Liara T'Soni had the most awful itch on her side. It had been bothering her for the last fifteen minutes, but, no matter what she tried, she couldn't scratch it. Not for the first time did she think turning on the Prothean security field was a bad decision.
She really should have thought that move through more. Liara never jumped first; she always analyzed, deduced, and problem solved her way through a situation before diving on in. But she hadn't had time to think when the geth appeared. So she activated the security field without thinking of the possibility that she might get caught inside.
And now she was stuck. She'd been stuck for hours.
She hoped fervently that someone, anyone, would come to save her, but no one even knew where she was. For all she knew, she was probably going to die in this security field.
What a depressing thought.
Distant sounds of gunfire made Liara look up. She couldn't see anything too far away from her Prothean prison. Liara's hopes shot up. Maybe someone was coming to rescue her!
The reasonable part of her mind took over. No, it was more likely that the geth were just testing guns or doing something . . . geth-y.
And what were the geth doing on Therum, anyway? Liara had been pondering the answer to that question for well over two hours now. The geth hadn't left the Veil in hundreds of years and now they showed up on a distant planet like Therum? It didn't make sense. The only things on Therum were Prothean ruins, a few Alliance mining outposts, and Liara. What would the geth want with any of those?
The elevator near Liara suddenly started to move. It creaked and groaned as it slowly made it was down the shaft. Liara prepared herself for more geth. At least they wouldn't be able to get through the security field.
A shower of sparks accompanied a loud screeching noise as the elevator broke down. It stopped right above the place where some of the walkways had collapsed. Liara could see through some of the holes in the walkways and what she saw made her gasp in surprise. That wasn't geth on the elevator! It looked like humans!
"Uh . . . hello?" she called tentatively. "Could somebody help me? Please?"
Three humans slowly approached Liara. They looked at the security field and at Liara curiously.
"Can you hear me out there? I need help, I'm trapped!" Liara shouted to them.
"Are you okay? What happened to you?" one of the males asked.
"My name is Dr. Liara T'Soni. I'm an archaeologist. This thing is a Prothean security device," Liara quickly explained. "I cannot move so I need you to get me out."
"We need to figure some way past this energy field," the female said, inspecting the field carefully with the second male.
"It's a Prothean barrier," Liara said. "It was keeping me safe from the geth. When I turned it on I must have hit something I wasn't supposed to. I was trapped in here. Please, you have to get me out!"
"We'll find some way to help you," the first male promised.
"There is a control in here that should deactivate the device. You'll have to find some way past the barrier though. And that will not be easy. The defenses cannot be shut off from the outside. I don't know how you will get in here." Liara looked the three of them over. "Be careful," she warned. "There is a krogan with the geth. They've been trying to find a way past the barrier. I don't know what they want with me."
"Your mother is working with Saren," the female replied, as though that explained everything.
"What? Who is Saren?"
"A rogue turian Spectre hell bent on trying to destroy the galaxy," she explained. "Whose side are you on, T'Soni?"
"I am not on anybody's side!" Liara exclaimed indignantly. "I may be Benezia's daughter but I am not anything like her! I have not even spoken to her in years!"
"I don't know if we should trust her," the female muttered to the others.
"We still need to get her out," the first male decided.
The three humans disappeared from Liara's view. A minute later there was the sound of more gunfire, then silence. Then, quite unexpectedly, a huge boom that shook the cavern. Liara looked around her in fright. Had the humans gotten themselves blown up?
Suddenly, the huge elevator behind Liara began moving. They had found a way through! Liara breathed a sigh of relief as she realized she would soon be getting out of this awful predicament.
"How did you get in here?" Liara asked as the humans approached her once more. "I didn't think there was any way past the barrier!"
"We blasted through with the mining laser," the female grinned.
"Of course! That makes sense," Liara replied. "Please, get me out of here before more geth arrive. That button over there should shut down this containment field."
The second male, who had yet to say a word, walked over to the controls and hit the button Liara indicated.
