The Council

We escorted Kal'Reegar back to the Quarian ship that the pilot had landed completely out of sight and tucked away in a little corner. Making sure he was going to be alright, I applied another dose of medigel to his shoulder and we watched as the little ship took off and left Haestrom. It was still blisteringly hot and everyone was tired from the fierce fire-fight with the Geth. However, we had succeeded and now Tali was once again on the Normandy. Tali was without a doubt happy to see Garrus, Sophie and I again. But she still did not trust Miranda after how she had basically wanted to abduct Veetor for Cerberus back on Freedom's Progress, though she seemed to act a little less antagonistic towards Jacob. When she had had the tour of the new Normandy, she told me that she would happily set herself up down in the engineering department.

While we were chatting, Tali went to have a good look at the Normandy's drive core and motioned for me to follow her over. Away from the other engineers and with the gentle hum of the drive core beside us we had a quiet talk,

"Thank you for saving me, Scott. Again," Tali said. "And thanks for saving Kal'Reegar as well. Too many people died on that mission; it's nice to get as many out as possible."

"Yeah. Are you going to be ok? It was pretty hairy down there," I said.

Tali's bright eyes gazed out at me in that special way that they always had back in the days of chasing down Saren,

"When that Geth had me up against the wall I was sure I would be choked to death. All I could think about was how this was supposed to be a research mission and how I had gotten all the people who were sworn to protect me killed. I…" she reached for my hand, "I tried to scream for you. I tried to scream your name but the Geth's hand just tightened even more. And then you were there."

I took her other hand and stepped closer to her,

"When I saw you getting choked… that was one of the scariest things I've seen in my life. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since I… woke up. Even with everything that I've been through you've always been in my mind, and now you're actually here."

Tali closed her body into mine and I touched my forehead to her mask. She breathed slowly and calmly in my arms and I remembered all the intimate moments we had ever had together like this one; a warm feeling of comfort and belonging returning to me again. When Tali left my chest she said,

"Scott, I know you want what we had before… before you died," she clutched my hands tightly, "I want you to know that I do as well; seeing you again on Freedom's Progress, I've never felt anything like that for over two years. But…" she ran a hand up to my cheek, "I need some time. I need time to get my head around all of this: You and Cerberus, my mission for the Fleet…"

"It's ok, Tali," I stopped her as I saw that she was getting herself worked up, "I understand. If you need space just tell me and I will wait. I'll wait all the days of my life if it means I can have even one more with you; you know that."

"I do," she said, smiling behind her mask, "that was really cheesy, but thank you. I want us to be… "us" again, but I don't want to rush into it. You're the only man I could ever be with and I'm not ruining it by jumping in without thinking."

"Good; I'll be there when you need me Tali. Until then, you should get some rest and maybe meet some of the others; they'd definitely like to meet you. Grunt'll probably want to thank you for getting him in another big fight; he's even more blood-thirsty than Wrex was," I smiled and laughed with her.

I took my leave of Tali with a hug and summoned Miranda and Jacob to the comm room to plan our next move when we reached the Citadel.

"By now Ashley will have reported to Anderson and the Council," I thought out loud, "we can contact him before we reach the Citadel and get clearance to go onto the station, hopefully without drawing any attention to… well the fact that I'm alive."

"Half of the galaxy has heard that you might be alive anyway, Commander," Miranda said, "maybe the ramifications wouldn't be as bad as we're thinking."

"No," I refuted, "for now I think I need to stay under the radar as much as possible. And if the rumours surrounding me involve Cerberus as well then it won't go down well; media would have a field day. The less people know the better."

"Fair enough," Jacob agreed, "in any case; it's been two years since you were declared dead, hopefully people won't recognise you straight away. And if Anderson knows you're alive then he might actually be expecting you; you'll have clearance to get through security."

"Ok, we make contact with Anderson before we get there and arrange to meet. With any luck I'll be able to get some help from the Council," I said and Miranda snorted with contempt. "I know it's unlikely," I agreed with her, "but we have to get every bit of help we can, every resource."

"Speaking of which," Miranda said, "what about Kasumi Goto? We still have Intel that she's on the Citadel, we just have no idea where."

