He watched Liara pace for a few minutes, then sighed. If he tried to talk her out of going on a roaring rampage of revenge she'd just point out how hypocritical he was being. Michael shook his head, then frowned and exited the room. For a moment, he paused at the entrance to the starboard observation deck. Then he squared his shoulders and entered.

Samara was sitting cross-legged, some kind of biotic sphere in her hands as she gazed out into the void. He watched her, hesitant to interrupt. A heartbeat before he turned around and left, she let the field collapse and looked up at him. "Shepard."

"How are you?" He shifted his weight a little.

"I've spent much of the last 400 years on my own; it is nice to have a colleague to chat with." She inclined her head gracefully. "I may be rusty at it, however." She smiled. "If you are patient, I would love to talk."

Michael sat down next to her, making an attempt to duplicate her position. He apparently wasn't quite as flexible as she was. "That's uh..." He looked out at the view. "Kind of why I'm here. I was hoping to..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Does this help? This staring off into space thing?"

"That would depend entirely upon the nature of the problem. It is rare, however, for contemplation to make a situation worse." Samara glanced at him.

"Mind if I try it for a bit?"

"Perhaps you may find it more effective if you verbalized your contemplation."

"That's part of where the problem is." Michael shook his head. Kaidan would have known what to say. He had a knack for diplomacy. He leaned back, staring at the stars, wondering which one Kaidan was on at the moment. "Hackett once told me the galaxy was a better place when I was pointed firmly at the enemy." He narrowed his eyes. "Now I'm working for the enemy. I'm used to operating in the gray areas but..."

"You are wondering at what shade white becomes black." Samara nodded. "And yet, your concern is not about yourself at all."

"Liara used to be a nice kid. Tali too. Garrus..." He shook his head. "Well, Garrus was always the same kind of asshole I am. Probably why we are friends. But Liara..." He swallowed. "Saving me cost her and..." He looked out at the stars again.

"And in your mind, that is not the way the universe works. You are the one who goes back in, who does the saving, and who pays the price." Samara tilted her head, then shifted a little to face him. "It is a burden you took upon yourself in the hopes those like Liara would never feel its weight."

"Two years is..." He met her eyes. "Maybe it's just the human talking, but that's a wide gulf to jump, even with thrusters."

"If I may make an observation, Shepard..." She smiled a little. "I think you are talking to the wrong asari."

"You're like a thousand years old. I really can't fuck you up more than you already are." He shrugged.

"Do you trust her, Shepard?" Samara gave him a contemplative look.

"Yes." Michael nodded. "I mean, I let her in my head a few times." He frowned. "Probably a bad idea in retrospect."

"Has anything she has done recently altered that trust?" Samara raised an eyebrow.

"Well, uh..." He considered the question. "No."

"Then trust her. And be there for her."

"I..." He hesitated a moment. "Thank you." He turned to look back out at the stars, assuming her meditative pose for a time. "You know, you might be onto something with this whole contemplating the empty void thing. Really helped clear my head."

"You were meditating for just under two minutes, Shepard." A smile danced around the edges of Samara's mouth.

"I'm efficient." He rose, then nodded to her before leaving.

#

He checked in with Dr. Chakwas about Thane, then went to check in with the man himself. Thane reassured him about his illness. "I think it's safe tos ay that by the time my body is incapacitated, we'll be victorious, or dead." Thane shrugged. "Either way, I won't be a burden to you."

"So, what made you become an assassin?" He looked through the viewport at the drivecore.

"I was asked to become one." Thane shifted a little in his chair. "The hanar trained my body for this role since I was six years old."

Michael blinked. "You've been killing since you were six?"

"Of course not. I didn't make my first kill until I was 12." Thane shook his head. "They were training me. I was not to be used and thrown away. I was an investment."

"You were a child." Michael narrowed his eyes. "Not an investment."

"I've given you the wrong idea." Thane sighed. "They valued me. Yes, as a resource. But also as a person. They..." He made a small gesture. "Regretted their need for me."