Liara suddenly dropped the few feet down to the ground, landing with a loud, "Oof!" The first thing she did was scratch that annoying itch on her side, then she stood up and had a nice stretch. "Thank you," Liara said thankfully. "I . . . I don't know your names."
"I'm Commander Cade Shepard," the first male introduced. "This is Commander Allegra Shepard, and Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko."
"Any idea how we get out of this place?" Allegra asked.
"The elevator you rode up here on. It should be able to take us out," Liara suggested.
Cade led them over to the elevator. As Kaidan looked over the controls, Liara murmured, "I still can't believe all this. Why would the geth come after me? Do you think Benezia's involved?"
"Saren's looking for the conduit," Cade said.
"The Conduit?" Liara said in surprise. "But I don't know-" She cut herself off as the whole cavern shook ominously.
"What the hell was that?" Allegra cried.
"These ruins are not stable," Liara realized. "The mining laser must have triggered a seismic event. We have to hurry before the whole place caves in."
Cade radioed in to Joker as Kaidan hit the controls to move the elevator. The elevator began its journey upwards as the cavern rumbled around them. Liara looked around nervously. She didn't have a weapon, and if they ran into the krogan she'd have to rely on her biotics. But after spending all those hours trapped in that security device, Liara didn't feel all that strong.
The elevator made it to the top floor, and Liara looked up to see her worst fears had come true. The krogan and his geth were there waiting for them. Would the humans protect her? Liara didn't think they really believed she wasn't working with Benezia. But maybe they thought she might know something about the Conduit, so perhaps they would protect her.
"Surrender," the krogan ordered. "Or don't. That would be more fun."
"We don't have time to deal with this idiot!" Allegra yelled.
"Agreed!" Cade shouted.
The humans opened fire on the krogan and geth. Liara yelped and made a beeline for the side of the elevator where there was some protection. She threw up a biotic barrier around herself and watched the humans attack. The geth were no match for them, and they ganged up on the krogan, easily taking him down. Liara was impressed at their skill. She didn't want to get on their bad side.
By the time the four of them made it to the walkways, giant rocks were falling from the ceiling. Liara stared up at the growling ceiling in alarm, too frightened to move. Allegra gave her a push, causing Liara to stumble forward, and then she had no choice but to run and dodge the falling rocks.
They ran full speed along the walkway, narrowly missing huge chunks of debris. Liara skidded once, but Cade managed to grab her arm and haul her in front of him. Liara didn't breathe again until she was safely out of the cavern and back on solid ground. Miraculously, they all made it out right before the entire cavern collapsed.
Liara looked at the gasping humans and wondered what would happen next.
Allegra glanced curiously at the asari standing next to her in the decontamination room on the Normandy. Liara had said she wasn't working with Benezia, but Allegra knew how easy it was to lie. She didn't like the idea of bringing the asari onto the Normandy, but Cade had insisted. He seemed to trust Liara for some reason. Though, Cade seemed to trust a lot of people very quickly. That would bite him in the ass one day, Allegra was sure of it.
Cade ordered them all to the comm room for an immediate debriefing. As Allegra escorted Liara to the back of the Normandy, Liara looked around at the ship in unmasked awe. In the comm room, Allegra pushed Liara into a chair, then sat as far away from her as possible.
Kaidan chose the seat next to Allegra, giving her a quick smile as he sat down. He sure was making it difficult to forget about their kiss.
Slowly, the rest of the crew filed into the comm room. They all looked curiously over at Liara before sitting down. Only Cade remained standing.
"Too close, Commander," Joker said over the intercom. "Ten more seconds and we would've been swimming in molten sulphur. The Normandy isn't equipped to land in exploding volcanoes. They tend to fry our sensors and melt our hull. Just for future reference."
Allegra smiled at Joker's wry sarcasm as everyone else rolled their eyes.
"We almost died out there, and your pilot is making jokes?" Liara questioned.
