Chapter 37
Alislasar Diner - Shalta Ward - Citadel
Shepard stared down at her food, her stomach seemingly not settled as she eyed the salmon steak on her plate. With a single fork in hand aimed down ready to strike, she just sat and stared at it, almost angrily. She loved fish, and seafoods of all kinds in fact. But after the events of the past few days, she felt less and less like eating every time she went to the mess hall. Liara's magical touch helped, for sure. But she still felt sluggish, less inclined to do things she enjoyed.
Speaking of the asari, Shepard looked up and went wide-eyed as she noticed that the asari's plate was already clean. The elegant woman was currently wiping her mouth with a napkin when she suddenly noticed herself being watched. "Wasn't that a full order?" she asked curiously.
"It was…" responded Liara bashfully as she looked down. "Using biotics burns a lot of calories. It... also gives us an appetite," she said as she looked back up at Shepard, her cheeks tinged with purple.
Chuckling, Shepard set her fork down and leaned back in her chair as she gazed at the asari's gorgeous face. "So, Liara, since I received the Normandy, I've learned all kinds of things about krogan, turians, and quarians. I now know that krogan have four testicles, I know that turians consider hip swinging as foreplay, and I know that quarians sometimes used geth as sex toys before the Morning War. So, why not teach me something about the asari?"
Liara's flush grew with every mention of sexual activity before she finally looked down at the table. "I… I don't know what to say, Jane. You know a lot about my species already."
"I know the language, and I know some of the history. But I'm not really up to date on social structure," said the spectre as she picked at her food again.
"Well, what area of interest has you asking?" asked the asari curiously as she pushed her plate aside and lifted her glass of lissa juice.
Shepard shrugged gently as she rolled a few ideas around in her head. "Well, how about relationships?"
Finding herself smiling, Liara nodded and looked at the table a moment before finally deciding on where to start. "Well, to begin, I suppose I should quell the rumors about my people's promiscuity," she said, getting a nod from the human. "As you witnessed on Thessia, asari are very… open and immodest. Were my people not so ingrained in the world of fashion, the population of Thessia may have been entirely nude for most of the non-workday. I know that humans have stigmas against nudity for one reason or another, but my people share no such thing."
Shepard cocked an eyebrow curiously. "I see. But what about sun damage. Humans often wear clothes for protection. Do asari not need that?"
Liara shook her head before taking a drink and continuing. "We were primarily aquatic before our species made it to land. Even then on land, we rarely journeyed away from the coasts. We feel more at home in the water than say, in a landlocked country."
"Kinda like salarians?" asked Shepard as she finally chopped a piece off her steak and stuffed it into her mouth.
"In a manner of speaking, yes. We swim fairly well despite our oddly primate body structure and can hold our breath twice as long as humans can. But, as for protection, asari have regenerative cells that give us our long life. The reason we live to a thousand years is because our bodies produce builder cells that keep our cell structure working far past those of other species. So, when we reach around seventy years old, those builder cells die off just like when a human's junk DNA deteriorates. But instead of aging, our DNA constructs more builder cells that keep our body going. And these same cells that repair damaged cells also protect us from the sun far better than a human's would," she said before finally finishing off her glass of juice.
"Alright, fair enough. So, the reason that asari are primarily seen as more sexually promiscuous is because they are far less modest than other species," asked Shepard, her appetite slowly growing again.
Liara nodded and frowned slightly. "That is part of it. The other part is our social structure when it comes to partners," she said as she tapped her finger on the table, trying to work out how to explain it. "Basically, before spaceflight, and before the discovery of alien species, monogamy was a rare and exotic thing to be found among my people. Due to our long lifespans, we often take multiple partners."
Cocking an eyebrow slightly, Shepard perked up. "Wait, so asari don't often stick to one mate?"
Liara shook her head gently as she leaned onto her hand. "We live for a thousand years, Jane. Could you imagine spending a thousand years with a single person?" she asked, getting a snort from the commander. "While there are some couples out there who could pull it off, it's very rare. Most asari settle into groups of mates. Each asari has a sayna, or I guess the term would be a primary love interest. These two often have children together, live together, and stay together for the longest. Essentially, calling someone your sayna is a way of telling other asari that this person's needs are your priority, and everyone else will be second."
