Author's Note: Not quite back to Dragon Age yet, but this one was wanting some attention.


2179 CE, Arcturus Station, Residential Ward

"You're in a good mood."

Talia opened her eye, regarding Leliana with a lazy smile. "And you're not? I must be doing something wrong." Beneath the sheet, her hand drifted over Leliana's hip and waist to the curve of her breast.

"I am in a wonderful mood," Leliana countered, snuggling closer with a contented sigh, "but you were in a good mood when you arrived." She tipped her head back, giving her lover a questioning look. "More so than usual after a mission." Markedly more so; as soon as the door had opened, the Marine had caught Leliana up with a whoop and borne her straight to the bed. Lovemaking was always high on the agenda when Talia first returned from a mission, but her exuberance had made this reunion particularly energetic. Not that Leliana was complaining, mind you.

Talia chuckled and shifted onto her side, bringing them face to face, their foreheads nearly touching and her right arm draped over Leliana. The intimacy of the simple gesture, the gentleness of her expression, were such a stark contrast to the guarded, cynical Marine that she had met so many months ago. Nor were the changes confined to their intimate moments; whether they were out clubbing with Alistair and Erin or watching vids in her flat, Talia treated her with an open and unabashed affection and a sweetly protective chivalry, and when they made love, the passion was searing, consuming, the aftermath achingly tender.

It had kept Leliana on Arcturus for weeks after "just one night" had turned into another night … and many more after. Part of it was the guilty realization that she had created a vulnerability in the battle-hardened warrior far deeper than anything that she had ever encouraged in her previous assets, and her leaving would wound Talia deeply, but that was only part of the reason, and not the greatest part.

She was in love with Talia Cousland. With the way the single, dark eye would light up when the Marine saw her. With the smile that was for her alone. With the arm that lightly circled her waist when they walked together and the hand that reached for hers beneath the table.

"Yeah, it was a good mission," Talia told her. Leliana nodded, waiting. Talia had begun confiding more details of missions to her, but some things remained too sensitive to be shared. She listened, asked few questions, and never pressed for more information than her lover was willing to share.

She had forwarded nothing else that Talia had mentioned to her to the Shadow Broker since their first night together, sending in their stead lesser tidbits of information gleaned from other contacts on Arcturus, drawing from her savings, and focusing on her writing in earnest, particularly the piece about the events on Akuze. She was beginning to uncover some intriguing leads …

"We found a secret Batarian base on Rayingri," Talia told her after a moment. "One of the slavers we took before traded the location for a few more privileges in prison." Her upper lip curled in contempt as she spoke. "He won't get to enjoy them long once his buddies find out about it, but I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. The intel was good, and we totally surprised them." Her eye glinted with cold humor. "Even caught one in the head, suit around his ankles, reading Fornax. We didn't give them time to even think about surrendering; killed every damn one of them and blew the facility sky-high with their own munitions."

Talia was normally detached when speaking about the violence that frequently accompanied her job, but there was an undeniable satisfaction in her manner now – and any other time that batarians were the focus of that violence – that Leliana could not begrudge. The raiders who had attacked the farming colony on Mindoir had been more interested in retaliation for their grievances against humanity than capturing slaves. Talia had watched as her parents and younger sister were slaughtered, along with most of the rest of the colonists, saw her older brother dragged away, and had been subjected to horrific torture for trying to defend them, culminating in her left eye being torn from its socket as they tried to force her to submit to the cranial implant that would allow the slavers to control her. Only when the Alliance Marines had finally punched through the batarian defenses had she been saved, and only by the barest of margins.

"Were there any prisoners there?" Saving kidnapped colonists would be a balm to the still-raw wound of the massacre several weeks earlier.

"No." Talia shook her head. No doubt, the same thought had occurred to them going in, but a sly smile touched her lips as she went on, "But we hit them so fast they didn't have time to destroy their encryption algorithms."

"Oh?" Maintaining her expression of interest was not difficult, but while it was common knowledge that batarian raiders frequently used encryption to keep their communications from being picked up by the other galactic races, it was less well known that the algorithms for that encryption were distributed from the highest levels of the batarian government.

Officially, the Batarian Hegemony disavowed the activity of the raiders that attacked colonies throughout the Terminus Systems and the Attican Traverse. Unofficially, the raids were not only sanctioned but encouraged, with the weapons and money funneled allowing the raiders to serve as proxies for the aggression that would trigger a war that the Hegemony would undoubtedly lose if it were carried out by their own operatives. The encryption algorithms were a vital tool that allowed them to operate with near impunity, coordinating attacks and evading military patrols with no danger if interception of their communications. It was standard procedure to destroy the chips containing the algorithms as soon as a unit came under attack to prevent them from being captured.

"This is a good thing, yes?" she asked, trying not to think about the significance of such information to her own mission.

"Very good," Talia confirmed smugly. "If the Hegemony finds out they've been compromised, they'll change the algorithms, but it's expensive to do and a pain in the ass to distribute, so they don't do it unless they're sure. They don't give enough of a shit otherwise.

