Elissa and Joker sat beside Samara outside of the medbay, the rest of crew spread out around the mess hall, all waiting for news on Falere's condition since she had been rushed to the operating room almost an hour ago. Samara's usual calm demeanor seemed to have shattered the instant she saw Falere taken away on the stretcher, she had held herself together on the way to the shuttle from the monastery and even while sitting on the ground with Falere in her embrace. She had spent the last hour periodically weeping for her daughter, 'Even the most calm and level headed of people can be broken when their child is injured' Elissa reasoned as she handed Samara another tissue.

"Samara, is there anything we can get you?" asked Joker, looking to Elissa for any clue as to what to do about this situation.

"No, Joker, you and Shepard have done quite enough," said Samara smiling weakly at him, he could see on her eyes the same pain that he had seen in Hannah's eyes when Elissa had been smashed against the pavement and after she had gotten shot.

"She'll pull through this, Samara," said Elissa encouragingly, "She's a fighter like you are, you'll see." Samara sighed heavily, Elissa could only imagine the immense pain she was feeling in her heart at this moment, she hoped against hope this really would turn out in a positive way but after seeing Falere it almost appeared to be a lost cause.

"Samara, look," said Kasumi gently, the Justicar looked up at the thief and then where she was pointing, Chakwas had just emerged from the medbay, she looked weary but triumphant.

"Samara," said Chakwas and Samara rose from the table, even now her majesty was undeniable, "She's going to make a full recovery, she's weak and sustained a great deal of blood loss, but she'll pull through."

Everyone in the mess cheered, this was the outcome they had been hoping for the entire wait, Samara was practically glowing with happiness as she took in the news that her only living daughter would survive her ordeal.

"Go to her, Samara," said Garrus from behind and they all watched happily as Samara entered the medbay with Chakwas, whom then closed the shutters to allow privacy for the mother and daughter.

"Guess we should get back to work," said Joker and as the crew prepared to leave the mess they heard James gagging, Joker turned and burst out laughing at James' face, he had just taken a bite of Rupert's fireball chili and apparently it was too much for him.

"Geez, James, I thought you had already done that challenge," said Joker as he calmed himself down.

"I didn't want to. . . . do it earlier. . . .out of respect. . . ." wheezed James as he breathed heavily, trying to douse the fire in his mouth, he then took the glass of water sitting beside his bowl, even that did nothing to quell the burning.

"Try milk, James," said Elissa as she tried to hide her grin behind her hand. James gave her a thumbs up as he reached for the canister of milk in Rupert's fridge, pouring it straight down his throat, his shirt and the floor becoming soaked with the milk that missed his mouth.

"I better stay and help him clean up," sighed Miranda, walking towards James, shaking her head in amusement.

"We better head back up to CIC," said Elissa to the rest, "or have we all forgotten that there's an army to stop? Garrus, you and Miranda are with me, I'll speak with Samara before we get there about whether or not she wants to accompany us."

"Of course, Shepard," said Garrus as he summoned the elevator, "I'll tell Miranda just as soon as Vega's skin has turned its normal color again." They all turned around and saw that James' skin had indeed flushed bright red and his eyes were streaming with tears as he took another bite of the chili.

"He'll do anything for fifteen credits," sighed Steve as he watched James nearly choke on the second bite.

"Nah, he'll do anything for the bragging rights," said Joker, trying not to laugh as Miranda held onto James' hand as if he were giving birth instead of trying to beat the pain of the chili.

"I'm going to ask Rupert what he put in that stuff," said Tali, shocked that James was going for a third bite when it was obviously a painful experience.

"You do that and I'll just avoid it," said Elissa smiling as the door pinged and the elevator doors opened, "Lets go fight an army."

"Yeah, thanks for reminding me," sighed Joker and Elissa took his hand, squeezing it lightly as they stepped into the elevator with the rest of the ground team, he was still less than eager to continue this mission.


"Coming up on Lilonani," said Joker a couple of hours later as Lilonani entered his field of vision, it was a beautiful looking planet, with features like Earth but it appeared there were lava fields scattered around on the land.

"Mr. Moreau," said EDI, "I am afraid it will be most difficult to fly the Normandy on Lilonani, there are many active volcanoes that are erupting at various intervals, some of them firing lava as high as the atmosphere."