With her food now forgotten, Shepard nodded. "Ahhh, so asari often have… I don't wanna say permanent partners…"
Liara nodded gently. "They aren't permanent most of the time. But they often stay together for long periods. But even these couples have mates that they take in known as vayna. These are mates that are meant to satisfy other needs that cannot be obtained by the sayna. Sometimes both of them share a vayna mate, sometimes the vayna only stays with one of the partners. But each vayna is also free to have a sayna of their own. It's not a set structure where a vayna cannot have their own relationships. Often, relationships between asari are webs."
"That sounds kinda complicated," said Shepard as she eyed the woman curiously.
"It may sound that way, but it's rather simple," she said as her flush slightly returned. "M-May I make a hypothetical to help explain it better?"
The corner of Shepard's mouth curled into a grin as she nodded. "Go ahead."
Huffing at the smile, Liara continued. "Let's say… hypothetically, that you and I were partners. If you and I were sayna, then we would be devoted to each other primarily. Whenever your needs arose, I would attend to you first, and conversely, you would attend to mine first. But, if you were away on missions for long periods of time, then I could find a vayna who would satisfy me until you returned. Meanwhile, you could find a vayna on your journeys to meet your emotional needs until you returned. These vayna would be seen and accepted as mates, but they would still be able to find a sayna themselves. Then, you would be vayna to each other," she said worriedly as she looked at the table. "I hope that didn't make things more complicated…"
Shepard chuckled and shook her head. "I understand. You're saying that two asari can be partners, while still receiving emotional and physical support from others around. You're polyamorous," she said, getting a smiling nod from the woman.
"Yes!" she said excitedly, happy that her point got across smoothly enough.
"So… hypothetically," said Shepard with a cat-like smile, "If you and I started a relationship, you would be fine with me having another partner?"
Liara looked away for a moment, her face flushing once more. "Well… hypothetically, of course, if we did enter a relationship, I would…" she started to say, but stopped as he blush deepened.
"Come on, Liara, you can do it," said the woman as she held her hand out.
Liara spied her hand, then looked up at her. Finally, the asari donned a small smile and reached over, taking Shepard's hand and squeezing it. "If we did enter a relationship, I would like you to be my sayna." Her blue eyes examined Shepard's curiously, wondering how she would react.
The redhead simply smiled and squeezed the asari's hand back. "But you didn't answer my question," said an inquisitive looking Shepard.
Snorting, the asari leered at Shepard. "Now look who's stalling," she said before finally letting out a sigh. "Hypothetically, Jane, were you my sayna, I would be happy, regardless of how many vayna you decided to have. If I knew your eyes were primarily on me, you would be free to do as you please. I personally don't believe I'd need any myself, but I know that you're a lot of woman to handle," she said playfully.
Shepard snorted and covered her mouth at the joke. "Wow Liara, was that humor?"
"I am attempting to learn more about humans, and my options are limited. Ashley wants to teach me combat, Kaidan wants me to learn classical music, and Pressly mostly just wants to hear about the asari. Then there's Joker…" started Liara as she got a groan from Shepard.
"Ugh, I should have known. He's beginning to turn you to his side," said the redhead, her small grin still plastering her face.
Liara giggled lightly as she squeezed Shepard's hand again. "Don't worry, Jane. At the very least, I won't bring up your dancing," she said, immediately getting a glare from the woman, which caused her to laugh loudly for the first time in a long time.
"All that aside…" said Shepard none-too-gracefully, "How does marriage work? With so many people involved, it has to be complicated."
Liara merely shook her head. "Asari do not have marriage contracts like humans or turians do. Any and all contracts between mates are strictly for parental responsibilities and do not bind two asari together in any other way."
"Oh, so asari never get married?" asked Jane as she nodded to the waitress, who took away their plates.
"We do, but only under the contracts provided by other species. So… hypothetically, if we were ever to get married, it would have to be under human laws. Asari laws could only ever cover what would happen to any potential future children," said the woman as she looked away at the ward, her face-tinged about the possibility. "We would simply be bondmates in name and asari society's understanding."
"I see," said Shepard as she reached up and scratched her head gently. "Well, that's a lot to think about."