"We wired the chip into our comm system on the ride back and listened in." Her smile grew predatory. "The batarians discovered what was left of the base, but since their own explosives were used, they figured the raiders had done it themselves as a fail-safe to destroy the algorithms before the last one got killed."

Leliana nodded slowly, her expression giving no hint of the uneasy churn in her gut. "How long before they determine otherwise?"

"Depends," Talia replied with a shrug. "Intel has the ball now, and they decide how to play it. If they keep it low-key, focus on listening in, we could gain more information long-term, but we'll lose a lot of civilians to slavers. We could disrupt two … maybe three big raids before they catch on."

"A difficult choice," Leliana murmured. To allow slavers to prey upon colonies on the chance that the intelligence gained would save more in the end … logic argued the greatest good for the greatest number, but that was a cold calculation.

"Not really," Talia disagreed, then snorted softly, her eye gleaming with irony. "Or maybe it is. I can see the point of getting as much intel as possible, but knowing a raid is going down and just letting it happen ..." She trailed off and shook her head, lips quirked in a sardonic smile. "Guess it's a good thing I'm just the attack dog," she quipped. "I'd be lousy at making the big decisions."

"I think that you would not be so bad at it as you might believe," Leliana told her, letting one hand caress her lover's cheek. "You are far more than an attack dog, my love." The endearment came easily to her lips now, and though neither of them had uttered the actual declaration aloud, the truth of it lay between them, slipping ever closer to the surface.

"Maybe," Talia murmured, but the tender intensity in her gaze suggested that her interest in that subject was waning, and Leliana willingly melted into her kiss, trying to banish the notion that her lover's news had raised in her mind.

The next morning, she lay on her belly, watching as Talia got dressed and prepared to report for duty. "Have you heard of an Alliance group called Cerberus?" she asked, keeping her tone carefully casual.

Talia paused, considering, then shook her head. "Doesn't sound familiar. What do they do?"

"I am not certain." Not quite true, but neither was it a lie. "They seem to be associated with covert operations, but I cannot find any details." None that she would reveal yet.

"Working on a story?" Talia regarded her with concern. "Be careful. The Alliance doesn't like people getting to close to their secrets."

"It was merely a rumor that I heard in passing." Leliana hated how easily the lie came to her lips, hated how readily Talia accepted it, even if it was for her own good. As little as Leliana knew about Cerberus, the simple fact that the name was associated with the events on Akuze would be enough to put the marine on a path of vengeance that could get her killed. "I am curious, but it has no bearing on my current work, so there is no point in pursuing it." She gave her lover a sly smile. "I will continue to listen, however. Perhaps I will hear more, yes?"

Talia snorted, but she was smiling affectionately. "Just be careful," she admonished Leliana again, leaning down for a lingering kiss. "See you tonight?"

"Of course." Leliana watched Talia leave, then rose from the bed, slipped into her robe, and sat down at her computer terminal. She typed for several minutes, then sat back and reviewed what she had written.

This intelligence was exactly what she had been sent to find. The Batarian Hegemony would pay the Shadow Broker handsomely for the information, and Leliana would earn more than she had in months of smaller jobs. It was the type of coup that would seal her reputation as an information broker.

I cannot do this.

It would be more than a betrayal of trust. The Hegemony could use the knowledge to leak information about false operations, luring the Alliance into traps. Alliance soldiers would die. Perhaps Talia … or Erin … or Alistair.

She deleted the message, shut down her computer. It had not been so very long ago that she would have passed the information along without thinking twice, but it seemed like a different life now, and perhaps it was.

She was a journalist, and a good one; she could easily turn that into her primary profession, rather than a cover. The Shadow Broker had agents throughout the galaxy; she would not be missed, particularly if she allowed her lesser reports to dwindle away rather than cutting them off abruptly.

She stood, feeling a weight lifting from her shoulders, and headed for the shower. There were many stories out there waiting to be told; she just had to get out and find them.


2185 CE, the Shadow Broker's ship in orbit over Hagalaz

"When the hell are we going to blow this shithole?" Erin and Leliana looked up in from the readouts they had both been inspecting; neither one looked surprised. The asari looked a trifle guilty, but Talia was in no mood to curb the agitation in her demand.

Three days of down time in the ass crack of the galaxy without a bar in sight had been annoying, but she'd been willing to let Shepard enjoy her reunion with Liara. The situation with Leliana, however, was rapidly becoming untenable, and Talia was ready to snap.

The second night, she had again bunked down in the shuttle and told EDI that she could call literally anybody else on the Normandy to attend to their guest, but if she disturbed Talia again, there would be consequences. Toaster oven circuit boards had been mentioned, to which EDI had countered that the circuitry in Talia's cybernetic implants were actually more compatible with the majority of domestic electronics. The smartass cyber-bitch was actually starting to grow on her.

And it hadn't mattered anyway, because an hour or two into the night-cycle, the shuttle door had slid open and Leliana had stepped inside, the half-defiant, half-pleading look on her face stilling any protest that Talia might have made. Without a word, the redhead had nestled her way in between Talia and the back of the bench seat, rested her head on the marine's shoulder and fallen asleep, leaving Talia to spend the night with half her ass hanging off of the seat, dozing in fits and starts, alert for any more nightmares that could turn into another hand-to-hand combat session.