"You don't do that to kids." Michael folded his arms. "Why did your parents agree to this?"

"The agreement was made under the Compact. It was an honor for our family."

"The Compact?" He raised an eyebrow.

"We live on the hanar homeworld because they rescued us - some of us - from extinction. We owe them our lives. That is the Compact."

It sounded like slavery. "What exactly are the terms of the Compact?"

"There are many things the hanar can't do, even with mechanical aid. They ask drell to assist them."

"That can't be legal." He frowned. "They made your whole race into slaves."

"Don't insult me, Shepard." Thane narrowed his own eyes. "Anyone can refuse to serve. Few do. We owe our existence to the hanar. We are proud to repay the debt."

Risk their lives and swear their service because the hanar gave them a chance at... Okay, now he was drawing uncomfortable parallels. But Hackett had given him the choice and he'd been in that situation due to his own choices. "But you don't kill for the hanar anymore. You're freelance. What changed?"

"I was asleep for a long time, yes. I paid no attention to what my body was asked to do. But then..." His voice changed slightly. "Laser dot trembles on his skull. One finger-twitch, he dies. Then the smell of spice on the spring wind. Sunset-colored eyes defiant in the scope. The laser dances away." Thane went quiet for a moment. "My apologies. Drell slip into memories so easily."

'Was that one of your assassinations?"

"Ah, yes. Perhaps we can discuss it later. I've wasted too much of your time."

#

"Let me see if I understand this correctly..." Michael narrowed his eyes before looking back at the display. "We land the shuttle here, walk on the outside of the ship during a massive electrical storm on a death planet looking for the entrance while bad guys are shooting at us and capacitors are discharging all over the place, then fight our way through the Shadow Broker's forces once inside to rescue a guy whose location on the ship we don't actually know?"

"I..." Liara sighed, and nodded. "Yes."

"Liara..." He grabbed his rifle, then put a hand on her shoulder. "You're the best."

"There is something wrong with you." Jacob just shook his head.

"Taylor, if you're going to be like that..." Michael glared at him. "You can't come."

#

"Okay." Liara swallowed. "Looking down was clearly a mistake."

They continued moving through the ship. Michael paused at the engines and watched them moving for a few moments. He started to open his mouth and Tali spoke up. "No."

"But..."

"This is a rescue mission, Shepard." She folded her arms. "No grenades." Then she tilted her head and turned toward the engines. "Though a small flash bang there would set off a chain reaction that would create a slow catastrophic failure across the entire system."

"I've got the perfect background music for just that." Garrus nodded. "A turian classic. Listen to this." Garrus tapped his omnitool and the strains of music started to play.

"Heh." Grunt nodded at the bass before firing his shotgun into some oncoming mechs. "I like it."

"Needs more bass." Michael snapped his rifle up to his shoulder."

#

"You're right." Garrus nodded after a moment. "The bass does seem to suit the storm."

"Ride of the Valkyries." Shepard took aim with his rifle and took off a mech's head before it could fully emerge from its dormant position. "Nothing quite beats it for breaking atmo through clouds." He tilted its head. "Tchaikovsky's 1812 overture is the one you want for the ride home though. They used actual cannons for percussion."

"Gonna need you to spell that for me so I can look it up -" Grunt started to turn toward him.

"Got it." Jack tapped her omnitool and the music started to play. Garrus clicked his mandibles, and she narrowed her eyes at him. "What?"

"I like it." Tali started to nod.

"Of course, you do." Liara rolled her eyes. "It has explosions."

"Dun dun dun -" Grunt fired his shotgun. "BOOOM." He fired again. "Heh heh heh."

#

"I think this is the right hatch."

"It's locked. Hang on, I've got a bypass shunt program that can crack it." Liara started fiddling with the door.

"We probably should have brought Kasumi along." Michael shrugged.

"Wait..." Garrus clicked his mandibles. "We didn't?"