"She's the best thief in the business for a reason," Jacob added.

"True, but the way things are going I'm not sure that we'll need her," I stated, "if we get Thane Krios and Samara on our team then we'll have a powerful force behind us, and we already have a tech expert in Tali. There's also no mention of Kasumi having any combat experience whereas we know that Tali definitely does and has greater knowledge of just what it is we're facing. If we find Kasumi; all well and good. If not; then it doesn't matter."

Miranda and Jacob seemed content with what I had said and reported back to their stations. Secretly; I was worried about what could happen if I was recognised and the story spread like wild-fire throughout every inhabited system in the galaxy. I worried that my parents would find out; and if that was to happen only for me to die again fighting the Collectors… I couldn't do that to them again.

When the Normandy passed through the Mass Relay into the Serpent Nebula where the Citadel resided, I ordered Joker to remain a fair distance away from the massive space station while I went to the comm room,

"EDI; contact Councillor Anderson. Let's hope I don't cause a political uproar because of this."

"Connected," the AI told me. I waited with uncertainty for Anderson to answer the call, wondering what I was even going to say; how was I going to explain everything to him? The Collectors, Cerberus, coming back from the dead: It all seemed so ridiculous, so far-fetched that even I would not believe it if told the tale by someone else. The call was answered and David Anderson's voice came over the comm,

"Councillor Anderson speaking. Who is this?"

"Councillor… It's Scott Gardner."

There was a weighted pause as David processed what I had just said before responding,

"I was wondering when I was going to hear from you, Scott."

"I take it Ashley gave you her report about the events on Horizon?"

"She did, although I'd heard… rumours about you before that. By all accounts you made a visit to Aria T'Loak on Omega. Between her and Cerberus; you've been building some shady connections."

"Not by choice, Councillor," I explained, "but with the situation in the Terminus Systems I have to do something."

"I know, I know," he said thoughtfully, "it's a delicate situation. I'll have a private shuttle meet you and bring you to my office; we can discuss the details there. Where are you? I'm not seeing any unidentified or Cerberus vessels on scope."

"I'm in the Serpent Nebula on… the new Normandy SR2, but I'll come to the Citadel on one of our shuttles. It'll raise some questions if a ship reminiscent of the Normandy suddenly pulls up after being destroyed two years ago."

"Agreed," David sounded surprised, "dock your shuttle in Zakera Ward and I'll have Captain Bailey escort you to the Presidium. He's someone I can trust."

"Bailey?" the name rang a bell, "I've met him before…"

"You fought alongside him during the Battle of the Citadel when we were mopping up the last of Saren's forces after Sovereign was destroyed. He'll understand the need for secrecy."

"I'll head for Zakera immediately, Councillor."

"It's still just David to you, Scott."

Stepping out alone onto the Citadel again after the last time I had seen it was strange. My most vivid memories of the Citadel all stemmed from that fateful day when the Geth were all over the Presidium and Saren almost succeeded in unleashing the wrath of the Reapers on the galaxy. The fires, the stench of death and the heaps of corpses all flashed through my mind, culminating in the tremendous explosion when Sovereign was ripped apart by the Alliance Fifth Fleet.

Now it all looked perfectly normal: Families, couples and groups of friends dined in cafes, a group of Asari girls and a Human friend were out shopping for dresses and hundreds of people of all species were bustling about their working day. A Turian child pestered his father to buy him a model of an expensive metal Geth frigate as they passed a toy shop, the father said no and there was a tantrum. Eventually father and son came to a compromise and the child walked out of the store with a cheaper plastic Turian Dreadnought model. Everything was just so peaceful and normal; as if nothing had ever happened.

A few minutes went by for me to take in the scene before a C-Sec officer approached me,

"Captain Bailey," he introduced himself and put a hand up to stop me replying, "you don't need to introduce yourself; don't want anyone overhearing."

