitorous words. "I have been asking myself that same question since we awoke, only 200 strong. Particularly after we lost another forty souls to the military division rebellion. Rebuilding the old empire? I do not believe that is in our future." He smiled and huffed out a quiet laugh. "If you remember, I backed your similar words before everyone… just after I pulled the trigger and executed the traitor, Lenes Arim. Just because we have children, now, and believe our future is secured, we are still too few to honestly think we could ever build an empire again. Of course, the bigger question is if we even should… and I no longer believe that to be the case."

"I agree," nodded Aelia. "They have this… galactic council… that believes in cooperative leadership which, quite apparently, works very well." She cocked her head, adding, "They defeated the Reapers as a united power of at least ten independent races." A light smile traced across her lips. "I believe that is the way of the future… and I would like to meet the couple – this Shepard and T'Soni duo – who managed to pull them all together and accomplish such an incredible feat."

"It is my turn to agree with you… and perfectly frames the purpose as to why I am here." Administrator Lentos drew a deep breath. "I do believe we need to approach this new government and join them, though I fear they may resist the request."

"Why would they do that? From studying what history we can uncover without raising awareness of our presence, they have welcomed nearly every race willing to cooperate. Why would they look at us any differently?"

"Because we were looking at that history to find weakness. It is our very nature to be the conquerors… I do not know how smoothly we can transition to becoming what would have to be junior members of a rather large organization." Jorè shook his head slightly and looked down at the floor. "I would be the first Prothean leader to surrender our forces to another's dominion… and I am unsure how our people will react to such an act, other than to see it as treason. I may be no better than Lenes."

"Do not even begin to think such a thing," Aelia growled. "We had talked about how to move forward and issued a decree, which Lenes very purposefully ignored and then rejected… to the point of an attempted armed takeover. What we are doing here is in no way comparable. We are deciding the best path forward for our people and, I honestly do believe, we have insufficient numbers to survive in this age on our own. The future is still to be seen, but now? For now, we do what we need to do to survive, and that includes learning to live under the new rules of the galaxy."

"We do have choices, here." Jorè drew a deep breath. "There are other factions; the Batarians are doomed to extinction… and we could take their territory easy enough, I believe… and there is also the Terminus Systems, as it is now called, ruled by an Asari known as Aria T'Loak."

"No." Aelia shook her head. "That Asari is friends with Captain Shepard and Doctor T'Soni." She smirked for a quick moment before adding, "Well, perhaps friends is a bit too strong… but, nonetheless, the forces of Omega have some form of relationship with the galaxy's power couple. Our intelligence collection teams indicate they have assisted one another in battle more than once. That is a compact which I do not understand, and you can seldom break something, the nature of which cannot be determined. I believe such a move, in either case, is too great a risk given our current circumstances."

When Aelia fell silent and offered no alternatives to his proposals, Jorè actually chuckled, which made her extremely curious. He grinned and explained, "I was simply wondering if you were entertaining any other options, perhaps different from what I suggested… and figured you would come forward with any ideas you may be harboring once I aired mine. It is now quite apparent to me that you are in complete agreement with my original plan."

"Did you honestly believe Arick and I would remain silent if we were not?" Aelia huffed in exasperation. "Honestly, Jorè, you should know better than that… and think better of Arick and I, as leaders of our people. If we ever disagree with you, we will not remain silent. You can depend on that."

"Apologies." Lentos' grin spread even wider. "You are absolutely correct in your assessment… but these are strange times, and I simply needed to be certain. So much has changed for us all, I felt the need to confirm our leadership team was still on solid ground."

Aelia reached out and gripped his arm, knowing he would be able to sense her truthfulness through the touch. "Of that, you should harbor no concerns. Both Arick and I are with you on this." Releasing her grip, she nodded her head. "We all believe joining the current leaders of this galaxy is our best way forward."