Letting out a small sigh, Liara gently squeezed Shepard's hand. "I know, Shepard," she said as she finally looked back at the woman.
Shepard eyed the asari quizzically. "You know?"
"I know, and I understand. We're on a mission to take down a traitorous former Spectre. And if this beacon warning is true, then chances are we'll be fighting against something much more powerful in the future," she said as she looked down at their hands wistfully. "I know that these things must come first. But I will be here with you every step of the way," she said with a gentle smile.
Shepard smiled back and nodded, letting out a sigh of her own. "I appreciate that Liara, and I'm happy to have you here."
Tilsa Park - Teyseri Ward - Citadel
She fidgeted madly as she looked around. The park bench that she sat at with Kaidan was empty except for them, leading to a peaceful setting. However, there was nothing peaceful about her. Reaching down, she opened her omni-tool to read the message again before the human next to her placed his strong, but gentle hand over it.
"You're wound up, Tali. You need to relax," he said with a charming grin on his face.
"How can I!? I've never had anything like this happen before! What do I do? What do I say? What if I say something wrong?" she asked in a panicked clip as she fidgeted some more.
"Just be yourself, Tali. Keep being you, and you'll do perfect. Alright?" he asked as he gently rubbed the back of her neck through her suit. She almost melted into his hand as a stressed sigh escaped her helmet.
"I just don't want to mess this up," she replied, much calmer now than she had been before.
"Don't worry. I'm sure you'd do great," he said gently. Suddenly, someone from the entrance of the park called out to them.
"Hey! There you are!" shouted the young man with a smile. He stood shorter than Kaidan, but slightly taller than Tali. The wear and tear they had seen the last time they met was now gone, and he was growing thick facial hair on his chin. The change was almost startling.
Then came the smaller of the two, the young girl. She too had lost her distant and malnourished appearance, and now had a full head of brown hair that was growing out longer than before. Instead of her ratty clothes, she now wore a pair of shorts and a blue and yellow t-shirt with a strange serpentine logo on it. On her back was a pink backpack that was secured around her shoulders as she looked at the ground.
As soon as the girl saw Kaidan, she smiled brightly. "Mister Kaidan!" she shouted, then ran to him, then threw her arms around him and hugged him tight.
The lieutenant knelt and hugged the girl back with a large smile. "Robyn! It's been a while! Have you gotten taller?" She pulled away momentarily and nodded frantically. "Well, of course you have."
"She's in school now. She's a bit behind due to her stunted education, but she's going through it like a whirlwind," said John as he approached them all.
Suddenly, Robyn pulled away from Kaidan and looked up at Tali, who was fidgeting wildly again. Kaidan stepped back slightly, allowing the girl a full view of the quarian. John and Kaidan watched them both, the lieutenant chuckling at how awkward the two were towards each other. But finally, the young girl turned towards Tali and stared at the ground. "Hi…"
"H-Hello…" responded Tali as she too stared at the ground.
"I'm sorry for saying you were born from the devil," said the girl shyly as her fingers rubbed the straps of her backpack nervously.
"It's... it's alright. I know you didn't mean it," said the quarian, recalling that she had forgotten to even look up with this devil was.
"I did though," said the girl as she looked up at the quarian, her eyes watery as she did. "I... Daddy taught me a lot of bad things. Things that shouldn't be taught to people," she said, swinging back and forth between the balls and heel of her feet adorably. "I'm in school now. I have friends who are aliens. Like Saiya, and Linsia. They're asari!" she said excitedly with a smile.
"That's exciting to hear!" said Tali as she knelt down as well.
"They're neat! They're pretty blue and they have these cool powers!" she said as she mimicked using biotics. Tali giggled to herself at the actions, but Robyn lowered her hands and took up her shy, awkward stance again. "Miss Tali?"
"Y-Yes?" asked Tali, curious about the girl's tone change.
"When I got my schoolbook for xenoscience, I looked up your people. It says you don't have a home," she said, staring up into Tali's helmeted face. The quarian, despite coming from an innocent child, felt like she had been belted in the stomach. That the Council would approve textbooks declaring quarians homeless when it was the Council who refused to allow them to colonize was outright offensive.