"Do you see Kasumi anywhere?" Michael blinked.

"I never see Kasumi anywhere." Garrus shrugged. "I just assume she's there." He looked around. "Kasumi?"

"She had a bad experience getting blown of a skyscraper during a storm, so I told her she could sit this one out." Michael waved a hand. "Liara, how long will it take?"

"I don't know, Shepard." She glanced at him. "I've never broken into the Shadow Broker's base before." She frowned. "Well, not this one, anyway."

"Heh, heh, heh." Grunt fired. "They keep hiding behind the capacitors."

"Shepard!" Tali bounced a little, her voice irritated. "Jack keeps stealing my kills."

"Kill them faster then." Jack used her biotics to fling a few of the mercenaries into the lightning.

"Grunt, look, there are some armored guys." Michael gestured. "Leave the squishy ones for -" He sighed as Tali hit the heavies with a couple sticky grenades. "I going to send all of you to separate corners of this war zone." He glanced over his shoulder at Liara. "Are you sure that shunt is working?"

"It's illegal even on Illium." Liara scanned it. "It didn't come with a warranty."

"But you tested it, right?"

"Here come more of them." Liara gestured.

Michael glared at her. "Tell me you tested it."

"No time to talk." She started shooting.

"Shepard!" Grunt made a growling sound. "Now she's stealing my kills."

"Kill them faster." Jack smirked.

"I swear I will turn this war zone around right now and go home."

#

"Liara?"

"I'm sure it won't be much longer." Liara glanced at him.

"I hope so, cause Garrus and I are actually starting to run low on taunts." He fired again.

Liara blinked. "Don't you mean on ammo?"

"I thought you'd met them before." Jack turned to raise an eyebrow at her.

"No, taunts." Michael sighed. "And I've heard Jack actually repeat a few of her threats." He exhaled. "Remember the good old days when you could just slap omni-gel on everything?"

"You used to yell at me when I did that," Tali said. "Claimed it was unprofessional and I should take more pride in my work."

"For someone who wants to keep his base a secret..." Garrus frowned. "Shadow broker has a lot of mooks."

"I know, right?" Michael nodded.

"I'm bored." Grunt used his shotgun one handed to blow a mook's head off. "And hungry."

"Their attacks are disorganized." Liara sighed. "They'd be more effective if they all attacked at once."

"Please don't give the mercs ideas." Michael glared at her.

#

"Tali, I swear, if you hit me with one more flash bang, I'm gonna..." Michael shook his head. "Kick Garrus."

"Why me?" Garrus blinked.

"I can't kick Tali. That would be mean." Michael shrugged.

"If you'd stop doing the invisibled thing to change positions I wouldn't hit you."

"It's an infiltration cloak, Tali. For infiltration. Which means get behind the bad guys so they can't retreat from Garrus's little pea shooter over there."

"Pea..." Garrus clicked his mandibles. "Shooter?"

"The next wave looks like a big one." Liara shifted to find better cover.

"You just had to give them tactical advice." Michael sighed.

"Pea..." Garrus took up his position. "Shooter?"

"Heh, heh, heh."

"But now there'll be fewer left to deal with inside." Liara's voice brightened.

"Keep dreaming, T'Soni." Michael rolled his eyes. "Hey, Jack, mind -" Jack sent a biotic burst that forced several mercs to dive out of cover. "Thank you." He started picking them off.

#

"There." Liara bounced a little. "The hatch is open."

"Next time, I'll handle the lock." Michael started moving in. "Garrus, take Grunt and Jack and hold this position. Make sure nothing comes up behind us. Rather not get caught in the crossfire in corridors."

"Got it." Garrus nodded.

#

Michael fired off another round. "The Shadow Broker's HR department really should send us a thank you note for lightening their workload this week."

"I've downloaded the ship's layout. We're heading toward the prison block..." Liara straightened. "And Feron."

#

"I think we found Feron." Michael nodded to a drell secured to a chair.