"Joker pulled our asses out of there. I think he's earned the right to make a few bad jokes," Cade replied.
"I see. It must be a human thing," Liara said. "I don't have a lot of experience dealing with your species, Commander. But thank you. You saved my life back there. From the geth and the volcano."
"What did Saren want with you?" Kaidan asked her. "Do you know something about the Conduit?"
"Only that it was somehow connected to the Prothean extinction. That is my real area of expertise. I have spent the past fifty years trying to figure out what happened to them," Liara said.
"How old are you?" Allegra asked inquisitively.
"I hate to admit it, but I am only a hundred and six," Liara replied sheepishly.
"Damn!" Ashley blurted. "I hope I look that good when I'm your age!"
"A century may seem like a long time to you humans," Liara replied. "But among the asari, I am barely considered more than a child. Which is why my research has not received a lot of attention. Because I am young, other asari scholars tend to dismiss my theories. I have heard all sorts of reasons why they might have disappeared," she continued. "The problem is finding evidence to support those theories. The Protheans left very little behind. It is as if someone did not want the mystery solved, like someone came along after the Protheans were gone and wiped the galaxy of clues. According to my research, the Protheans were not the first galactic civilization to mysteriously disappear. The cycle began long before them."
"If the Protheans weren't the first, then who was?" Cade asked.
"I don't know," Liara admitted. "There is barely any evidence on the Protheans, and even less on those who came before them. I cannot prove my theory, but I know I am right."
"So what is this cycle?" Allegra asked.
"The galaxy is built on a cycle of extinction," Liara began. "Each time a great civilization rises up, it is suddenly and violently cast own. Only ruins survive. The Protheans were simply the most recent civilization to be wiped out. I have spent my life trying to figure out how."
"They were wiped out by a race of sentient machines called Reapers," Cade declared.
"The Reapers?" Liara clarified. "How do you know this? What evidence do you have?"
"There was a damaged Prothean beacon on Eden Prime," Cade said. "It burned a vision into my brain. I'm still trying to figure out what it means."
"That makes sense. The beacons were designed to transmit information directly into the mind of the user. Finding one that still works is extremely rare." Liara sounded very excited. "No wonder the geth attack Eden Prime. The chance to recover a working beacon is worth almost any risk! But the beacons were only programmed to work with Prothean physiology. Whatever information you received would have been confused, unclear. I am amazed you were able to make sense of it at all."
"This isn't helping us find Saren, or the Conduit," Kaidan interrupted.
"I am sorry," Liara apologized. "My scientific curiosity got the better of me. Unfortunately, I do not have any information that could help you find the Conduit or Saren.
"Looks like we wasted our time here," Allegra grumbled.
"Please, Commander," Liara pleaded to Cade. "Saren may attempt another attack on my life. I feel I would be safer here with you. Besides, my knowledge of the Protheans might prove useful to you later."
Cade nodded. "Good to have you on the team, Liara," he smiled.
"Thank you, Commander, I am very grateful." Liara suddenly swayed a little. "Whoa, I am feeling a little light-headed," she explained.
"When was the last time you ate? Or slept?" Kaidan asked in concern. "You should let Dr. Chakwas take a look at you."
"It is probably just mental exhaustion," Liara replied. "I just need some time to process everything. Still, it could not hurt to be examined by a medical professional. Are we finished here, Commander?"
"We can talk again after you've seen Dr. Chakwas," Cade decided. "The rest of you, dismissed!"
Allegra left with the rest of the team as Cade contacted the Council with their mission report. Stepping through the doorway of the comm room, she came face to face with Kaidan asking Liara if she needed help finding the med bay.
Liara placed a hand on Kaidan's arm as she swayed with exhaustion. "That would be wonderful," she replied. Kaidan took her by the arm and slowly led her away.
Allegra's eyes narrowed at the sight. Rationally, she knew it meant nothing, but jealousy still coursed through her.
