Dead Ends

He was the unseen, the silent blade. She was the protector, the shining lance.
Together, they will fight.
Right and wrong are more often shades of gray than black and white.
Can they change the fate of the galaxy?
Can they save each other?

"What do you mean, 'gone?'" Shepard asked. She jerked upright from her former casually slouched stance and Thane could see all the power of her personality had just focused down to this moment.

"They're gone. Someone broke into my lab less than a month ago and stole all of my research files!" Fear still colored Setir's voice but underlying it was indignation at the affront. "I put a silent proximity alarm in case they came back. I thought you people were Them."

"Interesting. The timing coincides with when our friend obtained this information." Thane released Setir's shoulder to fold his hands behind his back. The straight stance always felt most natural to him when standing still. "I feel as if we are following a trail laid down by another's planning."

"Agreed, but I want to see how this plays out." Shepard turned to Setir again, "Why would we come back if we already had what we want? Did you see who they were?"

"N-no, not specifically. All I saw was the mess they made of my office. Ten years of work, just gone! I only just got it straightened out before you lot came barging in!" Setir sat wringing his hands like he wished certain necks were under his fingers.

Shepard shook her head. Her face was difficult to see under her helmet, but the doubt in her voice was clear. "Surely you kept off-site backups?"

"Yeah. We did. In a secure warehouse on the other side of the city. It burned to the ground the same night they took my data. In the rain."

"A coordinated attack makes coincidence even less likely. Not many groups have the resources or foresight to plan such a hit," Thane observed, letting his voice drop into a matching doubtful, rumbling tone.

"But why? Why is medical research data on a single species so important? Forgive me, Thane, but I can't think of a reason why it would even matter to anyone without a personal stake in the matter. How close were you to finding an answer, Setir?"

"I..we..were close. But we've hit a wall. In lab samples, our immune systems react against the Kepral's bacteria and fight it off the way we're supposed to. But in infected drell, there is almost no response whatsoever. I've got two more teams under me-one is looking into boosting the immune response somehow, and the other is researching stronger antibiotics. But our group was closer than any of the other projects. Until this happened!"

Interesting. Mordin had mentioned nearly the same thing to him during his most recent checkup. There was a connection here, but Shepard was continuing, and he didn't have a chance to pursue his line of thought.

"What can you tell me about your research? Can't you reconstruct from memory?"

"You're obviously not a scientist. There are dozens of us working on this project. Recreating our research would take almost as long as actually doing the original work again." Setir leaned forward, for once seeming to forget the looming threat that Thane posed. "Listen to me. I don't care what you do to me, you have to recover my research. Our survival as a species depends on it. I...my sister is on the transplant list, but I don't think she'll last long enough to...Please. Find it. Finish this."

Shepard crouched in front of Setir and took his faded gray hands into hers. "Setir, I promise. I know someone too. Someone so very dear to me, and he too is suffering from this damned disease." Now her gaze met his instead, although she kept hold of Setir's hands. "I've sworn to him that I will search every corner of the universe; I will rip it apart and put it together again; I will fight the Reapers themselves if it means he will live. Death is not an option for him without me.

And if you need your research to finish that cure, you will have it." Shepard turned to Tali, "Can you get into these systems and pull out what you can?"

"They took the physical drives," Tali said. "There isn't much I can do without them, but I'll see what I can find."

A few minutes later, they were on their way back to their entry point. With the hope of his life's work being restored to him, Setir had readily agreed to stay silent about their visit. They had left him in his office, muttering formulae to himself.

The shuttle ride back to the Normandy was silent, the three of them concentrating on their own private thoughts. Thane examined Shepard's reflection in the forward window, trying to guess at her plans. She had set the shuttle's approach vector, then turned the details over to the auto-pilot. She now sat leaning backward against the seat, helmet off, arms crossed and lower lip caught between her squared human teeth. He was sure that she wouldn't let a setback like this deter her, but beyond that, he couldn't imagine what she had in mind.

Once back on the Normandy, Shepard called up EDI's holographic representation, and addressed herself to both Tali and the AI. "EDI, Tali, I'd like you both to work on deciphering those data fragments. We're looking for a location, an identity, or both."

"Of course, Commander," EDI replied, the audio blinking across her image.