Mass Relay, Antaeus, Hades Gamma – 13 Oct 2190

The soldier hummed a quiet tune, but not so quiet the Queen did not hear. They had heard a brief blip of sound nearly a week ago – a warning – before all fell silent. So, they had waited. Their enduring patience had paid off; a small ensemble of Prothean scout ships decelerated out of FTL and circled the only relay connection out of the Voyager Cluster. The Rachni scout ship remained cloaked and motionless, easily concealed against the dark side of a planet.

In contrast, the Prothean scouts moved cautiously, but could hide no longer once they made contact with the Relay. They could not avoid being exposed for the duration of time it took for the Relay to finish its realignment, so they could jump to their next destination.

When the Prothean presence was discovered, the Queen had decided to lay a trap… not to attack or capture them, but to track them, should they choose to travel. She had immediately reorganized the eighteen ships into a web at key relay nodes, stretching through Earth Alliance and both inner and outer Council Space… each point waiting to see where the next ripple in the web would occur. She very much doubted the Protheans would head directly into Rachni territory; that would be a bold move, even for them, but she had sent additional scouts to Attican Beta and the other relays in that sector – just in case.

Once they were all on station, thirty-five scout ships total, they had a ship monitoring every major relay point throughout the galaxy – all except Omega; that was a location even the Rachni dare not enter without permission. The first scout sung out for all to hear; in direct opposition to the Queen's assumption, the Protheans were headed toward Hercules, within the Attican Beta Cluster. The web began to collapse on itself, restricting unmonitored relays even more as the network grew more concentrated. Within three days, they had an answer for Doctor T'Soni and Captain Shepard. The Protheans had retreated to a point somewhere within Sentry Omega… which consisted of only one system, Hoc, with five planets.

The Queen decided this was important enough to make immediate contact, so she notified Sharp and his translator of the news, requesting they pass the information to the Asari Councilor as soon as possible. She would have preferred to contact Liara and Savior Shepard directly, but they had not accepted her offer, so were not yet one with the hive mind, as Matron Dalyna Trapso had opted to become.

She lamented that she had been unable to convince them but, at the same time, also realized this was likely the more… appropriate… route for the notification, given the Rachni were now members of the Council of many, and believed it best she follow their hierarchy of command. In the longer view, which the genetic memory made relatively easy to see, it seemed the more politically expedient path to choose.

Undisclosed Location, Hoc, Sentry Omega – 14 Oct 2190

Colonial Administrator Jorè Lentos, First Female Aelia Dethan, Security Chief Ruso Lukens, and Science lead Arick Vythan all stood shoulder-to-shoulder before the large crowd of the roughly eighty adult Protheans who had been sent forward to the second colony, nearly two years prior. The eighty adults who had remained at the original location had already heard what was about to be said, so had been assigned to watch over the 142 children who had been born over the past two years, through their recombinant-DNA program.

Jorè stepped forward. "Before we split our populace due to the dwindling resources of our sleeper colony, we mentioned the need to embrace our new reality, being that we are no longer the dominant race within what used to be our galaxy…" he paused briefly before continuing, "…which is ours no longer. We spoke, then, about needing to determine the timing and conditions of our emergence." He paused again, looked at each of the three standing with him before glancing at his deputy, Mujin Shuun, whom he had sent forward to lead the group to whom they were now speaking. "That time has come. Our previous location was discovered, by none other than the Rachni."

He heard the collective gasp before the room exploded with questions and shouts of concern. Raising both arms above his head, he pleaded, "Please! Let me speak!" It took a few moments, but the crowd eventually quieted enough for Lentos to continue. "They were non-hostile… only scouts." He huffed and fell silent for just a moment before continuing, "But, we are also fairly certain they sat and watched, though we cannot be positive of this. You have viewed the same missives we have seen. You know they cooperated with this new… Council… that rules the current galaxy and, we do believe, the Rachni have evolved along with the rest of the races which we assisted in our time."

