A/N: *phew* Finally have it done, thanks for the patience everyone, this has been a crazy month. I hope this lives up to your expectations, again I apologize for the delay, you all are amazing. :)


Joker felt torn, while he wanted to watch Elissa as she traveled through the facility he knew he also needed to keep an eye on the group going to the medbay, 'God, why? Why did this have to happen?' he thought as he maximized the screen with feed from the medbay.

"Joker, we'll make it through this," said Liara, as if reading his mind, "Lisa won't let anything happen to us, or to the ship, you know that."

"I know," groaned Joker, he then turned his eyes back to the screen and watched as the group entered, guns raised at Falere who was laying on one of the beds. She was hooked up to monitors for her heart and breathing rate, she was also wearing a clear mask over her mouth and nose, to everyone around she looked harmless.

"Chakwas," said Jacob, lowering his pistol, "What exactly is wrong with Falere that concerns you? From what I see, she seems to be fine."

"Do you see this small scar?" asked Chakwas and the group nodded, "It used to run from her wrist to her elbow and was three inches wide." She brought up a picture of it on her omni-tool and everyone looked before raising their guns once again.

"What do we do?" asked Tali.

"I'm not sure," admitted Chakwas, "I'm truly at a loss, I have never seen an Asari body react like this, and although Ardat-Yakshi are powerful, from my research it's only their reproductive abilities that are hindered by their mutation. Perhaps there is another reason for her rapid health regeneration."

"What's that?" asked Hannah indicating with her pistol a soft glow coming from behind Falere's head.

Chakwas gingerly raised Falere's head, careful not to disturb the tubes or wires and her eyes went wide, "There's something wedged in her neck, at the base of the occipital bone, just above her spine."

Tali looked over and gasped, "That looks like what the Leviathan used to control those miners, though it's a lot smaller."

"So this is some kind of mind control device?" asked Chakwas as she placed Falere's head back on the pillow, "Can it be removed?"

"We've encountered those artifacts before, but not with Asari being involved," said Jacob, looking over as well, "we were able to stop the original devices by blowing them up, but since this one is so much smaller and attached to Falere, I doubt it can be removed easily. I think we should radio Shepard, let her know this situation just got a lot worse."

"What should we do about Falere?" asked Tali, "I mean, what's keeping her from waking up and killing us all?"

"Thanks for the comforting thought, Tali," said Kasumi sarcastically.

"I believe it is the anesthesia that is preventing Falere from awakening," replied EDI, "however, my scans indicate that with her body repairing itself as it is, she will more than likely overcome the effects of the anesthesia and what will happen from there is unknown."

"Comforting," sighed Jacob, "Either way, we need to inform Shepard that indoctrination is at work here, EDI that'll be your responsibility. Kasumi, you go and find James, we need all of the muscle and firepower we can get if Falere becomes what I think she'll become."

"What do you think she'll become?" asked Hannah, never having encountered a situation like this one.

"When the Reapers indoctrinated the Asari before, including the Ardat-Yakshi, they became these creatures called Banshees" said Tali, a chill running down her spine as she remembered the horrible noise those creatures made.

"Sounds pleasant," snorted Hannah, convinced now that her daughter needed to get back on the ship as soon as possible.

"EDI, Kasumi, you have your assignments," said Jacob sternly, "The rest of us will remain here and guard Falere, if anything happens the priority is protecting the ship."

"You guys know I can message Shepard and James, right?" asked Joker over the intercom, slightly amused.

"Sorry, Joker," said Hannah, smiling, "Can you please relay that message to Jackie? Oh and what's the squad's status?"

"They haven't found anymore bodies, if that's what you mean," replied Joker grimly, "They've encountered a few Commandos and a shit ton of mechs, right now they're getting ready to enter this locked room if Miranda could get the lock over ridden. Anyway, I'll tell Shepard about the crystal thing in Falere's neck and Kasumi go wake up James, he's passed out in the lounge."

"Aye, aye, Joker," said Kasumi and she ran off to the lounge to find James.

Joker chuckled to himself as he watched Kasumi run off towards the lounge, then he turned back to the monitors, his stomach in knots as he watched Elissa running towards what appeared to be the center of the facility.


"I sense that Remaldia is close," said Samara as they neared the door.

"Good," said Elissa as she looked down the hallway, "the sooner we get this over with the better we'll all be. Joker, be ready for—"

"Shepard?" said Joker, sitting up in his chair, pressing the intercom button, "Shepard? Are you there? Ellie? Elissa, please respond."

"Joker? Joker?" said Elissa, pressing her ear piece, "Come in, Joker. Damn it, Jeff answer me."

"Something wrong, Shepard?" asked Garrus as they entered the room.

"Communications are being jammed," said Elissa, "we're going to have to find the source and get rid of it, but until then we're on our own."