She needed to do something distracting . . .
"Garrus!" she called to the approaching turian. "Great timing!"
"Is there something I can help you with, Commander?" Garrus asked curiously.
"I just wanted to talk," Allegra replied casually.
"Talk away," Garrus chuckled.
"So . . . why did you become a C-Sec officer?" she asked.
"That's a good question," Garrus answered. "There were several reasons, I guess. I wanted to fight injustice, help people. I guess my father had something to do with it too. He was a C-Sec officer, one of the best. I grew up hearing about his accomplishments or seeing his picture of the vids after a big arrest."
"I can relate to that," Allegra muttered. "Both of my parents are officers in the Alliance. Cade and I never really had a choice of joining the Alliance. It was always assumed. So, how does your father feel about your resignation from C-Sec?"
"He's taking it pretty hard," Garrus admitted.
"Isn't he impressed that you're going after Saren?"
"My father is a C-Sec man to the bone. 'Do things right, or don't do them at all', he says. He thinks I'm being too rash. Too impatient. He's worried I'll become just like Saren. He actually talked me out of becoming a Spectre when I was younger. For the same reasons."
Allegra looked at Garrus in surprise. "You were asked to be a Spectre?"
"Why so shocked?" Garrus laughed. "I wasn't asked outright, I was targeted as a possible candidate. Me and about a thousand other turian military recruits. My father hates Spectres. He doesn't like the idea of someone having unlimited power with no accountability. He wouldn't like your brother very much."
"He'd be the only one. Everyone loves Cade."
"I've noticed that," Garrus said. "He's a very well respected man. But just between you and me," Garrus whispered, leaning closer to Allegra, "you're my favorite twin."
Allegra laughed. "Thanks, Garrus."
"I should be getting back to my post," Garrus announced.
"I'll come with you," Allegra said. "I suppose I should go say hi to Wrex so he doesn't get lonely."
Allegra and Garrus took the elevator done to the lower deck. Garrus headed over towards the Mako as Allegra walked towards Wrex.
"So, we've got Saren on the run," Wrex greeted.
"It won't be long now," Allegra replied. "Saren's good, but we're better."
"Good?" Wrex scoffed. "He's rotten to the core. I knew it as soon as I met him."
"You've met him before? Why didn't you tell us sooner?"
"I would have, if I had thought it was important."
"Tell me how you know Saren, and I'll decided if it's important," Allegra argued.
"This was awhile ago," Wrex began. "A bunch of mercs were bragging about a job they had out near the edges of the Terminus Systems. They said it was good pay, and the boss was never around. I found out they were looking for more men, so I checked it out."
"I didn't know Saren was openly recruiting mercs."
"It wasn't that open. And he only showed his face once," Wrex explained. "Anyway, we'd been raiding ships in the area for months when we took out this massive cargo freighter. I was on board checking bodies for valuables when I saw him."
"What did Saren want with the ship?" Allegra asked.
"I don't know," Wrex said with a shrug. "He was just moving through the ship, watching. A couple of the mercs called him by name, but he never spoke to them. Or to anybody. I had a really bad feeling about him, so I got the hell out. Didn't even wait to get paid. But my instincts were right. Every other merc on that ship turned up dead within a week. Every damn one."
Allegra felt a small chill creep up her spine. "Thanks for telling me, Wrex."
"Anytime, Shepard."
Allegra gave him a quick wave goodbye, then headed back towards the elevator. She intended to go up to the CIC to talk to Cade, but only made it to the middle deck. As she exited the elevator, the doors to the medical bay seemed to scream at her.
Allegra slowly approached the doors, glaring at them. Was Kaidan still in there fussing over Liara? Was Liara well enough for Allegra to go harass her for awhile? Cade would get so pissed if Allegra did or said anything to Liara, but Allegra didn't trust her. Who doesn't talk to their mother for years? Allegra hadn't seen her mother in a long time, but they still communicated.
"Commander?"
