Feron landed the Vanguard in the hangar bay of the Digeris IV. Liara quickly disembarked, and marveled at her surroundings.

The hangar bay was massive. Liara recalled briefly that the Normandy had been a Turian design, and she saw much of the same in this hangar. Nothing was wasted. There were neat spaces for every kind of tool or device in the shuttle bay. White or yellow lines painted on the steel dictated where everything was or should be. Aside from that, the hangar was devoid of color. The walls were simple steel sheets, braced by steel bars. She watched in wonder as mechanics rolled several carts up to the Vanguard, and began working on the vessel without so much as a word to its passengers. Several stalls down, where Miranda landed the Light Echo, the same was happening.

A door on the far end of the hangar opened, and Garrus walked quickly toward her.

"Thank the Goddess you came," she said, smiling warmly.

Garrus nodded. "I grabbed as many ships as I could on short notice. Peeled these off of the 79th Flotilla."

Miranda crossed the hangar, joining them. "Did I see two more cruisers and a carrier out there?"

Garrus nodded. "The Undaunted, made famous by Coronati's 'Fifteen-Minute Plan' during the Reaper War. That carrier sat at the mass relay and unleashed everything she had at the first wave of Reapers. Damn fine ship. I brought eight frigates as well."

Tears welled up in Liara's eyes, and she pulled Garrus into a fierce hug. "Thank you," she whispered against his chest.

Garrus let out an embarrassed laugh. "Well, it's the least I could do. The commanding officer of the Digeris IV was nice enough to let me transfer my flag from my dreadnought, so-"

"You have your own dreadnought?" Feron asked in shock.

Garrus nodded. "Yeah, but… getting a crew of more than 10,000 turians to mobilize takes time, and it felt like we didn't have a lot of that, so I grabbed what I could and ran." He turned back to Liara. "Now, why don't you tell me what's going on?"

Liara nodded quickly. "Titan Station is a Cerberus base for Project Nova Hammer, a black outfit the Illusive Man was running. They parted ways, but the program kept running on its own." Liara swallowed hard and took a deep, cleansing breath. "A few days ago, Feron got word from a source on Omega that Shepard had been seen- alive."

"That's why you left," Garrus ventured.

Liara nodded again. "Yes, I had to go see for myself. It was him, but he's lost his memory. He doesn't know who he is, what he's done. I found some of his blood to test, and went to get Miranda's help finding Cerberus records, since the Alliance was looking for me."

Garrus scoffed. "'Looking' isn't the word I'd use. Admiral Hackett contacted me, and all but asked me to take Joker into custody. Once I told him you were off-world, he cooled considerably, but he wasn't pleased."

Liara sighed. "I had no choice. It's Shepard, Garrus. Miranda and I broke into Titan Station and stole the old Lazarus files. We confirmed it."

Garrus shook his head. "Unbelievable. How did he survive?"

"I don't know," Liara said, wiping away a tear. "It's not going to matter if we can't get him back. Deacon Blaque, the leader of Project Nova Hammer, attacked us. He grabbed Shepard and ran back here. This is why I need your help. The fleet can't let any ships off of that station. Miranda, Feron, and I will breach the station and try to rescue Shepard. After that, tell the fleet to open fire."

Garrus nodded. "And what if you can't get to him? Or what if a ship gets loose?"

Liara placed a hand on his armored bicep. "You know what Shepard would want as well as I do."

Garrus looked into Liara's eyes, as if to check her resolve. She never flinched. Slowly, he nodded. "Alright. If anything other than your ship gets out, I'll send a squadron to take it down."

Feron looked at Liara, then Garrus. "You can't be serious. What if Shepard is on board?"

"If they get free, we'll never find them. Aside from that, we have no idea what twisted plan he has for killing Shepard. Whatever he thinks up, it will be slow and painful." She turned to Feron. "It will make what the Shadow Broker did to you look like a picnic," she half-whispered.

Feron looked as if Liara had slapped him. He took a single step backward before he nodded. "I understand."

Garrus straightened up, his mandibles flickering. "Alright. We're running out of time. We'll have a fighter wing from the Undaunted escort you in. How long, you figure?"