"So no emergency evac, I take it?" sighed Miranda.

"Not unless we get rid of the communications jam," said Elissa sharply, cocking her assault rifle, "Come on, the sooner we get to Remaldia the sooner we can get the hell out of here."

"Hear, hear," said Garrus, flexing his mandibles in a halfhearted attempt at a smile.

"Shepard," said Samara, putting her hand on Elissa's shoulder, "we need to discuss what is going to happen to the Ardat-Yakshi. I know how you operate, your main objective has always been to ensure that all survivors get out safely but we may have to face the reality that you won't be able to save everyone."

"Samara, I don't have time for this," said Elissa harshly, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it but until then, we are under the assumption that we'll be able to save everyone we can."

"An admirable idea, Shepard, but you know what humans say about assuming: it makes an ass out of you and me," said Garrus, smirking in his own way when he saw the corners of Elissa's mouth twitch in an almost smile.

"As long as it makes you look more like an ass than me, I'm okay with that," said Elissa dryly as Miranda opened the door closest to them, they entered through, Garrus and Elissa in the lead with Samara and Miranda bringing up the rear. The room was dark and from what Elissa could tell, the room was far larger than meets the eye, she turned on the light at the end of her rifle and scoped the room as best she could grateful when the other three also turned on their beams. They walked carefully to the center of the room, each sound sending a small chill of panic down Elissa's spine, she heard a hissing noise to her left, and moved to further investigate the source of the sound.

"Find anything, Shepard?" asked Garrus quietly as he watched her move further from the group, he followed her at a distance.

"I think so," said Elissa softly as she approached what appeared to be pipelines lining the wall, "It looks like gas lines of some sort, and from the sounds of it, there's a leak."

"Isn't that dangerous?" asked Garrus as he stood next to her, also examining the pipelines, "I mean, we are close to several lava pits, wouldn't the heat from the molten lava and the gas that's escaping from these pipes cause an explosion?"

"Hell, Garrus, if we fired a few shots in here we'd cause an explosion," observed Elissa, trying to determine how much time they would actually have if these pipelines did in fact become ignited.

"Why is this relevant to our mission, Shepard?" asked Samara from behind.

"Well, Samara, if we get backed into this room while taking heavy fire we might burn ourselves to a crisp trying to get out of here," said Elissa dryly.

"Point taken," sighed Samara as they headed towards a door on the far wall, "I believe if we head through this door, we should find Remaldia and her army."

"Hopefully we can find the source of our communications jam," said Miranda.

"Lets finish this," said Elissa, her Commander voice echoing in the empty room as Miranda cautiously opened the door, they entered in a single file line, Garrus leading as she followed Samara inside she found herself thinking of Joker and the Normandy hoping both were safe and ready for action.


"Oh you've got to be fucking kidding me," muttered Joker angrily as he stared up at the black screens and listened to the static coming through the communications channel.

"Joker, what's happened?" asked Liara worriedly, rubbing her belly.

"Something's cut communications, I can't get in touch with Shepard or the ground team," said Joker, running tests to try and determine where the jamming signal was being sent from. "God dammit!"

"What?!" exclaimed Liara, trying to stand but Joker motioned for her to remain seated.

"The signal's coming from the planet's surface, but there's so much interference I can't get a clear position," snarled Joker, very tempted to slam his fists against his armrests though he knew it would fracture some of his bones.

"What's going on in the medbay?" asked Liara, trying to see the monitor to Joker's left, though she could not lift herself fully from the chair.

"Last I heard, Falere has some glowing rock in the back of her neck," said Joker, glancing over at the monitor, somewhat relieved to see James standing there with his personal weapon of choice.

"A what?" asked Liara, her eyebrow raised slightly, a puzzled look on her face.

"I don't know, something about Leviathan and a glowing rock on Falere's neck," said Joker though slightly gritted teeth, as much as he was worried about what might happen with Falere, he was more concerned about Elissa and how in the hell he was going to get her out of there if necessary.

"Leviathan?" repeated Liara, shock coloring her tone as she rested her head against the headrest, "I thought we they were on our side, I mean, Shepard talked them into giving war aid."

"Yeah, I read the report," said Joker as he watched the monitor, trying not to look at the black screens above his head, "I have a feeling she didn't talk to all of them. Damn, what is with everyone going rogue? I mean, first Major Asshole, now this Justicar friend of Samara's and now ancient mechanical squids? Has the galaxy gone crazy or something?"

"Who knows why, Joker," sighed Liara, "all I know is we have to watch our backs and hope that more of our friends haven't turned against us as well."

"I still can't believe what Kaidan did," said Joker quietly, turning in his chair to face Liara, he had not voiced his concerns about Kaidan's betrayal to Elissa for fear of upsetting her further, she had already taken his backstabbing more to heart than anyone else on the crew, "I mean, it just seems so unlike him, but I guess we might not have known the real Kaidan Alenko."