Joker groaned, "Just tell me something EDI, if I have to make an emergency evac, will I be able to?"

"If it is well timed, then yes," replied EDI sounding almost cheerful. Joker covered his face with his cap to hide his disappointment, he had wanted to hear that it would have to be fast not well timed, if something had to be well timed that meant Elissa and the ground team might be waiting around for a long time and that could mean the difference between life and death.

"Hey," said Elissa from behind, Joker spun around, glad to see her before she left for the mission, "We're just about ready to go, Steve's making sure the kinetic barriers on the shuttle will hold against the lava."

Joker felt the pit in his stomach again as he looked at her, he could tell she was nervous by the way the light in her eyes had dimmed, but her face was brave and he knew she was ready for whatever this mission was going to throw at them.

"Wait, how did he . . ." started Joker and he looked at EDI, who winked at him, and he knew it was her who had sent the information about the lava fields to Steve.

"How did he what?" asked Elissa, confused a little.

"It's nothing, Ellie," said Joker smiling a little as she leaned down to kiss him, for a brief moment he felt sweet relief of the fear and anxiety that was churning in his stomach, when she pulled away he looked at her, "Please be safe."

"I will be," promised Elissa, stroking his beard with her gloved fingers.

"Shepard," said Steve through the intercom, "We're ready to leave. Samara, Miranda, and Garrus are all waiting for you."

"I take it Samara wanted to go with you after all?" asked Joker, genuinely surprised, and now even more fearful for her life.

"Yeah," said Elissa trying to sound like nothing was wrong but she could not ignore the emptiness in her gut, the last time she and Samara had come face to face with Ardat-Yakshi it had almost ended in the death of not only Samara but for Falere the rest of girls at the monastery.

Joker pulled her down to his level, pressing his forehead against hers, not wanting to let go just yet, "I love you, Elissa."

Elissa fought against the tears, though she wished she could lose it and cry, "I love you, too, Jeff." She pulled away, and turned her back to him, unable to face him as she walked away from the man she loved.

"You better come back," said Joker as she walked away, she stopped and turned her head to look at him, "That's an order, Commander."

"Since when did you start giving orders?" asked Elissa quietly, smiling softly at him.

"Since I found out I'm going to have to pull your ass out of a lava pit again," replied Joker and Elissa laughed, he felt good to hear her laugh again, it had been too long. She turned around again and left the bridge heading towards the elevator, Joker mentally went through the map of where she was going to have to go in order to get to the shuttle, to him it was a way of calming down since he knew exactly where she was at least while she was on the ship.

"Mr. Moreau," said EDI, "Although your heart is racing, you seem to be a ease, is this normal for organics?"

"Sometimes," said Joker as he prepped the Normandy for the shuttle's departure, "Whenever humans are put in a crisis, like this crew often is, we can feel nervous all we want but we keep a level head and get the job done."

"I see," said EDI, "So while you might be scared about the well being of the Commander, you know you have a job to do, and you do your job despite your actual emotions regarding the mission even if your emotions may interfere with your job performance. That seems like a very hypocritical system."

Joker laughed, "That's the human race's claim to fame: hypocrisy."

He looked out of the windshield and saw the shuttle flying away towards Lilonani and Joker swallowed hard, how he was going to make it through these next few hours without completely losing his mind he did not know, but it would be nothing short of a miracle.


Elissa pulled off her glove and started to pick her nails, thinking about what they might find when they get down there, how much of a battle they were actually going to face and if they were all going to make it back in one piece.

"You shouldn't do that," said Miranda through the helmet she was wearing, watching Elissa as she picked her nails, "It's your tell, we all know you're nervous when you start to pick your nails."

Elissa looked up at Miranda through her own helmet and reluctantly put her glove back on, she was right, she needed to show strength right now, "I'll keep that in mind, Mira, thanks."

"Lisa, we'll make it through this," said Miranda kindly, "Then we'll find out why Cerberus is interfering in your life then you and Joker can ride off and live happily ever after."

Elissa laughed, "I wish it was that easy. Have you found anything on that message?"

"Not yet, but there are some promising leads," replied Miranda, "I'm running a few tests as we speak, I'll let you know as soon as I have some new results."

