Chapter 5

Rannoch was much as she remembered it, dry, sunny and hot. The sun was beating down on them, she was fighting a losing battle against the human function of sweating. The robes were ill-suited to long hours in Rannoch's arid climate. From the shuttle she'd seen some vegetation and many miles of farmland. Cities were slowly being re-inhabited, much of the geth had been recycled into everything from farming equipment to new Omni-Tools. It was an ill-fitting end, but at least in death they were helping the quarians. It's what they wanted despite not knowing how to do it, not knowing how to overturn three centuries of hatred and distrust.

She'd sacrificed the geth to save all organic life. It was the best of the options presented her by the Catalyst. It was a tragic sign of the times that committing genocide was the better option. She wished she could've saved them but she saw no way. What made it worse was how few were acknowledging the terrible choice she'd made. There was the odd commentator who criticized her, most were academia, and most tended to be shouted down. No one was mourning the geth. She'd received an email from a lower quarian admiral thanking her for getting rid of the geth and that achieving peace between the two, and then betraying them when their usefulness had passed, had been a brilliant tactical masterstroke.

She was standing with the other councillors. Behind her was the valley where she'd killed the Reaper. A deep crater lay where the quarian fleet had blasted it. The Reaper corpse had been destroyed, it had been the Council's first issued order after the war that all Reaper ships were to be destroyed. Most of the Reaper ships had been accounted for, but even one escaping destruction was one too many. She had no doubt shadowy nefarious individuals or even groups were using them for experiments, like Balak's batarian faction. She hoped their research came to naught.

Just to her left was the statue the quarians had built in her honour. Made of bronze it was a full three feet taller than she was, staring defiantly at the crater below, the actual targeting reticule she'd used was in the arms of the cold statue. There was an interactive panel at the base of the statue which educated on most of what she'd done for the quarians. The peace she'd achieved was given a few short sentences. Acknowledged at all is if in spite for some imaginary transgression.

"...And so, do you, Admiral Ra'an." Valern droned. "On behalf of all quarians, do you accept the terms and provisions of the quarian-citadel treaty and by so doing accept readmission to the council of races?"

"I do so accept." Ra'an said, her rich voice resonating with pride. Ra'an was flanked by the other senior admirals, Gerrel and Korris. She made sure earlier to fix Gerrel with a stare, seeing him squirm uncomfortably was a small reward. A little light schadenfreude here and there was never a bad thing. Tali was in the lower ranks of the entourage, she was happy to see her, and happier still that she and Garrus were becoming a more serious item. She wished they had more time to hang out together.

When the ceremony ended the other councillors retreated to the shuttle. Cassandra wanted to remain behind, to loiter and chat, but there wasn't time. The Ascension had time for one more planetary flyby before heading for the next jump gate and next stop on the galactic victory tour, the Arcturus Stream, culminating with arrival on Earth and the slowly rebuilding Citadel where they would resume residence and office, surrounded by power shortages, the percussive drone of construction noise and obtrusive construction drones for years to come.

After boarding the Ascension she went to her apartment. The ceremony had taken the bulk of the day and Council business had been postponed. She was glad for the recess. She'd been having nearly constant headaches for a few days now. This morning she'd felt pangs of nausea after breakfast. She was happy to be away from Tevos. It was difficult to look at her, much less work with her, suspecting what she suspected. She acted as cool and professionally as she always did. Carrying on a charade that she knew nothing was difficult and required a lot of concentration. It went without saying Tevos had far more experience at deception than she did.

Liara was with Aethyta in the apartment. Both were eating leftover chicken pesto rigatoni that she'd cooked the night before, it was one of Liara's favourite dishes. The ingredients had cost her a month's salary but it was worth it. Aethyta was warming up to her cooking too. Liara looked at her with concerned eyes when she arrived, Aethyta was her usual, casual self.

"What's going on, love?" Cassandra asked her wife, preparing herself a plate with the last of the leftovers. She placed the plate in the eezo-wave.

"Feron and I have found something." Liara said.

"I've got some dirt, too. But I'm not bragging or anything." Aethyta said.

"What is it?"

Liara fiddled with her Omni-Tool. "Feron managed to hack into the Councillor's secure communication channel. He found this:"

"This is Councillor Tevos."

"What do you want?" That was Aetherton's voice. His tone was angry.

"I'm sorry that your Spectre candidature was declined. There were other strong candidates."

"Spare me the pleasantries. What do you want? I'm surprised Shepard isn't making this call to rub salt in my wounds."