"Feron." Liara immediately started moving in that direction.

The drell blinked. "Liara?" He looked up at them. Good sign, conscious and knew who Liara was.

"Hold on -" Liara began looking over the controls. "We're getting you out of here."

"No." Feron shouted just as Liara hit some buttons. Electricity of some kind coursed through the drell's body, and he screamed.

"Feron." Liara looked aghast.

"I thought this looked too easy." Michael gestured for Tali to look at the controls.

"This chair plugs into the Broker's info network. You have to shut off the power. Pull me out now, and my brain cooks." Tali nodded up at him as if to confirm Feron's words.

"Do you know where we can cut the power?" Liara began calling up the map.

"It won't be easy." Feron nodded. "You'll have to go to central operations."

"If he left you alive for us to find, the Broker has no idea how dangerous we are." Granted, sometimes they were only dangerous to themselves, but they were still dangerous.

"Don't underestimate him." Feron shook his head. "He prepares for everything. Central operations is down the hall. You know the Shadow Broker's waiting for you, right?"

"Well, let's not keep him." Michael started walking. "That would be rude."

"We'll be back for you, Feron." Liara nodded to her friend before following.

"I'll try not to go anywhere."

#

They killed some more guards, then walked into the room toward...

He had absolutely no idea what the creature behind the desk was. Other than big, and weirdly mouthed, and big, and red, and big, and sharp-toothed, and big, and kind of fishy looking, and big. It folded its hands on the desk, leaned forward, and gave them a calm look. "Here for the drell?" It shrugged. "Reckless, even for you, Commander."

"Not reckless, just determined." At least, that's how it generally got written in his reports. "Ask your asari Spectre about that."

"Vasir was expendable." The Shadow Broker continued sitting there calmly. "All her death cost me was time."

"Expendable like Feron?" Liara sounded angry.

"Dr. T'Soni." The broker spared her a glance. "Your interference caused all this. Feron betrayed me when he handed you Shepard's body. The drell is simply paying the price."

"It'll be pretty hard to run a base this size with no crew." And with the big holes he was going to have the Normandy put in it. Might as well test those calibrations Garrus had made.

"They're replaceable. Your arrival is barely an interruption."

"Be smart: let Feron walk out with us."

"You won't be walking out at all."

"You're quite confident for someone with nowhere left to hide." Liara narrowed her eyes.

"You travel with fascinating companions, doctor. It's good you brought Archangel, T'Soni. Your friend's bounty is still unclaimed." And now the man was threatening Garrus. Not cool.

"You're not putting a hand on anyone." Liara glared.

"It's pointless to challenge me, asari. I know your every secret, while you fumble in the dark."

"Is that right?" Liara smiled. "You're a yahg, a pre-spaceflight species quarantined to their homeworld for massacring the Council's first contact teams. This base is older than your planet's discovery, which means you killed the original Shadow Broker sixty years ago, then took over. I'm guessing you were taken from your wolrd by a trophy hunter who wanted a slave..." Liara's smile widened a little as she saw the effect her words were having. "... or a pet. How am I doing?"

And that's when the broker stood, and flipped the table. Right onto Tali. Michael started shooting.

#

"The shield's kinetically sensitive." Liara shook her head, her eyes wide. "Energy and projectiles are bouncing off."

Which meant he was going to have to do this the hard way. Dammit, he hated the hard way. "Then we do this the hard way." He headed in, and started punching.

Michael got in a few good blows before the broker sent him flying. The thing's shield was up again, and he rolled to his feet to start shooting. As soon as the shield vanished again, Michael moved in to throw punches. He added a kick for good measure, then noted the thing hit even harder than Hackett did when it sent him flying again.

Another round of shooting. "If you can get him to bring up that shield again, I've got an idea." Liara's voice came from his left. Alright, there was a plan. What was it Samara had said? If you trust her, keep trusting her. Michael took a deep breath and fired off a couple more rounds.