"Shepard..." Tali started, then paused, looking between her and Thane. "All right. For you. We'll be in the tech lab when you're ready." Tali parted company with them in front of the elevator shaft.

Thane stepped aside to let Shepard precede him into the lift. Once he had followed, she pressed the 'Close' button but instead of selecting a floor, she turned to face him. Her fine brows were drawn down, and he could see the slight vertical lines between them that indicated she was worried about something. "Are you okay, Thane? We had a pretty wild time of it, didn't we?"

"I...would like to meditate for a time, siha. We have encountered success, failure, and dead ends. The events of the past day require some reflection."

"I have to do my rounds of the ship anyway. I'll be up in maybe an hour, if it won't disturb you."

"I always welcome your company, my siha. Your presence is a comfort and a joy."

She smiled and leaned up to place a kiss on his lips. A part of him still marveled at the softness of her mouth, so small and flexible compared to his. The rest of him only desired her, and it was this part that slid his hands up her back and pressed her into the bulkhead while she buried her hands under his coat. Had it been only a few days since they had first united? It felt like they had been together for lifetimes, and yet at the same time as if their relationship was barely new-formed, a tiny bud just rising into bloom.

It took an effort of will for him to pull himself away from her; from the flush on her face, she was feeling a similar reluctance. But she needed to attend to her duties and he needed to settle the thoughts spinning through his mind. They parted on the engineering deck with a final touch of fingertips; she to check on Jack and Grunt, he for their shared cabin.

He sat alone on the floor of their cabin. His hands rested on his knees, palms clasped together. He breathed steadily in and out, letting each inhalation take his lungs to the edge of pain before releasing the captured air. He tried to let the complete stillness of his body settle the thoughts troubling his mind.

What if they failed? Today had been discouraging to say the least. They had not obtained the information that Kasumi had gifted them with. Perhaps they never would. He knew that no fault could be assigned to himself and his friends, nonetheless, the thought stung him to the quick. He had taken on a contract and he had not fulfilled it. Not only his life had been riding on success, but the lives of his entire people. It would have been a suitable parting gift to the universe that had given him life and love. A double portion of love, more chances than most mortals could boast of.

In and out. In and out. The thudthud-thud of his heart. The faint clean scent of soap.

He wondered what it would be like to have an entire lifetime to learn the subtleties of her expressions; to memorize every shift of mood and spark of thought. Would he have the opportunity to do so? There was no way for him to know what the future would hold.

It came down to trust. Trust in the gods, in Shepard, and in himself. He was part of a team now; one comprised of the very best.

Thudthud. Thud.

The room was warm. He smiled to himself as he removed his outer jacket. Shepard had raised the ambient temperature in her cabin above what she was comfortable with for his sake. One of the myriad details that she thought of to provide for his longevity. He laid his jacket aside, but tilted his head when the lower left side thumped to the ground with a weight heavier than the leather.

Touched by a quick memory, he pulled Irikah's diary from the pocket and idly flipped through the pages, remembering how she used to take a few minutes out every evening to transcribe her thoughts. Reaching the end, he frowned and turned back to the front page. He didn't recall those creases in the pages; Irikah had always kept her diary in pristine condition.

The creases seemed to stem from a spot on the inside front cover. He looked closer, and saw the slightest crack between the slices of leather that comprised the front binding. He thought he saw the glint of something other than leather and paper and ink from the tiny slit. Thane picked at the crack with extreme care, not wishing to damage the journal but wanting to see what caused the split.

A portion of the cover suddenly peeled free in his hand and revealed a simple gray disk, similar to the ancient DVD disks once used on Earth. Thane picked it up and examined it, but could not see anything to explain what it was doing hidden in the cover of Irikah's personal diary. Still, it had to be important if she spent so much trouble concealing it.

He stood and took three quick steps over to his private terminal, just off to the side of the skylight. He keyed on the console and slid the disk into the all-purpose reader slot.

My dearest Thane,

Someone is here. I don't know if they are your enemies finally caught up to us, or someone after the information only I have. There've been prying eyes around me recently. I have seen them with the gifts you have given me. My love, if I don't see you again, everything I have ever found is on this disk. I believe the hanar innocent victims of this crime but good can still come of it if we can save our people.

There is not much time left. They have entered the house. Kolyat is safe in his hidey hole-I will draw them away so they do not find him. Do not mourn me overlong, my love. There is much to see, and feel, and imagine in the universe and you may yet experience it all.

