Chapter One "Questioning"
"Previous life?" I repeated incredulously. "Are you saying that I was once a human?!"
"That is correct," The Rachni's front antennas bobbing up and down, the Rachni equivalent of nodding if my human memories were correct. "You may be in denial, but deep down you down that is it is true."
My rational mind demanded that I deny the Rachni Queen's claim. Yet, my instincts said the opposite. I was still processing how I might even have human memories when there was a chance it was all fake, but my heart told me it was real no matter how illogical that seemed.
"Shepard what are you saying to the Rachni Queen?" asked a concerned Liara.
I smiled to my girlfriend. "Give me a second."
Thanks to my questionable human memories I was able to quickly Project a simple speaker that had been commonly used by humanity to facilitate communication between telepathically limited species with species that used verbal language.
Afterwards, I gave Liara a quick run down on the conversation I had with the Rachni Queen.
"What are the chances that Rachni Queen's claims are true, Shepard?"
"I would need to talk to an expert on the mind and mental magic to see if the memories were forged." I sighed while looking at my lover. "My instincts tell me that I was a human in the past despite how impossible that seems."
"I have no reason to lie," said the Rachni Queen as her telepathic thoughts were received by the telepathic-verbal translator. "What would I gain to benefit from claiming Shepard is a human?"
Liara rubbed her chin and looked suspiciously at the Rachni Queen. "That may be true…" She glanced to me and asked telepathically, "You are the closest thing we have on Rachni expert, Shepard. What is the Rachni Queen trying to do by claiming that you are human?"
I snorted. I wanted to berate my lover and remind her that my specialty was human archeology. Yet, Liara's claim that I was the closest thing to an Rachni expert compared to Liara and her subordinates rung true. My knowledge on Rachni was several times greater compared to what the general public knew as Rachni popped up quite a lot in relationship with human civilization.
"The Rachni Queen must have gained an unknown amount of understanding about you from my mind while I had been unconscious and she used me as a speaker. I bet she knows that I am your girlfriend and made up this ruse that I was once a human as a distraction. The distraction is meant to lower your guard as you are concerned about the possible situation that I was a human in my previous life. Who knows what she is planning?" I replied back.
"Let's go along with the Rachni Queen's charade and get some information out of her. If she is trying to do anything then we must know what she is trying to do."
I resisted the urge to sigh. Common sense at least for normal people, aka civilians, would be get as far away as possible from any dangerous people and have the authorities to deal with the problem. Sadly, Liara was a Spectre, the most well trained and experienced individuals to deal with problems. So moving away from the Rachni and having someone else handle the problem wasn't the option.
The only thing I could do was help Liara, a transition that I was still getting used to.
"Sure why not." I turned to the Rachni Queen. "Aren't those that die reincarnated as the same species as their previous life? So if an asari dies then they reincarnate as an asari?"
The Rachni Queen stared at me in disbelief.
"Is there a problem?" inquired a frowning Liara.
"Your lover, Shepard, should know that reincarnating as the same species as their last life isn't strictly true. Especially when humanity was involved." The Rachni Queen replied as it turned towards Liara.
I blinked in confusion before it quickly came to me what the Rachni Queen was getting at. My cheeks turned red. It was so stupid of me to have forgotten about my area of expertise. Everyone that worked in a field related to humans from archelogy and history to scientists and engineers knew that if humans were involved then the common sense that normally worked for everything else went out the window.
This also included how the normal rule regarding reincarnation: where you reincarnated as the same species as your previous life.
"Assuming that I was a human in my previous life, why would I choose to reincarnate as an asari? Asari were stone-age primitives during the time humans were around." I answered.
"What makes you say humans are no longer around?" The Rachni Queen responded while tilting its head to the side.
"WHAT?!" I and Liara screamed in unison.
"Is there a problem?"
"Shepard, Liara are you okay?"
"What was the scream for?"
I was comforted by the appearance of Liara's concerned subordinate that currently included Garrus, Wrex and Tali.
"Everything is fine," Liara waved to her subordinates. "Please make sure the perimeter is secure. The last thing we need is Rachni to attack us off guard in attempt to retrieve their queen."
Wrex, Garrus and Tali nodded and reassumed their position guarding the perimeter outside the room.
Liara continued, "Can you please clarify what you mean by your previous statement."
"The humans are likely to still be around," replied the calm Rachni Queen. "Do you really think a race that has tens of thousands of planets under their control, and FOUGHT the Reapers better than any other race before them and then WON could go extinct?"
My girlfriend seemed to be awestruck by the Rachni Queen's words. I might have thought the same if I had been the average joe. It was different as an asari specializing in human archeology with several decades in the field.