But her outrage would have to wait for another time. For now, she simply sighed and nodded. "My people live in a fleet of ships. We don't have a planet of our own anymore."
Finally, Robyn sniffled slightly and jumped forward again to hug her. Tali, surprised by the motion, looked up at Kaidan as the girl clung to her. The lieutenant just mimicked the motion, and Tali wrapped her arms around the girl. "You can come live with us then!"
John and Kaidan both went-wide eyed as they heard Tali sniffing inside her helmet. Squeezing the girl tightly, she picked her up and held her. "Th-Thank you Robyn. That's very sweet of you…" she said as she choked back her own tears at the simple, but powerful gesture. After a long moment of holding the girl, she set her back down on her feet. "Right now, though, I'm working with a spectre and chasing down bad guys. So, it'll have to wait a while, okay?" she said through as her tear-filled eyes stared at the girl again.
The girl nodded with a large smile on her face. "Okay!"
"And… maybe someday, if you're really good, I can bring you to the Migrant Fleet and show you around!" said the quarian as she held the girl's hands.
Robyn gasped with an awestricken expression on her face. "That would be cool!" she shouted before turning and running up to her brother. "Can I can I can I can I pleeeeeeeeeease!?" she asked frantically.
The young man chuckled and nodded to her. "Like she said, if you're really good! For right now though, we have to get home so I can make you some dinner, alright?"
"Awwww... do we have to?" she asked disappointedly as she planted her hands on her hips.
"Afraid so. But," said John, looking up at both Kaidan and Tali. "I hope we can visit again soon."
"I'd really like that," said Kaidan as he turned to Tali.
The quarian looked from John to Kaidan, then smacked him on the shoulder. "What, am I going to say no? Of course!" she said, getting a chuckle out of both of them and a squeal of excitement from Robyn.
"Alright then. You two have fun. We'll keep in touch," said the young man as he took the girl's hand and led her away.
Tali raised her own hand and returned Robyn's wave as the two left the park before she finally sank to her knees again. Kaidan was immediately at her side as she started to cry once more. "Tali, are you alright?"
"I'm fine. I've just…" she said as she sniffled slightly. "That was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me."
"Well, now I have to try and one up her, damn…" he said jokingly, making the quarian giggle between her sniffles.
"Bosh'tet," said Tali affectionately.
Flux - Zakera Ward - Citadel
It had been an average stay on the Citadel. Aside from her talk with Liara, the stay had been mostly boring. Reporting to the Council, talking to C-Sec, filling out documents for the Alliance on her findings at Cerberus, and more. The most exciting thing was when the retrieval team for the rachni finally showed up. The buzz about the community would have been slightly uplifting if the circumstances for finding the rachni had been better. But right now, she was just in a mood.
It had taken Liara dragging her away from her work and over to a club they had previously been to before. The music was thumping against the walls as people danced their cares away on the dance floor. Shepard eyed the asari, wondering if she was just pulling her in to get her dancing again. But when they managed to get a table, she settled down slightly.
The waitress, Rita again, stepped up to them with a smile. "Good to see you guys again!" she greeted as she pulled up her small datapad. "Can I get you anything?"
"I'll take a nightbell," said the asari with a smile, getting a look of surprise from the commander.
"Actually drinking alcohol, T'Soni? What's the occasion?" she asked curiously as she too ordered a strong drink.
"The occasion, Jane, is that you need to let loose for a while. You've been wound up over the last couple of days and could stand for a break," said the asari with a small smirk on her face. "And don't worry, I won't be pulling you to the dance floor again this time."
Chuckling, Shepard nodded. "Good. I'm pretty sure if that video ever gets to the Council, my Spectrehood would be taken away," she said, smiling slightly as Liara laughed.
When she finally composed herself, Liara leaned over and spoke, trying to talk over the loud music of the club. "I hope you don't mind that I've invited the others as well."
"Of course not," said Shepard, who looked up just in time to see that Kaidan, Garrus, and Tali were all already at the door. Waving them down, she smiled as they approached the table.
"Hey Commander, I'm… uh… glad to see you're feeling better," said Kaidan as he took a seat at the table.
"I'll be fine, as always," said Shepard sourly as she looked around the room, avoiding eye contact with him.
