Chapter 2: Reunion

"...I'm still upset that we had to give that salarian over to C-Sec!" Wrex stated, a bottle of rynkol in his hand, "I was this close to having him for lunch. And like my meat served raw!"

Liara grimaced slightly, "That's disgusting, Wrex!"

"Haha! I'm telling you! It's delicious!"

The former crew were sitting in a bar located in the Wards of the Citadel. Wrex told them about the place before when they first met him years ago. And now he got to take them there.

"What is it with you and eating salarians…?" Ashley muttered, now joining in on the conversation

"Ahem!"

All eyes turned to Garrus, who then gestured toward the Quarian sitting across from them. Tali'Zorah vas Normandy, one of them vest tech savvy individuals they had ever met. When they first met her, Tali was a young girl on her pilgrimage, a right of passage all Quarians must take. She ended up finding evidence regarding Saren, a rogue Spectre, who discovered, and was indoctrinated by the Reapers. She initially tried to sell the info over to the Shadow Broker for safety, but was lured into a trap. But Shepard ended up saving her life, and in return she gave him the evidence on Saren's actions.

To each and every one of them, Shepard was close to them. But for Tali, she was the closest. The two started a relationship while on a mission to stop the Collectors, a mysterious species that were actually Protheans enslaved and controlled by the Reapers. A few months later they renewed their relationship during the Reaper invasion, in which the Quarians requested assistance in their renewed war with the Geth. Shepard, while against the war, reluctantly agreed, and managed to not only help the Quarians reclaim their homeworld of Rannoch, but also brokered peace between both them and the synthetics. All in all, it was probably the best present Tali could've ever gotten.

But when the war ended, and the Reapers were destroyed, Tali just seemed to drift off, disappeared, completely off the grid, nothing. Not even Liara could find her with her knowledge as the Shadow Broker. Then again, Tali was by far the most tech savvy out of the old crew, even surpassing the likes of Garrus.

"So…Ms. Vas Normandy…" the turian muttered, "Care to explain yourself?"

The Quarian's dimly purple lit helmet stared back at Garrus and the others. If this was their first time meeting, none of them would be able to tell that Tali was giving them a light glare.

"It's just Ms. Zorah now." she replied with little to no emotion, "I dropped that name a long time ago."

Wrex looked at her funny, "Dropped it? Why?"

"I don't have a ship to live or work on." Tali shrugged as if it were nothing as she reached for her drink, but a hand reached out and grabbed her by the wrist. The Quarian looked up to see Ashley stare at her with one of her well known glares. One that could even scare a krogan to death.

"Stop beating around the bush, Tali." she said firmly before Tali swatted her hand away. Liara then spoke up, hoping to find answers and help her friend.

"We've been worried sick!" she exclaimed, "You leave without saying goodbye, dropped off the grid, and haven't any of our calls. What have you been doing?"

Tali sighed before straightening herself, "Surviving, that's what I've been doing. There are others who are still in need. After everything we've done, Saren, Sovereign, The Collectors, The Reapers. People are in need…Unfortunately, not everyone is so keen on rebuilding…"

She noticed a news report being broadcasted nearby, showing footage of the salarian's failed attack on the Shepard Memorial. Liara looked at it as well before putting two and two together.

"You knew about the attack, didn't you?" she questioned

Tali shook her head, "No, I didn't. I only had my suspicions, and what I've seen. I came here to see if I was right."

Garrus took a drink from his beer before speaking, "And what exactly have you seen?"

Tali leaned back in her seat, "Can't say, the Council is too slow, so I decided to step in. I have no place to call my own."

"So you're nomad." Wrex muttered

"Just like my people." Tali replied

Garrus quickly responded to her comment, "Your people are no longer nomads Tali. Rannoch is back in Quarian hands. Shepard made sure of that."

Tali simply stared back at him, it seemed that the very mention of Shepard's name hit her hard.

"Shepard, was my home." she retorted before taking her drink, finished it, and set the glass back down before standing up and leaving.

"Nice seeing you all again." with that, she left the bar

"Damn…" Wrex muttered, "At least she was happy to see us…"

Liara shot the Krogan a glare, "That's what you have to say!? Tali is mourning him! We need to help her!"

"There's nothing we can do." Garrus said to her, "She doesn't want our help, and we could tell. We all had to cope with Shepard's loss somehow."