The chances of humanity going extinct, even if it was against the mythical Reapers that had reaped all intelligent life for an unknown amount of time, couldn't have realistically killed off the entire human race. Humanity at its peak, and according to their own records, and had controlled 42, 871 colonizied planets with population of more than a million human inhabitants.
"The Rachni Queen is right on that field," I spoke to Liara. "Many archaeologists and historians specializing in humans agree that it is very likely that a small pocket of humans still live somewhere out there in places not explored by the Window races."
"It is possible all humans might have died in the Milky Way galaxy, but I doubt those that have emigrated to the Andromeda galaxy have," added the Rachni Queen to Liara's shock.
Liara turned to me in disbelief.
"Humans have also likely had sizable populations in not just the Andromeda Galaxy but also in out galaxies that make up the Local Group."
"Why haven't humans returned our territory then?" asked Liara.
"That is the million dollar question every archaeologists and historians specializing in humans want to know the answer to." I shrugged. "We should put aside the matter that I could have possibly been a human in past life for a later time. All we can do is make speculations and have no definitive proof."
"Your memories are proof," refuted the Rachni Queen.
"Memories that could have been fabricated." I replied bluntly. "The Rachni War is proof that your race are masters of mind, far surpassing even the asari in that field." The Rachni Queen simply remained silent, proof that I was correct. "Don't you have a lot of things to ask, Spectre T'soni."
Liara coughed then quickly reassumed a professional demeanour.
"I have many things to talk about, but I must ask this first." Liara's look turned frosty. "Will you reassume your fight and reignite the Second Rachni War?"
"The Rachni War? Did your race get into a fight with my people?" The Rachni Queen asked incredulously. Liara and I stared in disbelief at the Rachni Queen.
"How cou-"
"She doesn't," I interrupted Liara while recalling some information we had uncovered from the various research documents while exploring Peak 15. "This Rachni Queen was born from the egg of a Rachni Queen dating back to Human-Prothean War."
Liara pinched the bridge of her nose. "This just gets better and better. More paperwork for me…" She complained. "Will you take revenge for all the Rachni that died fighting the Window races in a war that ended 2184 years ago? Billions of Rachni died in that war."
"Nope," the Rachni Queen replied.
"Nope?" Liara stared at the Rachni Queen incredulously.
"The Rachni that your race fought were Indoctrinated by the Reapers."
Before Liara could open her mouth, I pressed my index finger on her lips to silence her. "Indoctrination is a real thing. Multiple surviving records written by the humans report that the Reaper's Indoctrination was not some made up propaganda to make Reaper seem more dangerous and drum up more supporter for the war against the Reapers."
"Great, the day just get worse as the seconds pass by," grumbled Liara. I gave my lover the look and she just sighed. "Well, you just found possible evidence supporting the theory that Saren has been Indoctrinated…"
"What will your people do if we spare you?" I asked.
"Look for Earth." The Rachni Queen replied.
"Earth?" Liara and I repeated.
"Yes, Earth." The Rachni Queen nodded. "Many Rachni Queens dream to visit Earth at least once in their lifetime. Earth is after all the sacred homeworld of the Protectors."
As Liara glanced to me, I explained; "Protector is one of the many titles associated with humans for their tendency to save many intelligent species from extinction, be in natural or man-made. In relation to the Rachni, the Protheans originally used the Rachni as slave soldiers and the Rachni were freed from the various methods that their former captors used to enslave them."
"Shepard is correct." The Rachni Queen nodded. "Our race forever owes the Protectors our freedom. Serving humanity for several years was seen as a rite of passage for Rachni Queens."
Liara's eyes lit up. I rolled my eyes, knowing exactly what she was thinking of doing after learning such information. My guess was spot on when Liara spoke up with a smile.
"Will you pledge service to Shepard?"
I sighed but didn't say anything about my lover's attempt to manipulate the Rachni Queen. She might be the same age of me, little over a century old, but Liara acted more like a matron or even matriarch at times, due to her decades of service as an asari Spectre.
"Would you accept our service?" asked the Rachni Queen, her eyes glowing with hope.
I turned to Liara and I could almost swear that I could see the cogs turning in her head.
- O -
When we arrived at the top of Peak 15, I was not too surprised by the sight of several dropships and soldiers that awaited us.
"Hey, kid I heard you needed help! Where are the Rachni?" called out a familiar voice.
"Dad…" Liara whined in embarrassed tone. "I got the situation under control."
"You had the situation under control? As if I would believe that when the Rachni are involved! You may have trained and experienced all kinds of situations, fighting rachni was not one of them."