"Did something happen?" asked Tali as she looked between the pair curiously.
"Nothing to be concerned about," said Shepard as she looked at the quarian firmly. Despite not being great at reading body language, she appeared to take the hint and just nodded.
Tali then looked over at the turian curiously as he took a seat and ordered a drink of turian brandy. "Garrus, did Doctor Michel decide not to come?"
He cleared his throat as the waitress left to fetch the new drinks. "She… ah… she said she needed some space after the whole Emporium incident," he said as he stared down at the table. "Can't say I blame her. We all walk into death almost every day. But she's not as used to it."
"How do you figure?" asked Shepard curiously as she eyed the turian. He stared at her questioningly as a glass was set in front of him. "When we first found her, she was surrounded by a bunch of men threatening her."
"Yeah, well, I don't know," he said as he spun his hand, the turian equivalent of a shrug.
"Besides that, who did she think she was getting in with?" came the voice of Ash as she appeared behind Garrus. He looked up at her, surprised to see her there. The soldier lifted her hands up and slapped them onto Garrus' shoulders gently with a smirk on her face. "A seven-foot-tall, spikey, long-ranged crack shot with a visor that counts his kills. What was she expecting, a white picket fence?" she asked as she finally pulled up her own chair and sat back casually.
"Guys, I appreciate all the positive reinforcement, but I'd rather not talk about it," he said as he grabbed his glass and took a long pull from it. Then his predatory eyes locked on Shepard. "So, will you be-" he started, but Shepard's pointing finger stopped him in his tracks.
"Not a chance, Vakarian. You've already got enough blackmail material on me," she said, causing him to chuckle.
"So, what's the plan then? Leaving flaming bags of garbage on the Citadel Tower doorstep? Ringing their doorbell and running away? Fill me in," said Ash as she leaned forward onto the table, her spirits high as she looked from one to the other.
Garrus, Liara, and Tali all stared at her incredulously as Kaidan shook his head and Shepard chuckled to herself. "We could always booby trap Udina's office. A whoopie cushion on his chair, leaving porn open on his terminal, that kinda thing," said Shepard with a cheeky grin.
"Now we're talking!" said Ash as she accepted her own drink.
Suddenly, the club went quiet, making them all look around curiously as Doran, the volus owner of the club stepped up onto the stage next to the bar. "Alright everyone! We're powering up the... karaoke machine! Who wants the first... song?" he asked as he looked over the crowd. It was still relatively early in the night, and people were looking back and forth at each other curiously.
"Guess nobody is drunk enough yet," said Kaidan with a chuckle as he swirled the ice in his glass around.
"How about you, Shepard? No dancing, but maybe you can sing?" asked Garrus curiously as he motioned towards the stage.
Shepard eyed him for a moment before looking at the stage herself. Liara stared at her in surprise, expecting to hear protest. But she said nothing. "Come on, someone has to go first!" said the volus as he lifted his arms up to try and excite the crowd.
After a few more long moments, Shepard stood up and headed for the stage, much to the surprise of everyone. "Wait, she's actually gonna do it?" asked Ash as she immediately scrambled for her omni-tool. "Damn! I left mine on the Normandy!" she said frantically as she looked up at the turian. "Garrus!"
"I got it, I got it," he said as he activated his omni-tool and focused it on the stage where the redhead now stood.
Reaching down, Shepard took the mic from Doran, and when he offered her the song playlist, she waved it away. "She isn't using music?"
Clearing her throat, the spectre finally spoke. "I haven't done this kinda thing in a while, so bear with me. But you all have heard all kinds of human music from hip hop to death metal. It's time to introduce you to another brand," she said over the mic as her team looked from one to the other.
"What's she gonna do, yodel?" asked Ash as she got a questioning look from the non-humans at the table.
"Yodel? What's that?" asked Garrus curiously.
"A dark period for music in human history," said Ash jokingly as she smirked at the turian. "It's unintelligible music that takes advantage of all of our neat throat muscles. Works well when sung from mountain tops or places with good sound acoustics, but not many other places."
"Now I have to see this," said the turian as he turned to look at Shepard again.