Read and rejoice, my darling. Life is not far away. My love is with you always. Find peace in the embrace of the Goddess.

-Irikah

As his eyes took in the words on the screen, he felt his body growing limp with shock and pain. He gradually collapsed limb by limb into the station chair

He knew she had a brave heart, but to do something like this in the last moments of her life-Pride straightened his spine and he forced himself to relax his iron grip on the edge of the desk, to allow sensation to return to the fingers that had turned gray from the strength of his hold. Would Shepard have a final word from him if he fell in battle? Considering the nature of their mission, he doubted that he'd get a chance to say goodbye even if she survived him.

While he'd been distracted, the data disk had continued playing and was now flashing with charts, diagrams and medical texts. Thane leaned forward, staring hard as his mind came to grips with what he was seeing. His understanding of medical matters was limited, but if he was seeing truly...

He reached over and grabbed the data disk from the reader slot, pressing his comm as he re-donned his jacket. Forgetting stealth, he took long, hurried strides toward the hall and elevator, knowing that his footfalls were audible, but disregarding that as irrelevant to the present moment.

"EDI, please connect me with Commander Shepard."

"Of course, Mr. Krios," EDI replied.

Shepard's response chimed into his earbud a few seconds later. "I'm here, Thane."

"Siha, I must see you immediately. Meet me in the tech lab with Tali, Mordin, and Dr. Chakwas." His tone was urgent and more commanding than he had ever used with her before.

"I'll be right there. You sound so strange, is something wrong?"

"I'll explain when you get there. Thane out."

The cold filtered air of the tech lab slapped against his bare chest but for once he didn't even notice the discomfort. Mordin and Tali were alone in the lab, working away at separate stations. Although Mordin did not stir from where he was peering into a microscope, Tali glanced up with a swift and curious jerk of her head.

"Thane, we didn't expect you so soon. I'm afraid we don't have any results yet, we're still analyzing the scans. So far, we only have a few fragments of research, random image files and bits of experimental data. They're interesting but inconclusive."

Before he could formulate an answer, Shepard and Dr. Chakwas appeared in the doorway. Shepard's eyes immediately moved to his face and she approached him to take his hand in overt concern.

"What did you find?" she asked him, skipping over any preliminaries.

"I think, an answer. At the very least, the beginning of one."

He placed the data recorder in to an open slot on Mordin's terminal. As the initial screen came up, he hurriedly moved the recording forward, not wanting to share the personal message. Mordin seemed not to care, although his eidetic memory had certainly caught the letter. From the raised eyebrow on Shepard's face, she too had caught some of the text, and would have questions for him. Later. Mordin did look up, however, when the different charts and analyses began appearing on his terminal. He and Dr. Chakwas began a stream of what sounded like high-level medical speech, using a secondary terminal to enter in their own notes and thoughts.

During a pause in the data stream, Mordin's console buzzed, and suddenly Irikah's high clear voice started playing through the room.

"Irikah Krios, Researcher's log 10-12-72.3:

Test Case 27 and 28: Immune response levels insufficient to fight off the Kepral's Syndrome bacteria. Activity typical for all test cases so far. Unknown why immunological response is so low for an active infection bacteria. Test Cases 29 and 30 will be given ciproxidin to combat infection.

"Irikah Krios, Researcher's log 01-05-73.8:

Test Case 45 has shown remarkable immune response in four different tests. Antibody count is at least three times that in normal samples. Control sample shows that no outside treatment was needed to achieve response. It seems to be the natural response of this immune system. Requesting permission to contact Test Case to conduct further tests.

"Irikah Krios, Researcher's log 01-06-73:1:

Request was denied."

"They don't seem particularly interested in helping her with her research, do they?" Dr. Chakwas murmured. Mordin frowned at her and gestured for her to keep silent as the log continued.

"Irikah Krios, Personal Log 02-10-73.5:

I'm recording this under my personal seal in case anything happens to my work logs. The sample from Case 45 was from a dying drell that was found on Rakhana. The woman was discovered dying of malnutrition by a botanist trying to catalogue the habits of surviving flora.

"She was rushed to the nearest medical port, and then to Kahje for further treatment. Samples of her tissue were sent to several major labs. When it was determined that organ degradation had progressed too far, any attempts to save her were halted.