Allegra jumped at the sound of Kaidan's voice behind her. She whirled around, her heart thumping loudly. "Don't sneak up on me like that!" she cried.
"Sorry, Commander," Kaidan said sheepishly. "Do you have a minute?"
"I always make time for my officers," Allegra replied, taking deep breaths to calm herself.
"Off the record, I think there is something wrong here. Saren is looking for records on some kind of galactic extinction, and we still can't get support from the Council? There's writing on the wall here, but someone isn't reading it."
"The Council doesn't want to believe anything is wrong," Allegra said with a small shrug. "I'd call it human nature, except for the fact that they're aliens."
Kaidan nodded in agreement. "It just seems that a group that's been around as long as the Council should see this coming. It's funny, we finally get out here and the final frontier was already settled. And the residents don't even seem impressed by the view. Or the dangers."
Allegra appraised him. "You're a romantic," she replied, smiling. "Did you sign on for 'the dream', Alenko? Secure man's future in space?"
Kaidan chuckled. "I did read a lot of those books when I was a kid. Where the hero goes to space to prove himself to the woman he loves. Or, you know, for justice." He sighed. "Maybe I was a romantic in the beginning, but I thought about it after Brain Camp – ah, sorry, 'Biotic Acclimation and Temperance training'. I'm not looking for the 'the dream'. I just want to do some good and see what's out here."
Allegra curiously asked him about BAaT and Kaidan told her all about it. When he started talking about the other kids who were there, and, more specifically, about a girl named Rahna, his eyes went misty and he got lost in his thoughts for a moment.
"Sounds like Rahna was special to you," Allegra said, softly.
"She was," Kaidan replied. "Maybe she felt the same, but . . . things never fell together. Training, you know."
Allegra tried desperately not to feel the rush of relief that ran through her. But, as much as she hated to admit it, she didn't want any other woman to have a chance at Kaidan, and she was extremely jealous of the ones who did.
She just didn't know how to handle this. Allegra had never fallen for a guy so quickly and so completely. Of course, it didn't help that Kaidan was off limits. Or that he was so gorgeous it hurt. She'd always been a sucker for broad shoulders, and Kaidan had really nice shoulders.
Allegra realized Kaidan was still talking about BAaT. She forcibly brought herself back to the present just as Kaidan was ending the discussion.
"This was supposed to be a casual debrief, not a bull session about stuff that happened years ago," he said.
Allegra shook her head. "I wanted to get to know you a little better, that's all. Thanks for the talk, Kaidan."
"Well, you're welcome. Ma'am," he said slowly. "Do you make a habit of getting this personal with everyone?"
"No, I don't," she replied honestly. "And I don't just kiss anybody either," she added quietly.
"I, uh, I thought we weren't discussing that?"
"I've been having trouble forgetting it," Allegra admitted.
"Me too," Kaidan whispered.
They looked at each other. Allegra felt like she should say something, but her mind was blank. She needed to get out of here. "We'll talk later," she promised, then hurried away. She quickly turned back, though. She had to know. "What's your opinion on T'Soni?"
"She seems nice enough," he shrugged. "I mean, if you like the bookish sort."
"Any intentions there, Lieutenant?" Allegra asked, her gaze narrowing.
Kaidan looked at her in surprise. "None, Commander," he said firmly. "I prefer adventurous women."
Allegra couldn't stop the grin that spread across her face. She was adventurous and he didn't like Liara! "That's all, Alenko," she said. She walked away with a slight spring in her step.
After Cade reported in to the Council, he headed up to the galaxy map to determine where they were headed next. Udina and Anderson had said geth sightings had been reported on both Feros and Noveria. He felt like he should go to Feros seeing as how all contact with the colony there had been lost. But Cade had a feeling about Noveria. Cade always trusted his instincts; it's what had kept him alive during the Blitz.