Letting out a loud sigh, the commander inhaled sharply, but as her voice left her mouth, it was a much deeper tone than her normal talking voice. "Oooooooh death, oooooooooooh deeeeath…" Ash and Kaidan both sat back in their seats as Tali, Garrus, and Liara looked on in fascination. "Won't spare me over for another year?"
"Ralph Stanley?" asked the gunnery chief.
"Quiet!" ordered Garrus as he sat, riveted by the tone that the song took as he continued recording.
"Oh what is this that I can't see, with your ice cold hands taking hold of me…" continued Shepard in the deep voice that immediately changed the tone of the room. Even most of the other humans stared on in interest as they realized that her voice, the command and depth that it carried with the lyrics didn't need any music behind it. "Well I am death, none can excel! I'll open the gates to heaven or hell."
Liara placed her hand over her chest as the lyrics sank into her, moving her. As the lyrics continued, she knew that anyone listening could take it two ways. Shepard, being a spectre, was always at deaths door. Despite her brave face, she knew that Shepard had to be afraid that each new encounter was potentially her last.
"The children prayed; the preacher preached! But time and mercy are out of your reach," continued the commander as Liara watched in fascination.
But at the same time, the song could very well be describing Shepard herself. Those she has in her sights could beg, plead, make deals, throw money at her. But once they're in her grip, they do not escape. The asari found herself thinking that Saren was lucky he was out of her reach to begin with.
"Death I come to take the soul, leave the body and leave it cold," continued Shepard as she closed her eyes, her voice resonating through the club thanks to the mic. The song lasted for another minute, with no music in the background. The dirge of her voice keeping everyone fastened to their seats. Once the song had finally finished, Shepard handed the mic over to Doran again and stepped off the stage without a word. Every eye in the club followed her as she took her place at the table and choked down another drink of her whisky. "Issues?" she asked as she spied them all.
Suddenly, a human man near the stage stood up and began clapping madly, causing everyone else to jump up and join him. She stared at them in surprise as Garrus leaned over to Ash. "How long until this goes viral and she starts getting requests to sing at weddings?"
"My money is on a month at the latest," responded Ash as she swirled her scotch.
"Put me down for two weeks," said Kaidan with a smirk.
"One week once I get my hands on it," said Tali as her omni-tool opened and she immediately began tapping away at it.
"Blues is a brave choice. Not many other species have such a connection with sorrow as humans do," said Ash as the crowd settled and the next singer made their way to the stage.
Captain's Quarters - SSV Normandy SR1
Despite everything that had happened, Shepard found herself more relaxed as she entered her quarters on the Normandy again. She had spent some time getting Talitha set up with a live-in counsellor to help her with her nightmares. It helped that the woman was an asari, who could also assist with sleeping. Finally, she had given Talitha her number in case she needed to talk.
After several days of emotional crisis and Liara's assistance in suppressing her nightmares, she felt like her emotions were rubbed raw. She barely felt anything now. As she looked down at the smashed table that her terminal used to sit on, she knew what she had to do. She didn't like loose ends, and there was still one that needed tied off. She knew that she would have to go alone, or… mostly alone. She would need Liara's help. But the other crewmembers wouldn't be able to come with her, which meant the Normandy needed to stay at the Citadel.
Resolving herself, she squeezed her fist that had been sliced open the day before.
Hel Block - Niflheim Prison Colony - ?
The man had sat there for an hour, his mouth dry, his face bruised, and his hand aching from where the spectre had smashed it. He didn't know what he was doing here, but he didn't like it. Usually, he left the bad feelings to his long gone second. But this one was hanging over his head. It was thick in the air as he sat in the brightly lit, white room. He sighed to himself, trying to figure out what was going on, whether the guard behind him brought him in for another interrogation, or if they were trying to scare him, or some other ridiculous attempt to get him to talk.
Suddenly, his eyes flew to the door as it flitted open and in stepped someone. She was fairly tall, and sturdy built with a head of short red hair. He smirked silently, admitting to himself that this one was kinda cute. "So, what's the deal? Not get enough out of me last interrogation? Or are you here for more… physical readings?" he asked playfully as he watched her sit down. But he knew something was off when she kicked her boots up onto the table and leaned back in the chair.
"Hello, Lieutenant," she said with a smirk.