"And yet we are the ones being blamed for Shepard's actions." Ashley growled, "People, whether it be human or alien, will never be happy."

Liara then stood up from her seat, "We need to do something about it. You heard Tali, there are people still trying to recover-"

"No." Garrus sighed, "I'm sorry Liara. There's nothing we can do. We all had our time, and it was one helluva ride. But now we need to move on."

Garrus then stood up and left the bar as well, paying the bartender as he walked away. With Liara watching him in sympathy

Within a section of the Wards, Tali walked among the crowds as she made her way towards her transport off the Citadel. The conversation with her former friends seemed to have opened up some still-healing wounds. She soon felt as if someone was waling next to her, comforting her.

"Live...build yourself a home..."

Tali turned to her left only to see nothing. Shaking her head, she continued onward.

"I miss you, Shepard."

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!"

Citadel Tower stood at the very top of the Presidium, which housed the Citadel Council, who enforced the laws of all of Citadel Space. It had been a day since the attack on the Shepard Memorial, and now the Council was arguing with the Salarian Dalatrass on the topic of the salarian who orchestrated the incident.

"Dalatrass, I strongly recommend that you-"

"You don't get to make suggestions for me Valern." Dalatrass Linron of the Salarian Union replied via hologram, "I am within my right to express my opinion."

"An opinion in which you openly defend a terrorist!" Councilor Sparatus retorted, "That man attacked a crowd of innocent bystanders and vandalized the Shepard Memorial!"

From the window of the office, the memorial could be seen. The lower left leg and right half of the body was hit with acid during the attack, and left scorch marks all over it.

"C-Sec has dealt with those who were simply protesting, and we've sent the Quarian national back to Rannoch for him to be tried under his people." Hackett said, his voice sounded neutral, but could change at any given moment, "Now all we need is for you to condemn this attack one of your people committed."

"Never!" Linron shot back, "I will not condemn the man behind this attack. In fact, I'll go on to say that he was a goddamn hero in my books. Commander Shepard brought more harm to this galaxy than good. The Krogan are now reproducing at a great rate, soon we'll have another rebellion on our hands. Everywhere he traveled, the Reapers followed him somehow, and worlds were consumed. Crime is running rampant from the Traverse to the Terminus Systems. Aria T'Loak is still in power and causing more and more trouble, and Shepard ALLIED with her! I would go on to to say Councilors, that Commander Shepard is a terrorist and must condemned at once!"

Tevos frowned at the sight of the Dalatrass' attitude, "I suggest you reconsider. It would be unfortunate for sanctions to be placed on the Salarian Union, let alone cutting STG funds in half."

Linron simply scoffed, "Don't give me that, Councilor! You're not one to talk! Wasn't it you three who brushed Shepard's warnings aside!? Or the fact that your government Tevos had secretly kept a Prothean beacon hidden on Thessia, a direct violation of your own laws!? You are not one to judge!"

Tevo wanted to retort, but she couldn't. In a way, the Dalatrass was right. Her own government had kept a dark secret from the rest of the galaxy, all so they could have an edge over them all. This was a direct violation of Citadel law, a law they themselves created.

Valern and Sparatus were in no position either. They two brushed aside Shepard's warnings of the Reapers from the beginning. Even after the Reaper Sovereign's attack on the Citadel 5 years ago, they still refused to see the truth, and covered up the incident from the public. When the Reapers invaded two years ago, they simply closed their borders and refused to assist humanity until Shepard assisted them. At least Sparatus had the decency to offer Shepard the help he needed by helping him save the Turian primarch, which led to securing an alliance with both the Turians and the Krogan.

Now the galaxy looked down on the Council, save for Hackett. Their influence diminished, and their reputation was torn down. For the first time in a long time, the three felt humility and pain. They were now at the same level as the average citizen in Citadel space. Tevos and Valern were still getting hit hard by slander and criticism, with both considered resigning.

Their governments were no different either, the Asari Republics were in utter chaos, from the Reaper attack on Thessia, to the colonies, and the reputation of the Matriarchs, all were looked down upon. The Salarians were, according to various sources, on the brink of civil war. Many became disillusioned with Linron's growing bureaucracy during the Reaper Invasion and went rogue, aiding in the construction of the Crucible, and later during the assault on Earth. Since then many high ranking Salarians, ranging from military, to political, to STG have been demanding reforms to the government and the removal of Linron. Valern himself had been somewhat of a critic against Linron, but only half-heartedly. But day by day, his disillusion grew and grew.