So, Cade told Joker to set a course for Noveria, then he headed down to the medical bay to see if Liara was up to talking yet. He was very curious about her, but that might just be because he had never met many asari before. He was well aware that most of his crew, Allegra especially, didn't quite trust Liara yet. But Cade had no reason not to trust her. She seemed to be telling the truth about everything, and just because her mother might be on Saren's side, didn't mean that she was.
Cade entered the med bay and saw Dr. Chakwas standing at her desk. "Where's Liara?" he asked.
"In the back office," Chakwas replied. "She's well enough for you to talk to her."
"It's like you read my mind," Cade smiled. He hurried through the doors into the back office.
Liara was seated at the desk. She looked over her shoulder as Cade entered, quickly standing as he approached her. "Commander, are you here to check up on me?" she asked.
"I was worried about you," Cade answered. "How are you feeling?"
"Better now. Dr. Chakwas assured me I was going to be fine. I was impressed with her knowledge of asari physiology."
"Dr. Chakwas knows what she's doing," Cade replied, smiling.
"I never properly thanked you for saving me from the geth," Liara continued. "If you hadn't shown up, I would still be stuck in that containment field . . . or worse."
"I'm just glad we got there in time," Cade said.
"So am I," Liara assured. "Commander, I know you took a chance bringing me aboard. I have seen the way your crew looks at me. I know they do not trust me. But I am not like Benezia. I will do whatever I can to stop Saren. You have my word."
"Don't worry, Liara, I trust you. I know you won't let me down."
"Thank you, Commander. That means a lot."
Cade asked Liara a bit about herself. She told him about her studies on the Protheans. As she discussed her work, it was obvious how much she enjoyed her job. She was really fascinated by the past and what had become of the Protheans.
"I find you very interesting, Shepard," she told Cade with enthusiasm. "You were marked by the beacon on Eden Prime, you were touched by working Prothean technology."
"Sounds like you want to dissect me in a lab somewhere!" Cade chucked nervously.
"What? No!" Liara gasped in alarm. "I did not mean to insinuate . . . I never meant to offend you, Shepard," she stammered. "I only meant that you would be an interesting specimen for an in-depth study. No, that's even worse!"
"Calm down, Liara. I was only joking," Cade interrupted her.
"Oh, by the goddess!" Liara cried. "How did I not see that?" She laughed it off. "I always seem to say something embarrassing around other people."
Cade tried to ask Liara if she knew why Benezia would side with Saren, but Liara couldn't think of a good reason. Liara had never imagined her mother would side with someone trying to destroy the galaxy, and she couldn't even begin to fathom why.
After discussing the asari in general for a bit, Cade excused himself and headed down to the lower deck to find Tali. He was looking forward to talking with the quarian, but when he got down to her station, Tali greeted him rather glumly.
"Oh, hello, Shepard."
"Are you okay?" Cade asked worriedly. Had she gotten sick? Was she regretting her decision to join them aboard the Normandy?
"I don't know," Tali said with a small sigh. "The ship is amazing, and your crew has been really nice to me. I just feel . . . out of place. The Normandy runs so smooth it's like we're not even moving! And the engines are so quiet! How do you sleep at night?"
"The silence wakes you up?" Cade asked in disbelief.
"Back on the flotilla, the last thing you want to hear is silence. It means an engine's died or an air filter's shut down," Tali explained. "You don't have to worry about that here, but old habits die hard. But it's not just the silence. The ship feels so empty. I'm used to the crowds on the flotilla. I was so excited to go on my Pilgrimage to get away from it, but now that I'm here, I miss them."
"Sometimes we don't appreciate what we have until it's gone," Cade said wisely.
"That's true," Tali agreed. "I'm starting to wonder if that's what the Pilgrimage is really about. To give us a whole new perspective on our people and culture." She sighed heavily. "We have to stop Saren, Shepard, or I might not have a home to go back to once this is all over."
"We'll stop him, Tali," Cade promised. "You can count on it."
It was with a renewed vigor that Cade headed back up to the console in his room to do some research.