This time when the thing started charging back at him, Michael switched to the tactics he'd used in so many street fights. He hit the ground and rolled past, landing clear. "Liara, now!"

The biotic called up her power, and sent it into the capacitor above the yahg or whatever it was. He dove to the other side to Tali, yanking her unconcious form out of harm's way before providing her with cover.

That was when he learned, much to his dismay, that if you pump a high enough surge of power into a yahg it exploded into very small, almost entirely liquid bits. Fortunately, he'd managed to block most of it from getting to Tali, who was starting to stir. "Ow."

#

Various feeds started making noise. Michael helped Tali back to her feet, then started surveying the damage as Liara went to the desk. A moment later he turned and drew his weapon as he heard the broker's voice. "This is the Shadow Broker. The situation is under control." He lowered the gun as he realized it was Liara speaking, using a voice modulator. "We experienced a power fluctuation while upgrading hardware. It disrupted communications momentarily."

He waved Feron off as the man rushed in, a gun in hand. Liara kept talking. "However, we are now back online. Resume standard procedures. I want a status report on all operations within the next solar day. Shadow Broker out."

"Goddess of oceans..." Feron limped toward them. "It's you. You..." He shook his head. "How?"

"Well, everyone who's ever seen him in person is dead, so..."

Michael exchanged a look with Tali. Feron stared at Liara. "You're the new Shadow Broker."

"It'll be nice to have access to information I can trust..." Michael nodded to Liara. "Broker."

"I'm not sure I'm ready for you to call me that." Liara looked almost as vulnerable as she had when her mother died. "I"m not sure about any of this. But I had to do it. With the Shadow Broker's information network, I can give you..." She turned to look at the displays. "I can..."

"I'll, uh, check the power systems." Feron started to limp off. Tali followed him, barely waiting for the gesture from Michael.

When he reached Liara's side, he was surprised to see tears streaming from her eyes. "It's over. It's finally..." She swallowed. "For two years..."

Sometimes there were no words. He caught her arm and pulled her into a hug. She hugged him back tightly, sobbing into his shoulder. "It's all right."

She drew back after a few moments, and wiped at her eyes. "I spent two years mourning you and Feron. And now I've got you both back. I..." She swallowed again, then turned to start looking at the displays. "Let's see what we've got."

#

After a few minutes of examination, she turned to him. "No safeguards or user restrictions. It's like he never anticipated anyone but himself being here." She smiled, looking like her old self. "And it's all ours."

"Could this tell me if the salarian councilor is male or female?" He raised an eyebrow.

She glared at him, but the corners of her mouth played in a smile. "No. As for what else it could tell us..." Liara glanced at the machines again. "I'm not sure. I'll need to go through his files. Come back later, and I'll try to have something useful for you." She turned to face him. "All I wanted was to rescue Feron. But..." She swallowed. "Is it wrong that part of me wants this? With the Shadow Broker's network, I can help you. Maybe I can turn this operation into something better."

"Don't be a stranger this time." Michael put a hand on her shoulder.

"Come by when you have a chance." She smiled. "The doors are always open." As he left, she spoke again. "Thank you, Shepard. For everything."

#

"Shepard blew up a building on Illium?" Brekin stared

"No." Kaidan shook his head. "He just happened to be nearby when it exploded, then killed the people responsible. I tried to ask Liara what was going on, but she didn't have time to talk. Michael's helping her with some sort of mission. I'm frankly a little concerned about what they are up to."

"Yeah, I get that." Brekin rubbed his neck. "Look, Kaidan, I was pretty brusque last time we talked and..." He took a deep breath. "I owe you an apology. I know you guys are doing all you can." He sighed. "It just sucks sitting here while..."

"How's Sandra?"

"Numb." Brekin looked down. "Your mom's been sitting with her. I'm not sure the kids even realize that..." His voice broke a little. "I can't think how to..." He sighed. "You know, I was pissed when you first told me about Shepard working with Cereberus but now it's like..." He shrugged. "It's him, isn't it? Like taking the rap for what went down on Torfan. Paying the price so the rest of us don't have to."