"Thanks, Mira," said Elissa and she turned to Samara who was looking out of the window at the emptiness of space, "Are you going to be alright, Samara?"

"What do you mean, Shepard?" asked Samara quietly.

"The last time we did something like this, I had to prevent you from shooting yourself," said Elissa, her eyes narrowed, "Is your code going to interfere again? Are you going to try and kill innocent people?"

"Ardat-Yakshi are not innocent," replied Samara, "Their very existence is a crime that must be corrected."

"Your own daughter is an Ardat-Yakshi," said Garrus bitterly, "How can you say something like that and expect us to be sympathetic?"

"I don't expect your sympathy," replied Samara, "All I expect is Shepard will allow me to do what is right when the time comes."

"I'm not about to let you slaughter innocents who's only crime was being born," growled Elissa as she stood up, now second guessing asking Samara to come with her on the mission.

"That is not for you to decide," said Samara softly, "They left the monastery where they were expected to stay, only there were they safe from me, now they are a willing target."

Elissa's face contorted with rage, "They did not willingly leave the monastery! They were taken, and if you are going to be a hinderance on this mission, I will have Steve take you back and you can watch while I go against your code! I'm not about to let you kill anyone who hasn't committed an actual crime."

Samara looked as if she were going to protest and argue with Elissa but she said nothing of the sort, "I'm sorry, Shepard, this situation is rather difficult for me. I have my duties as a Justicar to uphold yet I am the mother to what I have sword to destroy, you can see where this is a conflict of interest, I will not interfere with your decision be it mercy or destruction."

"Thank you, Samara, I know this is difficult for you," said Elissa, putting her hand on her friend's shoulder, "I hope we don't have to make too many devastating decisions, not only for your sake but for the sake of those girls that were kidnapped."

"I share that hope as well, Shepard," said Samara, turning away from her friend. The group remained quiet the rest of the journey, each mentally preparing for what was to come, hoping this would turn out much better than how it was looking at the moment.


"Oh dear God," groaned Joker when he saw the planet's surface through Elissa's helmet camera, "Why can she never go to a nice beach? Why do the places she ends up always have to involve lava or a poisonous atmosphere?"

"Well, Mr. Moreau . . ." started EDI before Joker cut in.

"That was rhetorical, EDI, meaning do-not-answer," said Joker silencing EDI, he was not in the mood for any of her input right now.

"Heard Shepard just landed planetside," said Jacob as he and Kasumi walked onto the bridge, "What's the situation?"

"How did you know that?" asked Joker and then he saw Kasumi silently giggling, he knew she had been spying on him the entire time and went to tell Jacob what she had found out.

"A little bird told me," smirked Jacob, his eyes darting to Kasumi, and Joker nodded in understanding, "So where's Shepard headed, she isn't flying too blind I hope?"

"I have already forwarded the Commander a possible location for the Ardat-Yakshi hideout," replied EDI, "There was a massive biotics reading in that area, which seemed the most likely place for the army to be hiding out."

"Lets hope Shepard's ready for this," sighed Jacob as he made himself comfortable on the floor, Kasumi sitting down next to him, they smiled at each other and Joker rolled his eyes, those two had always had the strangest of relationships.

"If I know my daughter, she's already two steps ahead of them," said Hannah as she entered, "and has a plan for getting her ass out of the fire."

"That's my area of expertise, Hannah," said Joker, grinning up at Hannah as she stood behind him, her eyes now fixed on the screens.

"That plan better involve getting Garrus out of there as well, Joker," said Tali sternly as she entered, standing next to EDI, her helmet turned to the screens.

"You know it does, Tali," sighed Joker, though he smiled, it was cute to him that she worried about Garrus the same way he worried about Elissa.

"Good," said Tali, and the room grew quiet as Elissa and the rest of the ground team made it to what looked like an abandoned mining shaft.

"Why would the Ardat-Yakshi put their army here, I wonder," said Miranda as they crept closer to the door, obviously keeping an eye out for any kind of defense mechanisms.

"Makes more sense than keeping them near a bubbling pool of lava," commented Garrus, "Mechs! Get down!"

The sounds of gunfire filled the room as they fired upon the mechs, bringing down the machines easily, after the last mech had fallen Elissa and Garrus went around collecting more ammunition with Miranda and Samara bringing up the rear.