"And even if we asked him, how would we know if he was telling the truth?" commented Liara, "We'd need pretty compelling evidence to prove any story he told us."

"No shit," chuckled Joker and he felt his blood run cold as his eyes returned to the monitor, Falere was sitting up in the bed, everyone's gun was pointed at her.

"Falere," said Hannah calmly as everyone around her drew their weapon, she put her weapon back on her hip, holding her hands up in a stance of surrender to try and lighten the mood of the situation, "we're here to help, you need to trust us."

"No!" exclaimed Falere, here eyes glowing, all of her still unhealed injuries also emitting an unearthly glow, "You are here to stop me, and I cannot allow that!" Her voice was not the dulcet tones that they had heard before, instead it was a rough combination of her organic voice and what sounded like Leviathan's mechanical one.

"So much for that idea," mumbled Hannah as she reached for her pistol, only to be knocked on her back by biotic shot from Falere as she stood up, Hannah felt the air leave her lungs she was still alive but breathing was difficult.

"Open fire!" called Jacob, Tali, Kasumi, James, and EDI all began shooting at Falere as Jacob moved to assist Hannah, suddenly a large blast from Falere threw him, Chakwas, Hannah, and Tali through the glass of the medbay windows. They landed in the hallway, Jacob could feel some pieces of glass sticking in his arms but right now, he was far more concerned with the indoctrinated Ardat-Yakshi that was going on a rampage.

"Oh SHIT!" exclaimed Joker as he watched the monitor go black, having been destroyed in the blast, he knew he needed to get the rest of the crew to safety or at least get them away from Falere's blast zone, he opened up the comm ship-wide, "Attention Normandy crew, get your asses somewhere safe, we have a crazy Asari on the loose. I repeat, get yourselves to safety."

"Eloquently said, Joker," said Liara cooly as she adjusted herself in the chair.

"You know what, Liara, how about the next time we experience a crisis, you write the announcements?" snapped Joker as his fingers flew across the board, trying in earnest to secure the kinetic barriers in the shuttle bay, engineering, and the bridge.

"Joker, can we come in here?" asked Hadley, there were a few other crew members behind him from CIC and Joker nodded, letting them onto the bridge right before the barriers sealed them inside.

"Joker," said Jacob through his ear piece, "we just heard the kinetic barriers go up, have you gotten ahold of Shepard yet?"

"Negative," said Joker, his voice catching in his throat, "all communications, incoming and outgoing, have been cut off somehow. If we can get EDI up here, we might be able to figure out how to shut it down, hell if I can get video I'd consider it good."

"Mr. Moreau, I am always here," said EDI, through the bridge's intercom, "I will help you locate the source of the communications jam."

"Thanks, EDI," said Joker, smiling.

"Well, we kind of have a situation here," said Jacob, he had moved himself and Hannah to the nearest hallway, Chakwas and Tali were sitting beside them, "Hannah's hurt bad, and EDI's body is still in the medbay with Falere and the others, I have Chakwas and Tali with me but I'm about to send Chakwas to engineering with Hannah."

"Alright, EDI and I are going to try and get in contact with Shepard," said Joker sternly, "Joker out."

Chakwas nodded and helped Hannah stand up, Tali and Jacob provided cover fire as they moved towards the elevator door. Jacob watched as Chakwas hit the button and the elevator door slid into place, he then turned back to Falere, James and the rest were already firing at her even though they were still sitting on the floor more than likely too injured to walk.

"Aim for that thing on her neck!" shouted Jacob and he saw Kasumi and James nod, now aiming their guns at Falere's neck, unfortunately Falere heard him as well and went running past him not even stopping to fire a single biotic attack against him or Tali. He watched as she rounded the corner, heading towards the kitchen, he took advantage of the minor break as a chance to regroup with the remaining crew members.

"What the hell was that?" asked James as he stood up on shaky legs, he looked down at his arms and saw a few cuts, he could also feel blood running down his forehead.

"Falere's under the control of Leviathan," said Jacob as he helped Kasumi to her feet.

"At least she's not a Banshee," said Tali, her voice shaky but calm.

"Status report," said Jacob, "How badly are we all injured?"

"My arms are pretty scraped up, kind of like yours and I think I busted my head or it's just a cut," said James, looking down again at his arms.

"Yeah, my arms and I think my back are cut up too," said Jacob, feeling a few sharp pains in his shoulder blades, "Tali?"

"A few tears in my suit but nothing too pressing," said Tali, then she sighed, "and the glass in my helmet's cracked, wonderful."

"Kasumi?" asked Jacob.

"Bump on the head and I think a few cuts as well, I'll live," reported Kasumi, pulling her hood back over her head, "How's Hannah?"