The voice hit him like a sledgehammer, wiping the smile from his face and causing him to scoot back in his chair. Immediately he scowled at her as his hand throbbed in pain. "Spectre…"
"How have you been? They feeding you well?" she asked with a grin on her face.
"What the hell do you want? Come to break the other hand?" he asked sourly as he clenched his still recovering shattered hand.
"That depends on what you have to offer me," she said as her feet slid off the table and she leaned forward.
"You think you're going to interrogate me?" he asked, almost chuckling. "You have any idea what kind of anti-interrogation training I've gone through?"
"No no no, see, you misunderstand. I'm not going to ask you…" she said with a threatening grin. "I need to know where the rest of Cerberus is, and I'm going to get an answer to whether you know where they are or not right now. And I'm beyond asking YOU for the answer," she said as she nodded to the helmeted guard. "As you said Lieutenant…" she said as she stood up and stepped around the table. Out of nowhere, she grabbed his hair and yanked it back hard, his eyes widening in panic as he saw the stern face of an asari women. "What can you expect from a squid lover like me?"
"No! No! Please!" he shouted as he began struggling against her grip.
"Tell me everything you know, or I'll have her open your brain like a can opener and go through every fucking memory in your head until I find what I need!" shouted Shepard as she growled in his face. The asari placed her hand on his head and he squeezed his eyes shut.
"I don't know where they are! We were kept from having that knowledge so that we would never be able to tell!" he shouted as he tried to get away from the asari.
"Where did the rachni come from!?" asked Shepard forcefully as she held him in place.
"I don't know! We were sent a shipment of eggs with instructions to breed them into controllable groups! I don't know anything else!" he shouted desperately as she glared down into his eyes.
Shepard looked up to the asari, who nodded back. "He's telling the truth."
Smiling, the woman forced his face down to the table none-too-gently. "Thank you for your assistance, Lieutenant. If I have any more questions, me and my squid friend here will be back to visit you. So, try not to get too comfortable," she finished, then released him.
Another guard entered from the rear of the room as both the asari and the woman left the room.
Captain's Quarters - SSV Normandy SR1
"Hello... Spectre," came the voice over her omni-tool as she answered the call.
Smiling down at the image of the grey-haired, stern-faced woman, Shepard smiled back. "Hello, Captain."
"Call me that again and I'll have Lieutenant Alenko read your old diaries to the entire crew," said the woman with a playful grin.
Shepard glared back at her with a smile. "You and I both know that he wouldn't risk his ass like that just to entertain you," she said before waving the playful argument off. "So, mother, what can I do for you?"
"Why do you have to make it sound so impersonal like that?" asked the admiral curiously.
"I've had a lot of run-ins with Alliance personnel since my induction, and a lot of them are less than pleased that I'm no longer 'Yes, sir!' and 'No, sir!'" she said as she tilted her head. "So, how do you want to go about this? Are you an admiral to me or are you my mother?"
Hannah's eyes narrowed before she sighed. "You know I'll always be your mother. You don't have to worry about me forcing protocol, Jane."
"Alright, mom," said the woman with a smile as her expression softened. "Sorry I didn't call you about the whole Spectre thing. Once we had the ceremony, we got kinda busy."
The captain smirked, nearly laughing at the claim. "Kinda busy? The kind of busy where you nearly get killed by a thresher maw, cleared the Valkyrie facility of its rogue VI, and took out a rogue wing of the Alliance while finding out that rachni are still in the galaxy?" she asked with an incredulous look on her face. "Busy is an understatement, kid."
"Yeah yeah, I'm sure you heard all the stories," said Jane as she waved dismissively. "Regardless, I'm still alive and still doing work."
"Good work. Had the Alliance not had you so focused on the batarians, imagine what you could have been capable of!" said her mother proudly. "Less than a month in uniform and you've already done more for the galaxy than your entire career in the Alliance."
"Good to know I'm making you proud," said Jane as she smirked at the woman.
"Proud is an understatement, Jane. I was proud when you made that painting for me and your father in art class. What you're doing now goes beyond that," she said, then donned a wistful look on her face.
Immediately noticing the change in mood, Shepard cocked an eyebrow. "What is it?"