"One of those samples was sent to our lab, but when the patient died, the tissue was frozen and forgotten. I came across them by accident when Setir had forgotten to order more HnE compound and I was searching through the lab to find more. I thought it was from a live patient that had accidentally been left in storage, and began testing on it.

My testing and investigation into the circumstances of Case 45 showed that she had been exposed to the Kepral's Syndrome bacteria during the transport but in the few hours before death occurred, her body had already begun to defeat the bacteria, resulting in the high antibody count that I recorded.

I think with work and time, we could fabricate a cure from these results. I plan to tell Setir in the morning. I just know he'll take it to the hanar, and we'll be able to save the future of our entire race! Thane will be so proud of me and Kolyat can grow up without fear of losing either of us to this blasted disease!"

There was a stunned silence in the tech lab as the recording wound down. Even Mordin had paused in his furious typing to blink rapidly at the possibilities that the recording had raised.

"Can you come up with a cure from the information on the disk?" Shepard asked, leaning forward and placing her free hand on the table. Her other hand was holding his and she showed no signs of wishing to release it.

Dr. Chakwas and Mordin shared a long look before Chakwas turned to Shepard with an ambivalent expression. "I'm afraid it's not as simple as that. The information here is a good start, but without access to more samples, and perhaps test subjects, it would take us years to synthesize a cure."

Before disappointment could more than start its pathway through his chest, Tali spoke up from the other side of the lab table, "I might be able to help with that."

Thane's attention immediately snapped to focus on her faceplate, and he felt Shepard's shoulder muscles tense where she leaned against him.

"How?" he asked sharply.

Tali closed up her console and approached him slowly. "I'm not very good with medical data, so I've been finishing my examination of our scans of Setir's lab. I found that the the equipment they used to break in left a pretty distinct signature. With EDI's help, I hacked into the manufacturer's log. Two months ago, they made a delivery of the exact model I traced."

Shepard brought up a star map on one of the other consoles that littered the crowded tech lab. "Do you know where they delivered it?"

Tali nodded and touched a point on the map, expanding that quadrant. "Here. At the edge of the Milky way. Invictus, in the Minos Wasteland."

Thane shared a long glance with Shepard, a question in her eyes, uncertainty in his.

"This seems a little too convenient," he replied in response to her look. "Experienced mercenary groups should know better than to leave such obvious traces."

"Knowing it's a trap means we can prepare for it, though. We should take the chance."

He took a deep breath and let it hiss out from his lungs. His body was tense with excitement and cold with the fear of hope. As he examined each thought of the future that raced through his mind, he decided that he had never let fear of death govern his life before. He would not let fear of life change him now. He gave his siha a tiny nod.

She squeezed his hand in return and addressed herself to Tali and to EDI, although her gaze did not leave his. "EDI, plot the course."

"Course laid in, Commander," EDI responded.

He felt the drive core start up, its near-subliminal humming running up the soles of his feet and up his legs. The vibrations reached their peak as the ship accelerated to the nearest relay. Shepard's eyes never wavered. He read only calm expectation, confidence, and love. She inspires us to do more than we think we can. He would be worthy of her. She brings order out of the chaos of action and chance.

Let Arashu grant that be true once more.

A/N: A glimmer of light, possibly an end to this tunnel of twisty text!

Oh dear.

Difficult chapter is difficult and rather over due. Rewriting to accommodate canon got sort of confusing about halfway through so hopefully I didn't miss too many discrepancies! I think I have my timeline solidified now, though, so with luck and the blessings of the muses...*crosses fingers and mixes metaphors*

Additionally, how in the world did this thing get to be such a MONSTER? I completely did not expect this to go on for 19 chapters and continuing. Thank you to EVERYONE who has kept reading, and especially to everyone who reviews. Your feedback is so much appreciated and loved.

A special thank you to kiwibliss and lyssalu for proofreading (and where are my updates you two, huh? Huh?) and NSAS for so much awesome!

Also, special extra loving thanks to GamerGal/MyFix for her WONDERFUL DRAWING OF CHAPTER 13. IT IS UTTERLY AMAZING and can be if you search for Gamer Gal on deviantArt!

I'd also like to thank BW for a wonderful and inspiring DLC. Let's hope Thane also gets such star treatment!