"Don't know," sighed Jacob, "she seemed well enough to stand but she still needed help from Chakwas, I hope she's alright."

"She will be," said Tali firmly, "Now, we need to come up with a plan on how to stop Falere from destroying the crew and the Normandy, any ideas?"

"We haven't proven that 'shoot the neck thing' idea wrong yet," said James a smug grin on his face as he picked up his gun.

"That's true," sighed Jacob, "Okay, so what's plan B incase plan A backfires?"

"Shoot her out of the airlock?" suggested Kasumi.

"That would have worked if the airlock wasn't on the floor above us," said Jacob, "I don't know about you but I really don't want to be in an enclosed space with that thing."

"Agreed," said Tali, "What if we pushed her towards the main battery? Then we could manually open the hatch underneath the cannon and she's forced out that way."

"I guess that could work," said Jacob warily, "The only problem is we don't have our helmets and if we aren't pulled in with Falere, we'd be killed anyway from the lack of oxygen."

"Damn," said Tali bitterly, "Wait! What if Kasumi goes to the crew quarters and gets some spare helmets?"

"I guess it could work," said James thoughtfully, "If Kasumi's sure she can do it."

"Child's play," said Kasumi smugly and she activated her cloaking device, "I'll be back in a few, just keep Falere occupied while I'm gone."

"Can do," said Jacob, chuckling as they heard her walk away.

"Alright, I guess we have an Ardat-Yakshi to distract," said Jacob, pulling his gun up off the floor.

"Wait, where's EDI?" asked Tali, they all looked around and saw a devastating scene, EDI's body was mangled. The blast had ripped open her chest and exposed the wires and circuits on the inside, her head was barely hanging on to her neck, her legs were both at odd angles and her arms were wrapped up in wires that had fallen from the ceiling as a result of the blast.

"EDI!" exclaimed Tali, rushing over to the AI's side, "Are you alright? Speak to me."

"Admiral Zorah, you are aware that I am still here," said EDI, her orb self popping up at its usual station in the medbay, "It is just my mobile form that has been destroyed."

"Oh, right," said Tali bashfully, "I forgot that you're actually the ship, guess I've gotten used to seeing you walk around like the rest of the crew."

"I am pleased to know that my mobile platform will be missed," said EDI almost cheerfully, "Lieutenant Taylor, I have located Falere's position, she is currently standing in the center of the mess hall with chairs and tables floating around her in a type of gravitational pull."

"So now she has projectiles," sighed James, "Great, how do you stop something like this?"

"I guess now we have to make sure she doesn't fire those projectiles at us while we fire at her" said Tali, checking her thermal clip, "I don't have enough ammo for a long fight."

James checked his own clip, "Neither do I, what about you, Jacob?"

Jacob sighed, "Not even close to enough."

"Too far away from the armory to get anymore, so I guess we make our stand here," said James, clicking his thermal clip back into place, "Is Kasumi back yet?"

"Speak of the Devil and he shall appear," said Kasumi, four masks in her hands, she passed them out, "I wasn't sure if your helmet would hold, so I brought you a mask as well, Tali."

"Thank you, Kasumi," said Tali, looking at the mask that would only cover her nose and mouth, "I'll put it on before we head to the battery."

"Whatever floats your boat, Sparky," teased James as he put his mask on over his mouth, "Should we get this started?"

"Yeah," said Jacob, putting his mask on, "I hope Shepard's having better luck than we are right now."


"Do you think we're close to finding Remaldia?" asked Miranda as they walked into a very warm, very bright room. Elissa closed her eyes, the change from a room that was pitch black to a room that had a fair amount of light was extremely painful for her eyes to adjust to immediately.

"Well, well, well," said a voice, the voice echoed throughout the large room.

"Yeah, I think we're close, Miranda," said Elissa cooly, she was grateful when her eyes stopped hurting and she was able to open them again, when she did she could see that they were surrounded save for the small space around the door they had just entered from. There were young Asari all around them, the only separation they had between them was a few large metal crates that were stacked together in a barrier type of structure. Her eyes scanned the rest of the scene, there were rafters and beams above, the walls after a few feet were made of earth, beneath their feet was a small stretch of floor that connected the walls of the room and lava filled in the rest.

"Remaldia," said Samara, her tone calm yet still full of malice, "Why have you done this? You know this goes against everything we stand for."

Elissa looked up to a platform across the room, she could see a tall and willowy Asari woman pacing across the metal platform, her heels making small clicking noises as she walked.

Remaldia laughed sending an eerie chill down Elissa's spine, "These are desperate times, Justicar, we can not pick and choose our allies as you are already aware. Working with a Spectre? Least of all, a human Spectre. My, my, we have gotten desperate haven't we?"

"Shepard as an ally is far more impressive than an army of Ardat-Yakshi," said Samara boldly and Elissa wished she had not said that, she felt the mood in the room change instantly, now all eyes that were on them held disdain.