Sparatus on the other hand was handling it better. He started out as Shepard's most outspoken critic, but as time went on, he grew to respect the Commander, even after he saved his life more than once. Then he returned the favor by helping him in securing Turian aid. Now he was working closely with Councilor Hackett in rebuilding all the burnt bridges in the galaxy.

"This meeting is over, good day." Linron said sharply before her hologram disappeared

Tevos huffed in annoyance as she shook her head, leaning onto the side of the holotable in the process, "...To think Shepard had to deal with this is beyond me."

"May I remind you, Councilor, that it was us who brushed him aside." Valern stated truthfully

Tevos couldn't help but snort as the statement, "So I remember. I guess it's something all military minds have to deal with."

"We get used to it." Hackett chimed in

"Indeed." said Sparatus, "But now is not the time to dwell. There is work that has to be done. Look at all the good that has come since the Reapers defeat; the Krogan are rebuilding and aiding other worlds! The Quarians have a place to call home once more! With Dr. T'Soni's knowledge of the Protheans and information from Shepard regarding the Reapers, nearly half of the Mass Relays have been restored!"

As this was occurring, Commander Bailey arrived and approached Hackett, carrying a datapad in his hands.

"Councilor Hackett, C-Sec's investigation on the attack have come in." he announced as he handed Hackett the pad. The aged military man glared at the report with a stern look. Spartacus, being the other Councilor with a military background, took notice of this.

"What is it?" he asked

Hackett then activated his omni-tool, which he rarely used on occasion. Soon an image appeared in front of them, that of a red background with a black and white symbol.

"Perseus…" Hackett muttered

The Councilors and Bailey all knew what Hackett said. Perseus, to put it simply, was known by others as the Neo-Cerberus, or Cerberus 2.0. However, instead of a humanocentric faction. This group was composed of various species, humans included. They were formed sometime after the Reapers were defeated, as an anarchistic faction before they got decent leadership. They quickly became the loudest group in the galaxy to speak out against Commander Shepard's actions. Beyond that, they were simply a loud annoying posse of anti-human activists. But roughly a year ago, Perseus became more radical, minor terror attacks on colonies, armed shootings, and just recently: attacking the Shepard Memorial.

Tevos closed her eyes and sighed, "Of course, we can call up a Spectre to deal with this. Perhaps another C-Sec investigation at best."

But Bailey turned to her with a look of fear in his eyes, "You might want to take a closer look at the evidence, Councilor."

Confused, Valern looked through the files before something caught his eye. He quickly showed it to his fellow councilors. Tevo quickly suckhed her breath in as her face grew immensely pale. Sparatus was frightened to say the least. Only Hackett remained neutral, but he could've been frightened on the inside.

"By the Goddess…" Tevos muttered, "How much do they have?"

"We don't know." Bailey replied, "But if they have it, they are a threat to all of us."

Tevos stuttered greatly. In all her time of service, she was the most calm and collected for the Councilors. But now, after the Reapers, she was the most cautious and frightened.

"Everything he has done, all for nothing…" she muttered

"No!" Spartacus cried out, "It's not! We have to carry on!"

"Sparatus is right." Hackett announced, "Squabbling over this won't do us any good. We have to make a move on Perseus and fast."

Valern frowned, "You've seen what the people think of us. They won't listen to reason anymore."

"Then we send a third-party." Hackett stated, "Not funded by the Council, but by those who want to do the right thing…"

The three Councilors looked at their human colleague. They knew what he was talking about; a secret operation that only a few people knew about.

"The project, it must deployed at once." said Hackett

Sparatus nodded in agreement, "He's right. It's the only choice we have."

"But who will lead the operation?" Tevo asked, "A Spectre?"

"We'll need more than a Spectre, Councilor." Hackett advised, "We need a crew. Three of which are currently on the Citadel now as we speak.

"They've done this before." said Valern, "They could have some emotional scars. Are they the kind of people we want protecting the galaxy?"

Hackett remained silent. He remembered a similar question he heard years ago about Shepard. Now it was about those who served with him, fought with him. He knew the answer the second Valern asked it.

"They're the only people who can protect the galaxy…"