Bailey led me to a C-Sec shuttle and it took me straight to the Presidium Embassies. He unlocked the door to the Human Embassy and let me in, but remained outside as the door shut behind me. I saw Anderson pacing back and forward as he argued with the rest of the Council who were communicating from their own offices,

"…I think it's completely unfair that you wouldn't at least hear Gardner out. He once saved the lives of everyone on this station and on the Destiny Ascension, including yourselves."

"That's not the point, Councillor Anderson," the Salarian responded, "if the rumours surrounding his ties to Cerberus are true; then he is an avowed enemy of Citadel Space."

"And I could call you criminals and enemies of the people for ignoring the murder of hundreds of thousands of innocents," I said and stood next to Anderson. My old friend at first seemed surprised to find me standing next to him, red eyes glaring at the other Council members and cybernetic scars following the contours of my face and neck, and the three other Councillors stared out from their screens at me with bewildered expressions.

While I still had their undivided attention, I hit them with what I had to say,

"The Collectors are taking thousands upon thousands of Humans from their colonies; we don't know what for, yet, but we encountered Husks on Horizon that prove that the Collectors are working for the Reapers."

The Turian put his head in his hands and retorted in an annoyed tone,

"No! No more on the Reapers. We have dismissed that claim."

"Your colonists knew the risks involved when they left Citadel Space," the Asari Councillor added, "they are beyond our jurisdiction and therefore there is nothing we can do for them."

Always the same crap with politicians, but I needed all the help that I could get,

"They're not beyond my jurisdiction," I said, "and they need my help; and I could really use yours, in whatever capacity is available to you."

"You are putting us in a difficult position, Commander, given some of the rumours around your miraculous return," the Salarian said curiously.

"Councillors," I said to them all including Anderson, "what you have heard about me and Cerberus is true; but before you condemn me as a traitor and a terrorist, I'd like the chance to explain."

I told them everything; from the Normandy SR1 being destroyed and my death, to the Lazarus Project and my return to life. I spoke about the threat that the Collectors posed with such fierce passion that the Councillors seemed completely enthralled; unable to deny the truth that I was revealing to them. The experience that my team and I had gone through on Horizon was unlike anything that they had ever heard before. The descriptions of the colonists trapped in their stasis after being stung by the Seekers had them startled. When I was done, I must have been red in the face, sucking in a lungful of air to calm myself as I watched the stunned faces of the Council; the Asari straining to keep herself from coming to tears.

"Perhaps," the Turian started, sounding awfully subdued, "we can show some peripheral support. Not an official acknowledgment given your ties to Cerberus, but a symbol to show our support and good will."

"We can reinstate your Spectre status and give you access to unique and highly sought-after equipment and intelligence that may be of use to you," the Asari said, but the Salarian cut in not a second later,

"As long as you restrict your activities to the Terminus Systems, Commander."

In my mind I was dying to say that I would indulge in my "activities" wherever the Collectors showed up; no matter where it was. However, to stay on the good side of these political creatures I decided to give them the little white lie that would keep the peace with the Council,

"Of course," I said as gracefully as I was able.

"Then it is decided," the Asari said, "we wish you good fortunes in your investigation into the Collectors and swift end to your alliance with Cerberus. Be well, Commander."

The screens flickered and went blank, Anderson breathed a sigh of relief beside me,

"Well I never saw that conversation going as well as it did, Spectre Gardner."

"I bring out the charm when I need it," I joked.

"Good thing too…" he paused, "you know the Council won't actually do anything; even though I support you."

"Better not to burn any bridges," I said thoughtfully.

"Makes sense," Anderson nodded, "I just hope you can get to the bottom of this, and fast."

The Alliance hero, my old Captain, went over to the balcony overlooking the Presidium, the lake was flat calm and the fountains sent gentle streams of water sprinkling up and back down around them.

"It's been brutal!" Councillor Anderson said with a mix of sadness and frustration, "knowing about the Reapers and not being able to do anything about it."

"How long after I died did they start backsliding on what we'd discovered?" I asked as I joined him in taking in the view."

"It was a matter of weeks," he responded with a clenched fist, "science teams were allocated to study the remains of Sovereign that were scattered across the station, but when they didn't turn up anything… "Geth Dreadnought" was the easiest and most convenient answer."