"How are you able to command them?" asked Elissa, finding her voice at last, "From what I've seen, Ardat-Yakshi are not the most cooperative people."

"You speak of their instability," said Remaldia, her voice eerily familiar to Elissa, "and you are right to a point, they were unstable, but I have found a way to remedy this."

"Impossible," said Samara quickly, "Ardat-Yakshi are unable to control the power that grows within them, especially after sexual intercourse, and I have already determined that you have allowed them to experience this."

"Still too smart for your own good, I see," said Remaldia, her tone softening slightly as she stared down at them, her focus mainly on Samara.

Elissa glanced at Samara, trying to silently ask her a question about her relationship with Remaldia, though by the stony face Samara was exhibiting it was difficult to say whether or not she understood what she was trying to convey.

"Why, Remaldia? Why have you broken the Code and gathered these women?" asked Samara her tone suggesting hints of melancholy.

"I have only one reason: revenge," said Remaldia, her hands clutching the railing, "Revenge against those who took my daughters away from me."

"Revenge against who exactly?" asked Elissa, her eyes darting between Remaldia and the Ardat-Yakshi that were staring them down, "The Asari race as a whole? The people at the monastery? Against the Justicars?"

"Their turn will come," said Remaldia as she resumed her pacing, "until that time comes, I want revenge against the women who killed my eldest, you Commander Shepard and the Justicar Samara."

Elissa's blood went cold, she knew now this situation was much worse and much more personal than what Samara had made it out to be, "Wait, who was your daughter?"

"You should know her name, Shepard," said Remaldia, "You assisted the Justicar in ensuring her death, you acted as bait for her lulling her into a false sense of security, her name she should be engraved in your memory like it is in mine. My daughter's name was Morinth."

"Oh shit," said Garrus quietly, he had been one of the few that had been told of Samara's plan and knew how it had ended.

Elissa realized now why Remaldia's voice sounded so familiar, it was Morinth's, she turned to Samara completely astounded at this news, "This is your bond mate? Your bond mate is the one we've been after this entire time?! Why didn't you tell me?"

"Remaldia was my bond mate, but we ceased to be so when I accepted the Code," said Samara, her face now a mask.

"How quickly you dismiss the centuries we spent together," said Remaldia bitterly, "The moment you saw what our daughters were, you threw us aside, not wanting to associate yourself with a family that would bring you shame."

"That still doesn't explain the army, Remaldia," said Elissa calmly, she could see out the corner of her eye Garrus and Miranda getting themselves into a prime position.

"When my daughters were found to be Ardat-Yakshi, Samara went to her friend Councilor Tevos and asked what should be done," said Remaldia, a small grin on her face, Elissa could tell she enjoyed regaling this story, "We were given a choice, either they go and live in the monastery on Lessus or they will be executed on the spot, Falere and Rila chose to go to the monastery as you well know Commander. Morinth ran away and Samara followed her, claiming she needed to be stopped because of her abilities and the Asari people agreed but I saw what others failed to see in my daughters and in other Ardat-Yakshi, that they have gifts which should be embraced instead of hidden away. I realized their full potential after watching Morinth over the years, and seeing what she had done with her abilities. I became a Justicar so I could track her down without restrictions and ask her to come home and join me in uniting the other Ardat-Yakshi. Before I could, however, Samara found her first and you assisted in killing her. Now, I have completed my goal of uniting the Ardat-Yakshi in even bigger ways than I could have ever imagined possible."

"What do you mean?" asked Elissa, her heart racing.

"I found a way to control the Ardat-Yakshi through a mutual friend of ours, Commander," said Remaldia a sly grin stretching across her face.

"What mutual friend?" asked Elissa, her brow furrowing.

"Leviathan," said Remaldia, a satisfied air about her now, "They might have agreed to assist you in the war but they had long ago agreed to assist me in my ambitions."

"Why would Leviathan agree to help you?" asked Garrus harshly.

"It recognized the potential, as I have," said Remaldia, smiling down at the Ardat-Yakshi below her, "It has given me the ability to control the Ardat-Yakshi with unyielding obedience."

"How?" asked Samara, "Ardat-Yakshi have never been known to bend to the will of another except through . . . indoctrination."

Remaldia's smile became even larger, "Excellently deduced, Justicar, yes it is through indoctrination that I am able to command some of the more strong willed Ardat-Yakshi, the others obey me as I have told them of their gifts and how to use them effectively. They enjoy the power and freedom I have given them, so they obey me to maintain this."

"Why did you take the dead bodies of the Ardat-Yakshi that resisted?" asked Elissa though in her mind she had a feeling she already knew the answer.

"Amazingly enough, the Leviathan's gift allows even the dead to obey me," said Remaldia pointing to a small group at the rear, "These girls were the ones who resisted my offer, though as you can see, it did not do them much good."