Wrex, Garrus and Tali started to laugh at the bashful Liara. Most of the time, Liara seemed like a cold or professional individual. It was rare to see this side of her.
While my friends watched Liara being scolded by her father, I glanced around to check the soldiers, their equipment and the vehicles they used. If I had been the same asari archaeologist from ten years ago before I had met Liara then I would have been clueless about military-related matters. Now under the influence of Liara, I wasn't too far from being an expert on the subject given how the military was important part of Liara's job as a Spectre.
The soldiers were not solely limited to asari as most asari would prefer their species for security or mercenary work. They included all species that inhabited Window Space from militaristic renewed Turians and Krogans to the more technologically capable race like the Quarians. Each and every one of them were clearly ex-Special Forces from their professionalism.
The equipment was nothing to scoff at either. Just like their users, the equipment was top of the line. The kind that various Window races' Special Forces would use. Equipment that you couldn't just buy with money. You needed some very powerful connections to the military or military industrial complex to get them.
The soldier and their equipment together formed the famous T'Soni Security Services, one of the best mercenary groups up there with big leagues such as the Blue Suns, Eclipse and Blood Pack.
After finishing my scrutinzy of the present T'Soni Security Services soldiers, a thought entered my mind.
A part of my mind whispered that I should have stopped Liara from proceeding with the mission when we had encountered our first rachni. Liara might be one of the dangerous individuals thanks to her training and experience as a Spectre, but it was nowhere near to handle the dreaded Rachni that had killed billions in the Rachni War.
T'Soni Security Services was prepared to handle Rachni. There were ancient Krogan and Asari that had even fought in Rachni Wars that were alive and served as the elite troops or instructors. Thanks to these ancient and still living Rachni War veteran, the other T'soni Security Service members had the knowledge to handle Rachni.
"Hey, Shepard!" called out Liara's Dad, snapping me out of my musing.
"Yes, Matriarch Aethyta?" I replied politely as I walked over to Liara and her father.
"There is no need for formality," Aethyta waved her hand. "Call me, dad."
"Dad!" shrieked Liara in embarrassment as she elbowed her father.
Aethyta grunted in pain being elbowed in the ribs. "You're basically stick to the hip with Shepard."
"Dad!"
"Fine, fine you can stop hitting me, Little Wing!"
I giggled at the daughter and father attics. It was cute and funny to watch.
"Enough, Liara!" shouted Aethyta, interrupting Liara from her playfully pummeling her father into the ground. Aethyta forced Liara off her with a gentle push and got up. "Mind explaining what happened inside Peak 15?" Liara glanced around at the T'Soni Security Services operatives. "You can trust them. They are sworn to your mother's and my service. Everything they hear they will take to their graves."
"I am not doubting your operative's loyalty, but electronics aren't people. Electronics can be hacked. They don't have loyalties to anyone." replied Liara.
"Code Zero," announced Aethyta and the T'soni Security started to touch their equipment, presumably to shut down any recording devices. "You can talk now, kid."
Liara in no time started to explain Aethyta what had happened in Peak 15.
"I am not sure you're doing the right thing, Kid…" sighed Aethyta as she nursed her temple. "Sure, the Rachni don't deserve to be extinct. No races does, but the Rachni are a very sensitive topic. Many living Krogans and Asari from the Rachni War still remember family and friends being killed. And many of these survivors sit in high places or know someone who does. They would want nothing more than the Rachni gone for good."
"The Rachni deserve to live, otherwise humanity wouldn't have let them live after the Protheans used the Rachni against humanity." I spoke up in defense of my lover.
"If the Reapers are still lurking around after licking their wounds from fighting humanity, we will definitely need the Rachni's assistance. So that alone is enough for me to advice the Window Council of keeping them around." Liara added professionally. "Besides, I think the Rachni would act as good bait to draw Cerberus out into the open."
Codex Entries
Window Council
The Window Council was formed when the founding members, the Asari and Salarian, first encountered each other on Window Station, the most well-preserved and functional human space station ever encountered. Later races would be admitted members as they joined the galactic community. Like many human things that the Window Races had inherited, the Window Council is based upon the ancient United Nations Security Council that once governed the human homeworld, Earth.
Cerberus
Cerberus is a mythical organization that many consider as urban legends or conspiracy theories. There was no doubt that Cerberus had once existed as a secret organization during founding of the interspecies Cult of Humanity had the first three centuries of the Cult of Humanity's existence. When it had been "officially around" Cerberus was an extremist and radical group known for it ruthless and bloody acts to protecting human artefacts and sites, or carrying out what they perceived as "humanity's teachings."
What do you guys think about what you read? Is it good, bad or meh? Any recommendations to improve? Please let me know.
Thank you for reading!