"Yeah." Kaidan nodded. "Maybe you're right. I don't..." He shook his head. "I don't even know anymore."

"Lines get blurred." Brekin nodded. "Take care of yourself out there, Kaidan."

"Thanks."

#

Another colony gone. He heard the conversation as he got back onto the ship. Ferris Fields was gone. Michael made it all the way back to his quarters before he punched anything. And all that did was break his hand. He set the bone back into place and put medigel on the wound. "Shepard, perhaps -"

"Can it, EDI." His voice was sharp. He rested his forehead on the cool glass of the tank and sighed.

#

They stopped back in only a couple days later, having retrieved supplies for her. Liara smiled when she saw them. Her drone was annoying, but she already had the place mostly cleaned up. "How are you doing, Liara?"

"I'm a bit overwhelmed, to be honest. The Shadow Broker had more resources than you can imagine. Here, come on over." She gave him a tour, and it was clear she had found her calling. And he wasn't sure, but he thought there might be some lingering feelings between her and Feron. Given the man's condition though, it just didn't seem right to threaten to break his knees.

The broker had known about the reapers, and about the collectors. If the thing hadn't been all for himself, things might have gone differently. "It was good talking to you, Liara. Let me know if you need anything."

"I think what I need right now is a friend. I can't leave for too long, but spending all my time on this ship..." She shrugged. "Maybe next time you come by, I could come up to the Normandy."

"What's wrong with right now?" He raised an eyebrow.

#

A word to Kasumi got him some decent asari wine. He didn't ask where she'd stolen it from. That would have been rude. A smile came to his face when he realized Liara had actually dressed up to visit. She paused at that glass tank. "You should get some fish."

"Did you enjoy the tour?" Michael raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, it's a beautiful ship. And I ran into Joker. He seemed happy to see me." She shrugged. "Although he did ask if I'd 'embraced eternity' lately."

"Of course, he did." Why hadn't he shot Joker yet?

"I also spoke with Doctor Chakwas. I'm glad she's doing well. I brought you something." She offered him a small display piece. "It took some digging, but I recovered your tags."

He looked down at the dogtags, then ran his hand over the metal. Strange, seeing those again. There'd been a time he felt naked without them. "It seems like forever since I was an Alliance soldier. First I get tapped for the Specters, now Cerberus..." He set the display on his desk.

"You succeed against odds most people wouldn't even take on. It's no wonder everyone wants you on their side." She put a hand on his shoulder. "But I know it wears on you." She withdrew and leaned on the wall opposite him. "So how are you doing, Shepard? I mean really, not what you tell your squad to keep morale up."

Michael sighed. He was two years overdue for an ass-kicking, Kaidan wanted nothing to do with him, Brekin was dead, and... "Honestly? I'm tired. Tired of dealing with Cerberus, tired of the Council ignoring me, tired of my closest friends not believing me."

"Yes, I heard about what Kaidan said on Horizon." Liara exhaled. "I'm sorry. But their shortsightedness doesn't diminish what you've accomplished." She sighed. "It's funny. Finally, just the two of us, and we still end up talking about everyone but ourselves." She put a hand on her hip. "So, tell me what you want. What are you fighting for?" She raised an eyebrow. "A chance to give Jack faith in something more than anger?"

What was that... Huh. Jack. He hadn't... Maybe. "I guess I"m fighting for us. All of us."

"That's a lot of responsibility."

"People are messy, awkward, sometimes selfish or cruel. But they're..." He looked down, then back up. "They're trying. And I"m going to make sure they have a chance."

"I hope the galaxy proves itself worthy of the effort you're putting into saving it." She smiled. "I should get back to my base. But thanks for inviting me up, Shepard." Then she was hugging him again.

He was somewhat surprised to realize that this time, he was the one that needed it. "Come back soon."