"What about Falere?" asked Elissa, sensing that an attack was about to happen soon and wanting to know all of the answers to her questions.

"I left her body behind as a gift to Samara and to your crew, Commander," said Remaldia.

Elissa felt her blood boil, "She's indoctrinated isn't she?"

"As a matter of fact, she is," said Remaldia, "And she should be awake right about now."

"What did you tell her to do?" asked Elissa darkly, cocking her gun audibly.

"Kill anyone who resists," said Remaldia in a low voice and the Ardat-Yakshi began firing at them, Elissa and Garrus dove for the closest barrier, Miranda and Samara across from the behind the second barrier. Samara and Miranda immediately brought up a large force shield around their section of the room, blocking all incoming biotic shots but allowing for gun shots to be fired to the outside area.

"Do you think they're alright on the Normandy?" asked Elissa as she began firing at the nearest Ardat-Yakshi.

"It's our crew, Shepard, have a little faith," said Garrus over the commotion, "I'm sure they're fine, we just need to get the hell off of this rock first."


"Shit, she's tougher than she looks!" called James as he dove behind a knocked over table, firing a few well placed shots at Falere's outstretched hands, blowing off a couple of her fingers.

"James!" shouted Kasumi, appalled that James had shot off some of Falere's fingers, "We're trying to save her not maim her!"

"Can't be helped, Shadow!" called James as another chair came flying at him.

"Shadow?" asked Jacob as he fired at Falere, missing his initial target but hitting her shoulder instead.

"Just thought of it," said James as he was joined by Tali, "Okay, I really think we need to start aiming for her head!"

"Affirmative!" shouted Jacob and Kasumi appeared next to him.

"Maybe I could try to get that thing on her neck," said Kasumi, activating her cloaking device, "If we can get that, maybe we can still save her life."

"It's better than our plan B at this point," said James as he reloaded his gun with what remaining ammunition he had left, "We really need to think of something, we're running out of bullets."

"Keep her busy," said Kasumi, though her voice was now coming from behind Tali, "I need her completely distracted while I do this, if she suspects for a second that I'm close, she'll more than likely kill me."

James gulped as he fired another shot at Falere's leg, "Please, Shadow, don't say shit like that."

"Don't worry, big guy, I have no intention of dying today," said Kasumi and her tone suggested that she was smiling.

"What if this kills Falere?" asked Tali, as she loaded her pistol, "I mean, it is her neck after all."

"It probably will," said Jacob grimly, "but it's better than the alternative, and if it brings her peace, then so be it."

"I can't agree with you more," said Kasumi, "I'm ready to go when you all are."

"How many bullets do you have in your gun?" asked James, pulling five more out from his pocket he was not aware he had until that moment.

"Three, more than enough if this works," said Kasumi confidently, "Alright, keep her distracted, and I'll see you on the other side."

Everyone nodded as they resumed heavy fire on Falere, she started firing more biotic shots their way, each one getting more and more powerful Jacob knew it was only a matter of time before her powers became enough to do some serious damage to the hull of the ship.

"Come on, Kasumi," said Jacob quietly as he put the last of his ammunition into his rifle, "Don't let us down now, girl."

"Jacob, I'm down to my last bullet," called James as a metal table came flying at his head, barely missing his forehead by inches.

"God dammit," muttered Jacob, tossing his remaining bullets across the gap to James, "make them count, Vega."

"You know I will," said James smiling as he loaded his gun once again.

"Kasumi just fired her first shot," reported Tali, she had been watching for the tell tale shimmer of Kasumi's cloaking device and then saw the bullet speeding away from her gun.

"Guess it didn't work," said James dejectedly, "Keep firing!"

They continued to fire, Tali managing a few torso shots while James shot out her right hand, although it was gory there was a benefit.

"One less biotic weapon to worry about," observed Jacob as Falere screamed out in agony.

"Kasumi better fire that damn shot and fast," said Tali as she put her last clip in her pistol.

"Look!" called Jacob and they saw Kasumi emerge from under her cloak, walking up behind Falere and putting the gun directly on the control device and fired her second bullet. From where they were sitting Jacob, Tali, and James could hear the shattering of the device and watched in horror as the power that kept Falere alive drained away, leaving nothing but a hollow corpse behind.

"Holy shit," whistled James as he carefully stood up from behind the table, "I thought . . . oh my God, Shadow . . . good job."

"I don't think I've ever seen you speechless before, James," said Kasumi as she wiped Falere's blood from her face.

"Damn, Kasumi," said Jacob, just as surprised as James, "I guess plan 'shoot the neck thing' actually worked thanks to you."

"Keelah, I'm glad we didn't have to space her," said Tali, shuddering as she too emerged from behind the barrier.