"I… I don't want to make it seem like I'm asking this because you're my daughter. I know your strict policy on nepotism, but I feel like you're the only one who can solve an issue I'm having." Hannah finally looked back at the screen; her eyes serious.
Jane's eyes widened at the statement, and she nodded. "I understand. I'm someone who can get things done, so it's only natural that I'd be asked for assistance."
Nodding, the admiral continued. "A friend of mine has gone… well, he's a bit unstable."
"Unstable how?" asked the spectre curiously.
"His name is Dennis Kyle, and until recently he was a Major for the Alliance. I've worked with him a few times and I saw the downward spiral but wasn't able to do much about it but request counseling," she said solemnly. "In the last year, he let his Alliance contract expire and retired."
"I'm guessing he didn't get the house on the beach with martinis being served," replied Shepard curiously.
"No. He went for the moon base full of biotic fanatics. He's become little more than a cult leader, rallying biotics who have been harmed or mistreated by the Alliance into some kind of army. I don't know if he did this himself, or if he's being puppeted by someone else. But what I do know is what he's doing is dangerous," she said worriedly.
Nodding, Shepard let out a sigh. "How hard is it to get these people the mental care they need?" she asked as she rubbed her head gently.
"Not that hard, but they have to want the help. Thus far, we've sent two Alliance spokesmen to their base to talk to Major Kyle, but they never returned. I fear that they may have been killed," said the Admiral firmly.
"I understand, mom. Don't worry, just send me the coordinates for the base and I'll talk to him. Unlike most of the Alliance, I'm not someone he can just make disappear," said Shepard with a look of determination.
"Thank you, Jane. Please, if you can, end this without bloodshed. I'd like to see him get the help he needs," she pleaded quietly.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of it," she finished as she forwarded the coordinates to Joker.
"Thank you again, Jane. I hope you will call me again when this is over with. Goodbye for now, and good luck. And…" she paused for a moment before staring into her daughter's eyes with her own velvet brown. "I love you, Jane, no matter what."
The spectre was startled at the proclamation. Her mother had been Alliance soldier to the core, always one to push the 'tough love' teaching style onto her. When she needed help, she needed to help herself. When she wanted to cry, she was told to get it out of her system. She had never been the loving and nurturing mother archetype that most vids portrayed. But Shepard had respected her regardless. Now, to see her soften was startling. But she supposed it was necessary now. Her daughter was working every day, doing things that could easily get her killed. She no longer had the leisure and safety of a space station or Alliance ship in Alliance space to protect her.
Finally, she let out a sigh and smiled. "I love you too, mom. I'll call you when I get back."
CODEX ENTRIES
Lissa | Food | Thessia
A ripe melon grown from the eezo-rich soil of Thessia, giving a unique appearance that makes them easy to see. The outer shell of the melon has splotches that glow a dim eezo blue and have a consistency like mangoes. Commonly used in salads and juices among asari worlds, and less so around other worlds due to the misconception around eezo grown food.
Sayna | Culture | Asari
Loosely translating to 'beloved one,' the word is commonly used in asari Alai language when referring to someone that is particularly special in a relationship. Despite the tendency for asari to have multiple partners due to their culture, they still often devote most of their time to one other person. This person is known as the sayna, and their attention takes priority over the others, known as vayna.
Vayna | Culture | Asari
A word of affection in the asari Alai dialect that doesn't translate easily to other languages. The best that can be offered for a translation is 'special one.' Due to the asari's polyamorous relationship structure, this word is used to describe those who have a close, intimate relationship with someone, but whose priorities and needs are superseded by another. Humans have colloquially called this the 'third wheel,' in reference to human culture where polyamory is less common.
Nightbell | Food | Thessia
A wine from Thessia created from the lissa fruit with small trace amounts of element zero dust inside that gives the liquid a dim glow.
Niflheim | Location | Alliance Space
An Alliance sanctioned prison colony for prisoners who are too dangerous to allow into the normal prison colonies of Earth. Each prisoner is put in an isolated cell with little to no communication to the outside world. The world its located on is hostile to all live, having a frozen surface that would freeze anything that lingered too long outside of the mass effect fields generated by the colony, with the only ships coming to and from the colony being for supplies, or transport of prisoners and staff who require extremely high access to classified intelligence.