"They probably know we're here," said Elissa, "Come on, lets get inside." The group walked to the door of the mine shaft and Miranda was quick to bypass the lock on the door, they entered quietly and removed their helmets.

"Where should we start looking?" asked Garrus, checking his omni-tool for the map EDI had forwarded them of the facility, "This place is huge."

"The center of the facility is more than likely where Remaldia is," said Samara reloading her pistol, "but there are many room between here and there, perhaps we can find out more about her plans for this army."

"Alright, we'll also keep an eye out for survivors," said Elissa as she checked her own map, her brow crinkling when she saw how many room there were in this facility. They started off down the hallway, keeping an eye out for more mechs or other means of security.

"What do you think this Remaldia has planned?" asked Kasumi as a general question to everyone in the room, the silence of her companions deafening.

"We already know about Illium and Thessia," said Jacob, "What more do you think there might be?"

"It doesn't seem weird to you that all of these dangerous Asari are able to congregate in one area and no one say a word?" asked Kasumi, adjusting her hood, "I mean, from what I've gathered, they are watched by the government on Thessia through the monastery which was designed specifically for Ardat-Yakshi."

Joker frowned, this entire situation felt too much like a trap for his own comfort, "I doubt it was Samara who set this up, but maybe Falere, I mean she was the only Ardat-Yakshi not taken, and in her distress call she said they were taking even the dead bodies."

"You're right," said Tali thoughtfully as she watched Garrus' screen, "You know, if we're all thinking this, maybe Lisa is too. Do you think she brought Samara along for an ulterior reason? I mean, why didn't she just take Liara or even James for that matter, both would be an excellent choice instead of Samara."

"Because I am pregnant and James lacks the same finesse that Samara possesses," said Liara, Joker turned and looked at her, amazed that her stomach had grown even more in these last few days.

"I guess you're right Liara," said Tali slightly disgruntled at having been outsmarted by Liara, "Have you spoken to Falere?"

"No, I have not had the chance," said Liara, she seemed tired and breathless, "Is there a chair I could borrow? I need to sit down."

Joker was about to stand when EDI said, "Take mine, Dr. T'Soni, you are in more need of it than I am currently."

"Thank you, EDI," said Liara grateful at the AI's kindness, she sat down, her hands folded on her belly a smile of relief ghosting her face, "Back to your comment, Joker, it does seem strange that the people who attacked the monastery left behind an injured Ardat-Yakshi, and she just happened to be the last living daughter of a powerful Justicar."

"So you think this is a trap too?" asked Joker, taking off his cap, running his fingers through his hair as he watched the screens.

"It's got every element a trap needs," continued Liara, "It has bait, a target, and a situation that would appeal to the target. What I am not sure of is if this is a trap meant for Lisa or for Samara."

"You have a point there," said Jacob, rubbing his tired eyes, "I mean the bait could be either Falere or the girls taken from the monastery, one would appeal to Samara the other to Shepard either one ensuring the emotional involvement of both women. Then the situation is also designed to get the notice of both Shepard and Samara; massive colonies being attacked by a powerful army would definitely get Shepard's undivided attention whereas a gathering of the creatures Samara is sworn to destroy in one secluded area would be her obvious motivation."

"You guys do realize none of what you're saying is making me feel any better about this situation, right?" snorted Joker, he too had been thinking this all seemed to coincidental, even Samara's arrival seemed planned.

"I think Tali's right," said Hannah speaking calmly despite her concern that her daughter's friends were right about this being a trap, "Jackie probably knows she's being set up and is coming up with a plan to counteract what's being cooked up."

"Do you think it's Samara who's planned this?" asked Kasumi, "I found nothing when I went through her messages, but I mean, you never know . . ."

"Wait, you went through her messages, why?" asked Joker, spinning around to face Kasumi, not exactly surprised since she went through everyone's underwear drawer, he was more concerned that she had gone through a trusted friend's messages seemingly without a decent reason.

"Of course," said Kasumi, taken aback, "Shep asked me to when Samara first came back on board, after she asked Liara to recheck the intel she had gotten from her source."

"I don't remember that conversation," said Joker, raising an eyebrow at the master thief.