"No one, no matter what they've turned into, deserves that death," said Kasumi grimly as she looked down at Falere's body, it was riddled with numerous bullet wounds yet she had still been able to stand and fight, "Why do you think that worked? I mean, look at some of the shots we got in, she should've been dead ten different times."

"Remember that rapid healing process Chakwas mentioned?" said Tali, also looking at Falere's body, "I think that's what kept her alive so long, Leviathan must've been keeping her physical form alive and when Kasumi shattered the thing on her neck, it broke the connection and allowed her to die."

"Either way, it stopped her," said James, wiping blood away from his eyes, "What should we do with her body?"

"That's for Samara and Shepard to decide," said Jacob, "Until they return, we should probably take the shards of that mind control device and put them in the lab and wrap Falere's body in a blanket and put it in the life support room. If she's not really dead, I want to minimize the access she has to the rest of the ship."

"Tali and I can gather the pieces if James will wrap up her body," suggested Kasumi, already picking up the tiny pieces.

"Here, put them in this," said Tali, producing a leather pouch from one of her many pockets.

"Much appreciated," said Kasumi as she placed the shards in the pouch.

"Tell Joker we're secure down here," said James as he searched around for a blanket, determining that he would have to go to the crew's quarters and find one there.

"Hey Joker," said Jacob through his ear piece, "Falere's been taken down, we need a clean up crew down here asap. How's everything going on your end?"

"Traynor, EDI, and I are still trying to get through all of the static but we do have a fuzzy picture right now," said Joker, his voice tight as he spoke, "I'll send the clean up crew, just give me a few to take down the kinetic barriers."

"Roger that, Joker," said Jacob, "Over and out." He stood there in the mess, the kitchen was the only thing left standing, everything else was destroyed, there were even chunks missing from the walls from where the tables and chairs hit before landing. 'Shepard, I hope you're doing as well as we have,' thought Jacob as he started picking up the knocked over furniture.


Elissa fired a perfect head shot at the nearest Ardat-Yakshi, and she went down quickly but when she tried it on the next one, she remained standing as if nothing had hit her at all.

"What the hell?" muttered Elissa as she reloaded her assault rifle, "Why didn't she fall?"

"I don't know, Shepard," said Garrus as he sniped an Ardat-Yakshi who was standing in the rear of the group, "but I have a feeling this isn't going to be easy."

Elissa instinctively flinched as a large ball of biotic energy came straight for her, luckily the barrier Miranda and Samara had created was still standing, protecting them not only from the Ardat-Yakshi attacks but also from the falling debris.

"Shepard," called Miranda, from what Elissa could see she looked exhausted and about to pass out, it must have been pure determination and stubbornness that was keeping her from falling over, "I've been watching where some of the shots from the Ardat-Yakshi have been rebounding, the structure of this building isn't indefinite, a few more powerful shots and—"

She was cut off when a rumbling was felt underneath their feet, the entire room seemed to be shaking as rafters fell from the ceiling, taking down a few Ardat-Yakshi in the process.

"Please tell me that's not what I think it is," said Elissa worriedly.

"Volcanic eruption!" shouted Miranda, "We need to get out of here!"

"What about them?" asked Elissa, pointing to the Ardat-Yakshi and Remaldia who was now running around her platform in a panic, she stood up from behind the metal crate barrier ready to charge in and save a few of the girls from the horrible fate she knew would befall them.

"It's too late, Shepard," said Garrus calmly, putting his arm on her shoulder to keep her from bolting, "We have to get out of here, it's either us or no one."

Elissa looked at the faces of the indoctrinated Ardat-Yakshi, as much as she wanted to save them, she knew it would be a suicide run, closing her eyes and steeling her heart she looked to Samara and Miranda, "Keep the barrier up until we get through the door, we'll all walk together and get out but we need that shield!"

"Roger that, Commander," said Miranda, she seemed renewed in her efforts to maintain the force shield and started walking backwards with Samara falling into step beside her. Garrus and Shepard started walking as well, firing at as many Ardat-Yakshi as they could, Elissa was determined to at least save as many girls from the fiery death that awaited them. Elissa felt the cold metal of the door against her head and she reached for the handle, fumbling with it until she heard the satisfying click of door as it opened, Garrus slipped through the door as she continued to fire at the encroaching Asari.

"Go, Miranda!" commanded Elissa and she motioned with her rifle for Miranda to go through the door. Miranda nodded and walked through, leaving Samara and Elissa in the room with the army surrounding them.

"On three, Samara," said Elissa as she felled another Ardat-Yakshi, "One . . . two . . . three!" On three Samara brought the force shield down and almost at the same time dove through the door with Elissa, both women landing on the metal floor, and before Elissa could blink she heard the large metal door shut behind them.

Garrus bolted the door shut and ran over to Elissa, helping her to her feet and handing her rifle back to her, "Can you walk?"