Jorè stepped back and Arick Vythan stepped forward. "You should all be proud of the work we did. Our training and guidance raised these races up to the point where they were able to grow in both body and mind." He smiled, adding, "They succeeded beyond even our expectations… to the point of being able to finally defeat the Reapers! What amazed me the most was the speed in which they did so… in a fraction of the time it took the Reapers to nearly eradicate our entire civilization." He stood tall and squared his shoulders, adding, "Their success, however, was largely due to those standing here today. While our military stumbled and fell, we laid the groundwork for their victory. The warning beacons. The Avatars and their AIs. All of our work combined to give them the information they needed to complete and activate the Crucible. The final task in which we failed, which ultimately resulted in our demise, they completed and successfully deployed, resulting in their triumph."

They swapped places again; this time, Jorè and Aelia stepped forward together, but it was Aelia who spoke first. "After our initial shock, we discussed the issue amongst our group and decided it was time to come out of hiding and speak with this Council. Living in hiding, in caves, is no way to raise our children… our future. They need to breathe free air and see the sun…"

Jorè picked up and finished her statement. "But we are no longer the military dictatorship that nearly destroyed us, and we do not care to force such a decision upon everyone without due consideration. Your group here is roughly half of our entire population… so we will leave you to discuss this with Mujin and decide how you wish to proceed. If you agree with our current proposal, the matter is settled, and we will make contact with the outside world. If you vote against it, then you will need to pick representatives from among you… a total of four to match our number… and we will sit and discuss the options until we have a decision that will apply to everyone. The Prothean people do not have sufficient numbers for us to be divided and expect to survive, so we must do what is best for all."

He looked at his former deputy. "Mujin, I leave them in your very capable hands."

T'Soni Country Estate, Thessia, Athena Nebula – 20 Oct 2190

Samantha had a huge grin on her face as she hugged the woman who had helped raise her. "I can't believe you managed to get the whole two weeks off and can be here to celebrate your birthday with us! I was amazed when we got your note!"

"Well, I'm long overdue for an extended vacation, and Alliance Command knows it, so I'm glad you were willing to come home a week earlier than planned. I haven't had a chance to use my full vacation allotment like this since before the Reaper War… and things have been so crazy with the reorganization and fleet reconstruction, the Normandy hasn't had a chance for any organized downtime… though, soon enough, that won't matter."

Shepard released her hug and stepped back, staring the woman in the eyes. "What do you mean, won't matter? You can't possibly be retiring, Aunt Karin. You have another 30 or 40 years before you should be thinking about that… and you still love what you do!"

"True enough, Sam, but sooner or later, we all get too old to be flying… on a fighting ship, at least." The woman offered up a sad smile and continued, "Besides, I love Ashley Williams as a ship captain, Sam. You did a good thing when you picked her up from Eden Prime. She has a good soul, and honestly cares for the wellbeing of those under her command… but I have to be honest. The only reason I returned to flying service after… after you died… was to serve and take care of you, even if it was under Cerberus – maybe because it was Cerberus. What I cared about most was you being alone in an organization I knew you could never trust."

Liara felt the constriction in Shepard's throat, so took up the conversation, quite willingly. "And I appreciate that Karin… and I'm sure you know how much that has meant to both of us. No one knew Samantha better… including me, at that time." She smiled lovingly and reached over to grip Shepard's hand. "You have been her rock since her father died at Cerberus' hands… you and Hannah… and words do not exist that properly describe our gratitude to both of you for the amount of love and care you have given Samantha, and then me, by extension, once we were promised and then bonded."

She glanced at Shepard before asking, "But that does not answer Sam's question. Why will Normandy downtime in the future no longer matter? Are you changing assignments?"

Karin's eyes glittered in amused appreciation. "Always the analytical one, aren't you? Does your brain ever stop, Liara?"

Shepard's eyes lit as well with the question, realizing Liara was very likely onto something. "Oh! That's it, isn't it! Where are you headed after the Normandy? And when?"