"Politicians," I said scathingly.

"Exactly. I tell you Scott; I miss the military! Sometimes I wish you'd recommended Udina for Councillor instead of me. This isn't how I planned on spending my twilight years."

"Suppose it would be heaven for him; being the under-handed, scheming liar that politicians need to be."

I chatted with the veteran spec ops soldier for a while and caught up on some more galactic events that had happened over the past two years before I finally felt the need to ask him an important question.

"David, why was Ashley posted to Horizon? Why there, of all the Human colonies in the Terminus Systems?"

"We received an anonymous warning that that colony might be the next to be hit; we believed Cerberus to be behind the abductions and so I sent her to check it out," he responded, but I detected his attempt at vagueness.

"So, nothing to do with the rumours about me being with them? The tip that you got was from the Illusive Man; he started the rumours about me and made them known to try and lure the Collectors to a colony of his choosing."

David seemed shocked,

"What? Why would he do that?"

"He theorised that the Collectors have a personal interest in me; and they'll go for anyone from my life to get to me. Now we know for certain that they do and that also confirms their allegiance to the Reapers; considering how Sovereign ended up being destroyed."

"Makes a gruesome kind of sense," Anderson muttered disapprovingly, "and about that… people close to you that is… we don't know what became of your sister Sophie; she was on Horizon."

"I know. She's with my team. I'd appreciate it if you kept that between us, as a favour to me," I told him.

"Well, Spectre Gardner, I'll need to get back to work," David said to me and held out his hand, "but if you need to see me again then you know where to contact me, and I'll make time to see you. Good luck."

Anderson arranged for Captain Bailey to escort me back to Zakera Ward and after I had bid farewell to the C-Sec officer and found a quite spot in a darker corner to contact Miranda.

"Miranda, it's Gardner. Had some success with the Council; more than expected anyway. Any progress with finding Kasumi Goto?"

"Negative Commander," the Australian answered, "she's harder to find than the Illusive Man."

The joke took me by surprise, but I decided that our business on the Citadel was at an end so I told her to ready the crew for leaving. I sat on the Normandy's shuttle in deep thought, contemplating many things; my meeting with Anderson, my war on the Collectors, my family, Tali. Meanwhile EDI flew the shuttle back into space and away from the gigantic space station, but she suddenly interrupted me from my daydreaming with that calm and collected voice of hers,

"Commander, you are being rude to your guest."

I looked around the bare shuttle cabin, certain that I had been alone when boarding. I then saw a flicker of electric light on the seat opposite me and with a spark a woman appeared. She was small and slim, clad in tightly fitting clothes that covered every inch of her skin, with a hood up over her head and with the low lighting only her nose and mouth were visible to me.

"So you really are Commander Gardner? You're taller than I thought you were," she said with a slight Japanese accent, her flitting eyes glittering out from under her hood.

"Uh," I was still trying to grasp what was going on, "yeah? How did you know? And who am I talking to?"

"You don't know?" the lady said in a playful voice, "you've been looking for me."

I relaxed, having been ready to get the shuttle turned back to the Citadel where I could politely ask the strange woman to leave.

"Miss Goto," I replied, still somewhat wary, "I've heard about your skills, I suppose the information was accurate. I'm guessing that you've chosen to join us considering that you've trapped yourself on my shuttle, heading to my ship."

"Are you serious?" she laughed, "a signing bonus as big as that one? It was a no-brainer."

"Right… and you know what we're up against?" I seriously doubted that she could be so cheery if she knew about our battle against the Collectors.

"I gather my own Intel, Commander. I know that you're after the Collectors and the Reapers. You wouldn't need me for an easy job."

I agreed with her out-right,

"True. But you still haven't told me how you knew that I was Commander Gardner?"

"Well, apart from the privately registered C-Sec shuttle taking you to and from Councillor Anderson's office while being escorted by the most trusted Human C-Sec officer on the station… I didn't. But when I saw you come and sit down here… there's an aura about you; like you've seen things that no one else has."

"Not just me," I said, "you'll probably get that feeling about everyone when we reach the Normandy. Welcome aboard Kasumi."