"That's actually what I wanted to speak to you about. The human and I have had many disagreements of late. I believe she's a nearly insurmountable obstacle in further Citadel progress. You can help remove that obstacle."

There was a long pause. Tevos resumed speaking.

"Should you do as instructed, I will guarantee your Spectre status as well as significant financial incentives."

"If it brings down that cunt, I'll do it for free. Go on."

"There is a batarian civil war in progress. We are providing covert aid to one of the factions. We want you to reach out to the faction led by Balak. We will use the ruse of a peace conference chaired by the Council. Once the conference is in place, we can bring to light Shepard's atrocities. Balak is to demand a public admission of guilt from her as a precondition to peace. I have accessed her psychiatric records and it's clear she desires to atone for her past actions against batarians. She will do this to achieve peace. Once admission of these atrocities is made, Shepard will be charged with war crimes, crimes against sentience and a myriad of other related charges. She will be disgraced and convicted in a court of law."

"From what I've read of Balak he's not the peacemaking type."

"There is a human saying that is relevant here; only Nixon could go to China. By going to the conference Balak would lose little credibility. He has the chance to make himself appear statesman-like. And if Governor Prazness, after signing a peace accord, is befallen by a mysterious accident it would only be another indication of how indiscriminately the universe yields the hammer of tragedy. Publicly you will be acting on your own initiative, privately you will be acting to ensure Shepard's downfall. Balak will be eager to exact revenge on her. The ultimate outcome of the batarian civil war is of tertiary importance."

"What goes around, comes around. I'm in."

"Very good. I am wiring 25,000 credits to your account. This will cover your travel expenses. We should have no further contact until you reach an agreement with Balak."

"This was dated two weeks ago." Liara said quietly. The eezo-waved beeped, indicating the food was ready. Cassandra wasn't hungry anymore. Her legs felt weak, and she collapsed on a nearby chair. She felt violated. She didn't know what was worse, that Tevos was conspiring to bring about her downfall or that she'd hacked into her private psychiatric records.

"Atherton has probably made contact with Balak by now." Liara said quietly. She took both of Cassandra's hands and squeezed them. Cassandra squeezed back.

"What do I do?" Cassandra asked, completely at a loss. Flanking manoeuvres, choke points, firing solutions, these she understood. Espionage, cloak and dagger politics she had no experience, no conception. There was no battlefield for her to visualize, no weapon to hold, no soldiers to command.

"You fight back." Aethyta said firmly.

"No shit, Sherlock!" Cassandra snapped brusquely. She closed her eyes and shook her head, apologizing for her sudden outburst. Why was she like this? Liara gripped her hands even tighter.

"You fight dirt with dirt. That's how." Aethyta said, nonplussed by Cassandra's uncharacteristic eruption.

"How?" Cassandra asked. "I'm new to this."

"Thanks to me you have some dirt to throw around. To get Tevos out, you'll need a dozen matriarchs to raise a motion against her. I just happen to have a dozen matriarchs that owe me favours, I'll talk to them and swing them onto your side. You talk to the other two councillors about this. You'll need to offer them something to swing them onto your side so be ready to pucker up. Then you go to Tevos and offer her an ultimatum, either she resigns or she'll be publicly disbarred. Only one councillor in the history of the Council has ever been expelled. She won't want to be the second."

"Okay, but what's this info you have?" Cassandra asked, the fog beginning to clear.

Aethyta smiled. "A few centuries worth of shady dealings, kickbacks, cover-ups and one matriarch's daughter."

"Okay, I guess I'll get started. But first, I'm hungry." They ate dinner together. The mood was a bit more relaxed, but still tense. The fresh food helped relax and brighten the mood, though only by a few small degrees. But perhaps that was enough. When they finished Cassandra noticed she had another nosebleed. It took a few minutes for the bleeding to subside. When it did Liara insist she see a doctor soon. She acquiesced, though she didn't know when she'd have time to see one.

She met Sparatus the next morning in his office. His office was as small and plain as her own. HE had a staff of three. The only adornments were paintings of Palaven in better days. A portrait on his desk showed him surrounded by 12 family members.

"Councillor Shepard, please come in." He greeted her respectfully. She sat opposite him, his desk between them. "I believe this is the first time you've visited my humble office."

"Yes, our offices aren't much to brag about these days." Cassandra said.

"Soon we'll relocate to the Citadel. Our offices will be then more befitting our station. Though I feel the rest of the Citadel will take much time to regain its former stature."

"Yeah," Cassandra said. "With the keepers gone, we're having to actually learn about how the Citadel works. It'll take more time but in the end it will be worth it."