Liara shook her head. "They have to know we're coming this time. I anticipate resistance… I'd put it at four hours, at least."

Garrus nodded. "Alright. I'll give you five; after that, we start shooting."

Liara nodded. "I knew I could count on you, Garrus."

"Just get out of there on time, and bring Shepard back, will you? I think I still owe him a drink or two."

Liara let out a sob, smiling. "I think we all owe him a drink or two. I'll see you after." She turned to Miranda. "Leave the Light Echo here. We'll take the Vanguard."

•._.••´¯``•.¸¸.•` ℓσѕт `•.¸¸.•´´¯`••._.•

Liara watched out the view port as the fighter wing broke off, heading back toward the Undaunted as they came alongside the station. Feron banked the ship, easing the thrusters a little at a time until the docking collar made a connection.

"Soft seal. I hope you know what you're doing."

Liara opened the Vanguard's hatch. Before her was the exterior wall of the station. She knew that the steel was at least double-reinforced to prevent the cold vacuum of space from entering.

Liara nodded once, a cold, calculating hardness forming in her eyes. "I know exactly what I'm doing."

I'm angry.

She reared back and unleashed a biotic flare with a grunt. The wall incinerated away, and the concussive blast shook the vessel.

"Where the hell did she learn that?" Miranda asked. Feron shook his head, following Liara through the breach.

"I've had to stay busy these past eighteen months. I wasn't just helping the Alliance rebuild. I had a lot of time to train with other biotics and pick up a few new techniques."

"Noted," Miranda said.

The makeshift dock had let them into an unremarkable cargo area. The lights were dim, and the walkway was cluttered with various containers. The area was clearly unused.

Liara drew her Shuriken and ran across the room toward an open double-wide doorway that led out of the room. "We have to locate Shepard. Miranda, do you have any idea where they'd be holding a prisoner?"

She shook her head. "Not a clue. We could try to pull up a schematic again, but I'd guess Blaque won't make that mistake again."

Liara slowed to a walk as she sidled up to the corner. She peeked an eye around the edge. One Nova Hammer troop was standing a few feet away. Liara peered past him, eyeing a nearby door with a control panel.

Is he guarding that elevator? One way to find out…

Liara advanced around the corner and unleashed a biotic pull, lifting the trooper from his feet.

"Hey!"

Liara blasted the rifle from his hands before the soldier fell to the floor with a crash. She grabbed the collar of the armor and pressed the tip of her gun to the side of his helmet, her corona blazing around her.

"Where is he?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," The terrified semi-mechanical reply came from the helmet speaker. Liara yanked him closer, screaming into his face.

"Where?!"

"They took a prisoner up to one of the top levels. That's all I know!"

Liara dropped him to the floor, turned, and slapped the call button for the nearby elevator. Miranda and Feron exchanged worried glances before they took up her flanks. Liara turned back as she waited for the elevator, and unleashed a flare at the Nova Hammer soldier. He flew through the air momentarily before hitting the wall with a bone-shattering crunch. He slid to the floor and lie still.

The elevator dinged once, and Liara stepped inside.

"What was that about?" Miranda asked, following her in. Feron pushed the elevator button to the highest level.

Liara shook her head. "I'm not interested in taking prisoners. Anyone standing in our way is a target. Shepard is the mission."

A smile crept onto the corners of Miranda's mouth. "Is this how the Shadow Broker always plays?"

Liara nodded. "For keeps, and nothing less."

Feron opened his mouth to speak, but then thought better of it.

The elevator beeped, and the doors slid open. Liara checked the hallway quickly before stepping out onto the floor. The lights were at full brightness, reflecting off the off-white flooring. She spotted a few metal containers along the wall, but the hallway was devoid of life. "We need to find a terminal that's unlocked, or another soldier to question."

As if on cue, two Nova Hammer soldiers turned the corner. "Intruders! Fire, fire, fire!" They raised their Mattock rifles and began shooting. Miranda slid forward behind a metal container as Liara and Feron dove back into the elevator.