"Just because you don't remember it happening doesn't mean it didn't happen," said Kasumi, a wicked smile on her face, Joker decided not to ask her what else she knew.

Elissa's voice echoed through the cockpit, "Oh my God."

The crew turned their attention to the screens though they immediately wished they had not done so, the entire room was filled with piles of dead bodies, many looked to be Asari though there were Hanar, Turian, human, and even Salarian.

"What the hell happened here?" asked Garrus as he crouched down closer to one of the bodies in order to examine it closer, "There are no ligature marks, no signs of a struggle, the bodies are completely clean."

"These are the unlucky victims of the Ardat-Yakshi," said Samara, her tone suggesting she was about to say 'I told you so.'

"Why? Why would they kill so many people?" asked Elissa, horrified at the tragic scene in front of her.

"When an Ardat-Yakshi is first discovered, it is usually before they first experience sexual intercourse," said Samara, sidestepping a body as she followed Elissa down a narrow path made down the center of the room, Garrus and Miranda staying behind to collect information, "If she remains undiscovered and has intercourse with another, she will become addicted to the high produced by the kill, and want to continue doing so. Sex and the murdering of the partner for an Ardat-Yakshi works the same as drugs and performance enhancing steroids on a human being."

"So they become addicted to killing and the high makes them a better killer as a result," summarized Elissa, her tone hard, "Is that what you're trying to say?"

"More or less so," said Samara, "Remaldia is trying to hone these skills in the Ardat-Yakshi in her army, that is why there are so many dead. Do you still think they are worth saving, Shepard?"

Elissa sighed heavily, "You're really starting to piss me off, Samara."

"I apologize, Shepard, that was not my intention," said Samara quietly as they stood by the exit, waiting for Garrus and Miranda to catch up with them before proceeding into the next room, thankfully there were not any bodies in this one.

"Keelah," whispered Tali, sitting down slowly, the shock overwhelming her. Hannah sat down next to her, wrapping her arms around Tali, hugging her close trying her best to comfort the young Quarian.

Joker had buried his face in his hands at some point, the body count was far too high and he could tell they had been unwilling victims in the Ardat-Yakshi training session, "How . . . why . . . God, why?"

"You never get used to seeing dead bodies, especially those of innocents," said Jacob quietly, "When this is over, we should try to find out who those poor bastards were and get their bodies shipped home."

"I agree," said Liara, tears rolling down her cheeks, "I can't believe someone could have done something as disgusting and vile as murdering people for the sake of making a powerful army." Liara suddenly hissed, a sharp pain shooting up her spine, she tried to move herself into a more comfortable position but that did not alleviate the pain instead it made it much worse.

Joker noticed Liara's sharp breath and the pain written all over her face, "Are you in labor? Do you need us to get Chakwas?"

"No, I'm not in labor," said Liara breathlessly, "but you should get Chakwas, I'm not sure why my I'm feeling this way."

Joker reached for the comm button when he heard running footsteps, spinning around he saw Chakwas sprinting through the CIC and was in the cockpit in almost no time, "Hey, Doc, we were just about to call you, Liara—"

"There's something wrong with Falere," wheezed Chakwas, she was bent over with her hands on her knees trying to catch her breath before continuing.

"What's wrong with her?" asked Kasumi.

"Her wounds . . . are healing much faster . . . than they should be," said Chakwas, managing to catch her breath, "Not even normal Asari heal this fast."

"This sounds like something we need to check out," said Jacob, standing up, "Liara, you stay here with Joker; EDI, Kasumi, Hannah, Tali, you're with me; Chakwas, I suggest you wait a few minutes before following after us."

"You don't seriously think . . .?" asked Joker cautiously.

"I don't know what to think," sighed Jacob, "but if something's wrong, we should look into it, even if it's minor."

"Yeah, we don't need another Collector incident," scoffed Joker, "You should find James, I don't think he'd forgive us if we left him out of the fun."

Jacob laughed, "You have a point there, we'll be back shortly, c'mon everyone."

The women stood up and followed Jacob out of the cockpit, and Joker watched them go, a sense of dread creeping up on him.

"I have a really bad feeling about this," whispered Joker as he turned back to the console, bringing up the feed from the medbay along with the feed from the ground team's armor, he wanted to make sure if there was any problem he would be there to see it and possibly do something to help before it was too late.