"Well, effective on the 18th of December, I will be Colonel Karin Chakwas, and reassigned as the Medical Commander on the SSV Logan."

"Wow!" Exclaimed Shepard. "The command ship of the Third Fleet! Congratulations, Aunt Karin! That's quite the jump!"

"Yes… and no." Karin smiled wryly and shook her head. "From potential deserter and war criminal during the Collector War to a Chief Fleet Medical Officer within seven years. Had it not been for you, that never would have been possible."

"Sure, it would. You're a great doc, Aunt Karin!" Shepard somehow managed to scowl and smile at the same time. "And the Alliance knows it!"

Laughing, Karin replied, "And you know being a great doctor has absolutely nothing to do with a promotion like that. They are simply looking for the recognition of someone who was serving on the Normandy during the war; that's what brings credibility to the appointment. Serving on the United Council Forces Flagship during the period of time leading up to and winning the final battle against the Reapers? That's what got me such a peach assignment… a flying doc's dream."

"Well, then I will simply say I'm glad serving on the Normandy could help you land such a plum assignment." Shepard's expression was pure smile now, no trace of the former scowl remaining. "I mean, seriously? A command position as a doc, while still being in the fleet? Not being stuck at a landside desk?"

"I know… and, quite honestly, it is a dream come true. With all my medical knowledge regarding the various races we had aboard the Normandy, I thought for sure I'd be going back to Earth to head a medical training facility somewhere, perhaps even in London." She shook her head. "But I don't believe I could have taken that job… not in London, anyway, and I think Ines Lindholm knows it, as does your mother, and she likely said as much to the Defense Committee as they looked over the potential assignments. Too many memories. I wouldn't be able to go a day without thinking about David… and James. Their deaths are too fresh, yet."

Shepard offered up a reticent smile. "Yeah. James would have been thirty-two on the tenth of this month…" She paused and shook her head, looking at Liara, who continued the thought.

"We played a few rounds of poker in celebration of his birthday, just the two of us, while we were on Intai'sei, and drank a couple of cervezas in his name while we talked about the good times." Liara stated, quietly. "I am not embarrassed to say we shed a few tears, but also laughed about how much of a pompous ass he could be." She smiled as Karin chuckled quietly.

"He could be that, couldn't he." Karin then heaved a sad sigh. "But he had a good heart, always sent half his salary to his uncle, to make sure he was doing alright."

"Yeah," added Shepard. "He was the type of guy who, quite literally, would give you the shirt off his back."

Liara smiled and attempted to bring a bit of levity to the conversation. "That's only because he always wanted to show off his muscles. Remember our discussion during our last party before the final battle? About which was better, physical fitness or biotics?"

At that, Shepard laughed outright, her smile no longer so forced. "Yes! No doubt you quite handily won that debate, when you picked his bulked-up ass off the floor with a simple flick of your wrist!"

Karin smiled softly for a moment before her expression clouded again. "Both of your statements are true enough… but the most poignant thing I remember is the final charge toward the conduit." Her expression grew cloudy as she looked directly at Liara. "He gave his life to save you and Riana that day…"

Liara swallowed hard, her own throat threatening to close at the memory. "I know…" she squeaked out. "And I will never forget that… and we will never forget him… which is the main reason we make sure we celebrate his birthday every year. We always have and always will, because we know that without him, I would not be here today to talk about it, and Shepard and I would not have a future to celebrate together."

Shepard was solemn, adding, "I honestly don't think any of us would be here today, if I didn't have Liara and our future together to fight for in those last few moments. Not only would Liara not have been in my head… but her death would have certainly been on my mind… very likely to the point of distraction, I'm sure. Riana wouldn't have been able to join me on the Citadel… and I never would have made it to the podium to input the necessary commands, much less drag my ass to the platform where Miri and Judea scooped me from. James saved us all with his final act… and I will never forget his sacrifice, nor take for granted the future we have because of it."