"No cover to move up on, Feron. Give me some fire."

Feron nodded, leaning out of the elevator with an M-76 Revenant assault rifle and unleashing a stream of rounds. Miranda caught on immediately and began firing her pistol around the container. Liara stepped into the hall and hurled a singularity down the stretch. To her surprise, a biotic field appeared before one of the troops, snuffing out her singularity.

"Biotics!"

Liara ducked back into the elevator, panting. "We've got to wear them down, but we need to do it fast, before they call for backup." Liara peeked out, checking on Miranda. She fired her heavy pistol around the metal crate, simply trying to suppress her opponents. Liara turned back to Feron. "Give them another burst. I have an idea."

Feron nodded, and leaned out, opening fire. Liara launched a warp, and waited. She was completely exposed to fire, but ignored the bullets whizzing past her as she counted silently. One of the Nova Hammer soldiers stopped firing and lowered his rifle, putting up the biotic shield again. Liara summoned a massive flare and unleashed her fiery wrath with a grunt. The warp hit the shield, and dissolved. The Nova Hammer soldiers had only a moment to realize what had happened as the flare enveloped them, blasting them into the wall with explosive force.

"Let's go!" Miranda stood from the crates and half-ran down the hall, checking side hallways as she trotted. Liara and Feron ran to catch up. As they reached the end of the corridor, Liara quickly checked on both the Nova Hammer soldiers. One was clearly dead, a steady stream of blood and gray matter draining from the bottom of his helmet. The other was struggling to breathe. Liara grabbed him and sat him up. The soldier groaned.

"Where is the prisoner you took from Aite?"

The soldier took a rattling breath. "go… ugh… go to hell." The soldier slumped over.

"Thanks," Liara said, shoving the body away, "but I've been there already." Miranda took quick steps down the hall, checking each door as she ran. She stopped. "Here, an unlocked room. Let's check for a terminal!"

Liara and Feron entered the office. Data servers lined the walls, and the middle of the room was dwarfed by a desk holding multiple computers. Feron stood watch at the door as Liara and Miranda tried various terminals.

"No luck… damnit!" Liara slammed her hand down on the desk. A sharp gasp was barely audible over the hum of servers from the other side of the desk. In an instant, Liara unleashed a pull, sending the desk into the air. Cables snapped and sparked as the desk floated away. Crouched on the floor trembling was a man in a white lab coat. Liara grabbed him by the collar, slamming him against the data rack. The man let out a shriek.

"Where are they keeping the prisoner?"

"They… they keep important prisoners on the floor below us. Don't kill me please!"

Liara released his collar, and the man collapsed to the floor. "What do you do here? What is your job?" She asked.

"I… I'm an analyst. I look for ways to…to improve our soldiers."

Liara turned to face him. He cowered from the expression she wore, trying to back himself into the data racks. Miranda stepped up beside Liara. Without a word, she raised her pistol and fired twice into his chest.

"No prisoners, right?"

Liara nodded. "Come on, we need to hurry."

The trio ran back to the elevator without incident. Liara punched the number, and prayed for her hands to stop trembling.

Hang on, Shepard. I'm coming.

The door opened to a floor that looked nothing like any of the previous areas in the station. The walls were white and pristine. The floor was clean and dust-free. Along the corridor on each side were large plate glass windows, and solid white doors accompanying each window. Outside of each room were various pieces of equipment covered in plastic. Some were tables and trays, others carts with drawers of varying sizes.

"It's… a lab," Miranda breathed, stepping out onto the floor. "They experiment on their prisoners? Is that what they did with the people they grabbed from Benning during the war?"

Liara stepped out onto the floor with Feron in tow. "That's probably a safe bet… Along with anyone else who was unlucky enough to run into Blaque and his men."

Liara walked down the hall, checking into each window. Most were dark. One room had a massive overhead light on, displaying a steel medical table in the center of the room. Liara nearly gagged at the sight of a drain in the corner of the floor.

Goddess, this is insane… this man will stop at nothing… I have to find Shepard and get him out of here.

Liara continued down the hall until she came to the next lit room. She gasped.

"Shepard."