Elissa nodded and looked at Miranda, she was practically dead on her feet, "Get Miranda, I don't think she'll last much longer."

Garrus sprinted over and put her arm around his neck and wrapped his other arm around her waist, supporting her as best he could, "Lets go!"

Samara and Elissa sprinted ahead, which proved difficult as the entire facility was now shaking violently as the impending eruption made its presence known, they managed to get to the exit just as they heard a large crack.

"Go! Go!" shouted Elissa as she put on her helmet and opened the door, Samara running out after she quickly put her helmet back on. Elissa closed the door until Garrus got closer to the exit, he was maneuvering the best he could with Miranda clinging to him, she handed them their helmets and they put them on, Garrus nodding when they were ready and she opened the door, all three of them rushing out. Elissa barely had the door closed when the earth beneath their feet began to shake and she fell backwards but managed to land on her side, she scrambled to her feet and followed the others across the narrow strip of land, she was just about to try and radio Steve when she saw the shuttle sitting there already.

Elissa smiled as they continued running towards the shuttle, as they neared the door it opened and she watched as Samara leapt in and helped Garrus get Miranda into the shuttle, Elissa jumping in just as they heard the facility behind them explode.

"Get us fucking airborne!" shouted Elissa as soon as Steve closed the door and Steve did not need to be told twice, he quickly punched in the take off sequence and they were off the ground before the lava made it to the landing area.

"Do we have contact with the Normandy?" asked Garrus as he stood behind Elissa and Steve.

"Nothing yet," said Steve, as he maneuvered them around a blast of lava, "I've been trying like crazy, but nothing so far."

"Shit," muttered Garrus as he sat down.

"Lisa," groaned Miranda, propping herself up on her elbow, "We need to get off of this planet, some volcanic explosions can set off chains, and if what EDI said was true we could be looking at blasts that could even hit us from up here."

Elissa silently cursed in her head, the stream of profanity too long and great to be spoken aloud, "Can't something just go according to plan, just once? Is that too much to ask for?"

"When you're concerned, yes it is," said Garrus, throwing her a smirk.

"Brace yourselves!" shouted Steve as he made a sharp right turn in order to avoid a column of lava. Garrus and Elissa were thrown against the wall and they scrambled to get into a seat, Samara helping Miranda into one before harnessing herself. Elissa watched helplessly. through the windshield as another column of lava shot up in front of them.


Joker started another sequence to try and regain communications with the ground party, he had tried nearly every one he knew, his desperation growing as he watched the static images on the monitors overhead. He was glad when he saw Elissa get out of the room full of Ardat-Yakshi but her pace was what worried him, she was moving too fast for a simple retreat, something more was happening. Joker watched as the entrance to the facility came into view, he knew that much by how much slower Elissa was moving, a wave of relief watching over him as they left and he could tell even at this distance that the shuttle was there even if it was just a fuzzy blur. He held his breath when the screens went black for a few seconds for a unknown reasons, he wanted to scream and cry out but he knew it would be for nothing if what he thought had happened actually had.

"Joker!" said Samantha triumphantly, "I've regained communications!"

Joker nearly jumped out of his seat and he pressed the button quickly, not even caring if he fractured his finger in the process.

"Steve! Do you copy?!" said Joker in a slightly manic voice, "Come in Normandy shuttle! Do you copy?! Come in anyone!"

"Joker!" said Steve his voice ringing loud and clear in the cockpit, "We need an emergency evac now!"

"Roger that, Steve." said Joker, "Is Shepard and the ground team with you?"

"Yes," said Elissa, her voice coming in through his private channel, "Yes, Jeff, I'm here."

"Elissa?!" exclaimed Joker, almost crying out of relief, "Oh thank God. I'll be right there, just keep an eye out for a sleek and magnificent ship with a sexy pilot to match headed towards you."

Elissa laughed and he felt his face crack into a huge grin, "Will do, Jeff, see you soon."

'She's alive, she's alive,' thought Joker as he started the sequence for the emergency evacuation, he played this mantra in his head as he flew at top speed to the planet, glad to see the shuttle was about to exit the atmosphere. He slowed down as they neared each other, the hatch door opening and he watched as the shuttle glided right into the shuttle bay and he closed the hatch. Before heading down there himself, he activated the Normandy's FTL drive, his hands shaking with so much excitement he almost could not hit the right buttons.

"EDI, take over," said Joker, jumping from his seat, "I'll be back later, right now, I need to see Shepard with my own eyes."

"Of course, Jeff," said EDI the orb.

Joker looked at the orb and smiled, as grateful and curious as he was about EDI's attitude, his desire to hold Elissa in his arms again was more and he ran as fast as his legs would carry him down the CIC and into the elevator. With still trembling hands, he pushed the button for the shuttle bay, eager and relieved that he would be able to greet the woman he loved yet again.