That hadn't happened, at least, but Talia had figured that if she was going to be awake all night, she might as well be in her own damn bed. So last night, she had stalked into her berth, stretched out on her bunk – leaving enough room for Leliana – and promptly feigned sleep. Which had at some point turned into real sleep until she had woken up spooned snugly with her bedmate, the redhead's back against her front, her right arm tucked around the slender waist, and that hand nestled in the soft valley between Leliana's breasts, held there by a hand at her wrist.

She had extricated herself as carefully as if she were defusing a bomb, then beat a surly retreat, pausing only long enough to get dressed before heading down to Shadow Broker Central.

"Planning on leaving today, TC," Erin replied mildly.

Talia accepted this with a nod, then shifted her glower to Liara. "She's staying here," she announced flatly, daring the asari to contradict her.

Liara just nodded. "We've already discussed it, and Leliana has agreed to remain here and assist me."

Talia stared at her, the irritation still sizzling beneath her skin trying to find something to take offense at and failing. At last, she nodded and huffed a sigh. "All right, did the yahg have any intel that could help our mission?"

"He did," Liara confirmed. "I have already uploaded a number of files, including classified weapons plans." Talia snorted, but didn't fight the grin; the asari knew her well.

"There are also some files on the Illusive Man and Cerberus that we'll just leave here," Shepard announced smugly, and Talia felt her smile grow predatory as the Spectre motioned her toward the monitor displays.

"That might make the trip worthwhile, after all," she said quite deliberately, ignoring the reproving look that Liara shot her. "Anything that tells us where -"

"Commander?" The tension in Joker's voice got their attention. "Got a distress call you're gonna want to hear."

"Patch it through," Erin ordered.

Talia listened, her eye widening in surprise when she recognized Tali'Zorah's voice, then narrowing as she focused on what was being said.

"Haestrom?" she spun to the galaxy map, searching. "What the fuck are they doing in geth space?"

Liara turned to one of the terminals, fingers dancing over the haptic interface. "Prior to the geth rebellion, the quarians established Haestrom as a research colony to study the instability of the local star. The sun appears to be deteriorating much more quickly than would be expected for its age. Perhaps they were attempting to continue that research?"

"Or evaluating it for a staging point to launch a war against the geth?" Erin suggested, peering over her lover's shoulder.

"It would be poorly suited for that purpose," the asari replied. "The levels of solar radiation are high enough to overload shields and other electronics within minutes, and extended exposure could be fatal to most life forms."

"Whatever the reason, they're pinned down now, and their Fleet can't get to them." Talia looked to Shepard expectantly. "We can make it." She'd been a bit annoyed at bringing a civilian – and a kid to boot – on board the original Normandy, but Tali'Zorah had proven herself time and again in the hunt for Saren, and Talia had come to view her as a younger sibling. No way they weren't going after her.

Erin nodded. "Joker, get us ready for departure in fifteen." She turned to Liara. "I'm not sure when we'll be able to come back -"

"Wait." Talia looked hard at the asari. "You're not coming?" Biotics made a nice hole card, and Tali was Liara's friend, too.

Liara had the grace to look distressed, at least. "I can't leave the ship so soon," she murmured apologetically. "There are operations that I need to review, reports that I need to receive, and I haven't set up -"

"It's all right," Erin told her reassuringly while shooting Talia an admonishing look.

"Fine." Talia turned and stalked toward the shuttle bay. "If you're not on board in fifteen minutes, we'll be back for you after we pick up Tali," she called over her shoulder.

Her mood hadn't improved by the time she reached the Normandy. "If I ever get my head stuck that far up my ass over a pair of tits, just shoot me," she snarled at Alistair.

"Well -" he began, but stopped when she spun on him.

"Don't," she warned him in a deadly tone, but her grand exit was spoiled by Leliana's entrance.

"The Omega Relay?" the redhead demanded, glaring up at her. "You're going through the Omega Relay?"

"Eventually." Talia shot Alistair a suspicious glower, but he shrugged helplessly. "Right now, though, we need to go help a friend, and you need to get down to the Shadow Broker's ship." She tried to sidestep, but Leliana blocked her.

"No ship has ever returned from that relay!" she exclaimed. "It is suicide!"

"We've got a plan," Talia shot back in exasperation, having no intention of revealing that said 'plan' was being pulled together on the fly and assembled with string and bubble gum. "The Collectors are clearing out human colonies all over the Traverse, and we're going to stop them!"

Leliana stared at her for a long moment, blue eyes shining too brightly, then caught Talia by the shoulders and pulled her down into a brief but fierce kiss before she could think to resist.

"You must survive," she declared fiercely as Talia stared at her in astonishment. "You must come back. We need to talk."

Before Talia could reply, Leliana slipped past her with what sounded like a muffled sob and hurried toward the shuttle.

She glared at Alistair, who had the sense to keep his expression studiously neutral. "Not a fucking word," she growled at him before resuming her course toward the bridge, checking the time as she went. If Shep wasn't on board when the fifteen minutes were up, the Normandy would be leaving if she had to haul Joker out of the pilot's chair and fly the ship herself.