Karin forced a smile onto her lips. "Then let's stop moping over his death and make that future worth every bit of his sacrifice, shall we?"

"Yes. It truly is good to see you… and happy birthday!" Liara wiped the tears off her face and gave Karin a tight hug. "Now, let's get you and your bags inside to start the party! Mom should be settled in by now and is likely wondering what's taking us so long."

With the birthday and impromptu, early promotion party – and they would most certainly still have the 'real' promotion party when the formal event occurred – long since over, the foursome sat quietly in Shepard and Liara's private study, talking and sipping Serrice Ice. Hannah couldn't help but smile, seeing how happy her daughter was. It was quite apparent Samantha and Liara had managed to have a good, long discussion while enjoying the remote privacy of Intai'sei, and had come to terms with many of the things that had been bothering them, if not all of them. To Hannah, they simply seemed… settled, and the thought made her smile. My kids are growing up… in a galaxy I had started to doubt would continue to exist. Thank the Gods for the many miracles it took to make that all turn out as good as it did.

Sam noticed the change of expression on her mother's face. "What's up, Mom? What are you thinking about?"

Hannah smiled, reaching over to squeeze the hand of the single person in the known galaxy who brought her the greatest amount of joy. "Just about how lucky I am to have you and Liara… well, everyone we now consider family… in my life. I could die tomorrow and be a happy woman, completely content with how my life turned out."

Karin, more than just a little tipsy from the Serrice Ice, first snorted in response before managing a worded reply. "Don't be so damned maudlin, Hannah. You're healthy as an ox and will be living for many years to come, especially if I have anything to say about it. No need to hasten the date of that undesirable event, particularly on my birthday! That's simply bad form, Admiral!"

Laughing, Hannah replied, "As you wish, Doctor Chakwas. I'll do my best to make sure I remain in this world, if for no other reason than to demand you do the same, for as long as we both shall live." She raised her glass, and her eyes roamed the small group. "To us… that we all spend the rest of our lives in happiness, for as long as our Gods are willing to give us!"

T'Soni Country Estate, Thessia, Athena Nebula – 30 Oct 2190

The ten days between that party and the next flew by. Hannah had returned to Earth the very next day, as the Defense Committee hadn't given her more than the one day off for the special event. She worked that Friday and the next week, quite content, knowing she would be back on Thessia again by Friday night, on the 29th.

Most of the normal guests had rolled in, including Adrien Burns, Sharon Culver, and much to Livos' joy, Zan. Something unexpected had popped up, so Tevos had to beg off the Friday evening events, not able to join them until late Saturday morning. Even when she and Sha'ira did finally arrive, she seemed preoccupied.

"Rae." Shepard drew her attention, a bit of a concerned edge to her voice. "I know I'm not an active Spectre anymore… but what's going on? You are distracted as all Hell, and that is not like you. You are generally either fully engrossed in business or completely relaxed during your off time. What has you so wound up you can't set it aside for the weekend? I haven't seen you like this since the war."

"I am so sorry." Tevos closed her eyes for a moment and focused her thoughts. "I did not want to be discussing business at the beginning of your holiday, but we have had a major development… one about which you will care greatly, or Liara will… and I did not want to disrupt your holiday."

Liara heard her name, turned from her other guests and approached the newest arrivals. "Well, it is obviously disrupting your free time with us, anyway, so please do share… especially if whatever it is will have an impact on Shepard and me."

Tevos drew a deep breath and blew it out again with a long sigh. "It's the Protheans. The Rachni located them… and tracked them to Hoc." She canted her head slightly to the side. "We've found them, Liara. Or perhaps I should say they found us, because while the Rachni sat and watched them, they dispatched an envoy asking to speak with very specific representatives of the Council… by name." She paused, looking between the two. "They will speak only to the couple who led the war against the Reapers… Captain Samantha Shepard and Doctor Liara T'Soni."