"Yes, I agree. The keepers made us complacent. Now, what can I do for you?"

"First of all, we're not having this conversation."

"Of course."

"We need to talk about Councillor Tevos." She said evenly.

"I see." Sparatus said evenly.

"I have evidence that she's conspiring against me."

"A very serious charge. One that would preclude her from holding office. What is this evidence?"

Cassandra activated her Omni-Tool and replayed the message. His eyes glazed over as he listened.

"A councillor conspiring against another is almost unheard of. I am aware that she was closely affected by the Reaper war, but never thought it would affect her judgement. What are you planning to do?"

"I'm going to present her an ultimatum, either she resigns or she'll be publicly disbarred."

"I trust the message you've played is genuine. I do hope there is more to your plan?"

"Yes, I'm having some matriarch's convinced of the necessity of having her resign."

"Very good. Tevos will assume you won't want these revelations made public either. You've saved my life twice. I have what we call a debt of honour towards you. I will support you. Have you given thought to gaining Valern's support?"

"I assume I'll have to make some concessions." Cassandra said. A salarian consortium was looking to invest a majority stake in the Alliance's largest eezo mining company, BEZ. Despite all the brotherly talk and the recent war, the Alliance was still skeptical of alien ownership of its biggest companies. It was something she wasn't supposed to be involved with, but one word from her would get the deal approved.

"Yes. Valern will be most reluctant to support you. It will require far more than political or economic concessions. He does not believe in favours."

"What do I need then?"

"I understand your wife was an information broker? Ask her to look into Fabrisa Holdings."

"Thank you."

Sparatus nodded. "You're welcome. You must be very subtle about this. Tell no one about what you're planning. And do not confront Tevos until you have Valern onside and a significant number of matriarchs onside. She is both fearsome and cunning."

After leaving Sparatus' office she went to the medical bay. She'd finally kept a doctor's appointment. Liara needling her was usually enough to give her an extra push to do something she'd rather not. That was another reason among countless why she loved her so completely. While waiting in the reception she messaged Liara to look into Fabrisa Holdings.

A nurse signalled her to an examination room. She waited a few minutes before a doctor arrived. The doctor was asari, very businesslike and cold, like most doctors she'd known. She comported herself like a worker on an assembly line, eyes down, motions robotic, voice monotonous, someone for whom the only way to escape mind numbing banality was to succumb to it. Cassandra lay back on the examination table as the doctor scanned her. The doctor's face was unreadable, she said nothing while pouring over readings. When she spoke, she resembled a drill sergeant more than a doctor.

"You have recurrent incidences of space nose?"

"Yes."

"You drink between 1-2 litres of water per day?"

"Yes."

"Elevated levels of stress?"

"Of course."

"Difficulties sleeping."

"Yes."

"Recurring migraines?"

"Yes."

"Bouts of nausea?"

"Occasionally."

"Irritability?"

"Yes."

"Has your psychiatrist changed your prescriptions?"

"Yes. I'm taking an extra 30 mg of the anti-depressant."

"Are you taking sleep aids?"

"No. They all have negative side effects."

"That is wise. The scanners detect some abnormal physiological readings, they may be due elevated stress levels and moderate sleep deprivation. Your cybernetic implants are unique and I don't know what their readings are telling me. You may want to check in with the manufacturer to obtain better analysis. I can only recommend increased sleep. I'm sending you an e-brochure with tips on stress reduction."

With that, the doctor left the examination room, leaving her alone and frustrated. Well, that was worth it. Surely she deserved better. She was a patient, not just another contraption on an assembly line needing a few more rivets here and there. It was useless to ask for another doctor, they were all the same. Just a few dozen doctors to cater for a crew of thousands. Perhaps it wasn't totally their fault. The distance doctors took from their patients was little different than the distance commanders took from their soldiers.

She went to her office and messaged Miranda Lawson. She was surprised to find Miranda available. She appeared on her video screen, Miranda still largely unchanged.

"Shepard? This is unexpected. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing... okay, I guess. Look, I'm having some minor medical issues and the doctors can't seem to find anything wrong. Would we be able to meet sometime soon? It may have something to do with the cybernetics."

Miranda's eyebrows twitched suddenly and she blinked quickly. Her eyes looked away from the screen briefly. There was something odd about that.

"Of course. When's convenient?" Her voice had a minor undercurrent of urgency.

"We're journeying to earth at the end of next week to move onto the Citadel. We can meet then."

"Sounds good. I'll clear my schedule for you. It's good to see you again, Shepard.

"I'm happy that you're doing well. I'll See you soon, Miranda. And thanks."

"You're welcome."

The rest of the day was uneventful but still fulfilling. She made a donation of 50,000 credits to a charity helping survivors deal with PTSD and on a whim, unasked for, became an official spokesperson for the charity. Technology changes but people don't. Decades after its acceptance, many still lingered in denial and shame. Her doing this would convince those needing help but afraid to seek it would gain courage, so she hoped. She also signed off on an Alliance free trade deal between the planets in the Sol and Arcturus systems. It was hoped this would boost trade and boost the speed of reconstruction. For once she finished work at a reasonable time.

She found Liara in their apartment, playing the keyboard. She was getting better a Blue Rondo, she was getting the time signature. Now she just needed to get the tempo right. Liara smiled brightly when she came in. Cassandra knelt down and they greeted another with a deep kiss.

"How was your day, love?" Cassandra asked.

"Quiet. I went for a stroll, had lunch with father, and spent the afternoon here, practicing the piano and doing the research you asked me."

"How are you feeling?" Cassandra asked. She could tell something was a little off about her today.

"Honestly, I'm beginning to tire of being pregnant. Being confined to this hoverchair is frustrating. In school we're told philosophically that a 12 month pregnancy isn't that long compared to some other species and our long life span. Philosophically it's one thing, it seems simple and almost trite. But experiencing it firsthand is quite something else."

"Can I get you anything?" Cassandra asked.

"A time machine to fast forward four weeks from now?"

"I'll ask Alliance R&D to make it a priority." Cassandra teased. Liara chuckled and they kissed another again.

"I'm also worried about you. Not just this situation with Tevos and Atherton but your health. What did the doctor say?"

Cassandra sighed bitterly. "Not much, I should try to get more sleep and decrease my stress level. Like I needed a doctor to tell me that!"

Cassandra calmed herself, seeing the effect her outburst had on her wife. "She did suggest it might have something to do with my implants. So I talked with Miranda and she's going to examine me next week when we're on the Citadel."

"Just so long as she doesn't examine you in the same way that I do." Liara said, a big grin on her face.

"Oh don't worry. You've been granted special access." Cassandra replied.

"I'm special am I?" Liara teased. Cassandra kissed her.

"Very special."

"Well, maybe you should make me feel that way."

Cassandra led Liara to the bed where she made love to her. Liara was restricted by her pregnancy in what she could do physically. But Cassandra could still please her, their minds could still join, which was where the true pleasure, the true intimacy lay. When they were done they cuddled together, holding and kissing another, basking in the blissful afterglow of their love.

"I'm looking forward to moving to the Citadel. At the very least our apartment will be bigger." Liara said wistfully.

"Yes. We'll have a bedroom for Aisha, room for a proper piano, a real kitchen. Even though we'll be surrounded by construction, it'll be a big improvement on this."

"Judging by the vids, it'll make my apartment on Illium seem modest. Oh, Goddess. I nearly forgot. I found some interesting information."

"Don't worry, I could get used to distractions like that." Cassandra teased.

"I'll email you the details. On the surface Fabrisa Holdings is just another financial equity firm. In reality it's a front for a money laundering operation for various warlords, criminals, mercenaries and so forth. Valern is one of the directors to give it an air of legitimacy. It's one of the most profitable companies in the galaxy."

"So I threaten to make this public if he won't go along."

"You're learning quickly." Liara complemented.

"Praise from the former Shadow Broker is high praise indeed."

Cassandra saw Liara's sad expression. "I'm sorry, love. I didn't mean to..."

"It's okay, Cass." Liara said. Cassandra could tell she meant it. "It's in the past. I'm glad you talked me into retiring. Power is a magnet to the corruptible and it was difficult to resist the urge to use it nefariously. It would've been so easy."

"But you did. That's what matters." Cassandra said.

"As time went on though, I found the urge stronger. My resolve weakened" Liara was quiet for a time.

"So what happened?" Cassandra asked.

"The Reapers came. The war ended. I found myself caring for you. I didn't have much time to do anything else."

"Thank you." Cassandra said and gave Liara a deep kiss. It felt ridiculous to thank Liara for caring for her. It was such an inadequate word and Liara knew who much that meant to her. But she had to say something. She remembered hearing the music, blackness slowly dissolving to light, drowsily coming to life, opening her eyes and seeing Liara just a few feet away. It was the single happiest moment of her life.

Liara put her arms around her. "I love you too." Liara said quietly. They held another and gently drifted off to a full night's peaceful sleep.