"Will Ernesto Zabaleta please come forward." The VI called out.

"That can't be right..." Udina said aloud as he began to scroll through the listing of witnesses. The other Councilors looked equally surprised by the VI's announcement.

Cassandra Jugdhund and Executor Sohmon were in a heated discussion. Giana Parasinni was quickly going through her data pad groping for information. Even El'Jaid's reaction contained surprise. It was obvious that none of them had been expecting this.

Liara couldn't suppress the small smile that crossed her face. Two can play this game...It is true that the Councilors maintained a secure list of witnesses. But then again they should really keep such lists under a better lock and key.

A lone figure stood up from the assembly. His hair was gray, and his face somewhat tired from the passages of time and toil. He was dressed in an old Alliance Marine uniform. It's cut was outdated, but it was pressed and clean. His boots were as black as space and held a shine like the sun. He wore no medals, or commendations of any sort. His uniform only contained the rank which had had been given. Lieutenant. Calmly and with precision he made his way down the steps.

"Mr. Zabaleta. I am sorry for the inconvenience..." Councilor Daice spoke quickly, but it did not stop the man from coming forward.

"It is no convenience at all. And it is Lieutenant." He responded coolly as he continued to descend. His expression was hard, impassive, and military.

The Light in the Tribunal had now begun to switch to midday. The room was darker because of it. The Council no longer bathed in some kind of holy light.

"But we were not expecting your testimony Lieutenant." Tevos charged. Her voice pleasant, but it still contained a smattering of suspect.

"But your VI called on me didn't it?" Zabaleta asked annoyed and aggravated. He stood in front of the two C-Sec guards who barred his way. But he to gave them no ground as he stood by.

"Yes it did but..." Udina started, but he was cut off.

"Then I am here to testify." Zabaleta responded. "Or are you going to bar me, a willing person, to perform his civic duty?"

The Assembly crashed in to commotion again as they cast the Council disparaging looks. The body's tone of speech was one of contempt and disgust at the Council's outright audacity their departure from protocol.

It was a test of wills. Zabaleta and the assembled audience against the Council. The Council had the power to bar his testimony, to eject every spectator from the room and continue the trial which was being filmed by the camera drones which filled the air above them. The reasons it could do this were as numerous as the white caps that sailed on the ocean just outside the broad windows. Yet they also knew that if they did that, it would only have served to pour more fuel on the fire that already threatened to rage out of control just outside.

And control is what they desire above all else. Liara thought.

"Lieutenant. We would not think of such a thing." Valern said serenely. "Please. Step forward."

The two C-Sec guards parted and Zabaleta stepped forward. The murmurs of the audience died away with every step of his boots.

His gate was purposeful and his stature was strong as he took the witness stand. His voice rang even clearer as the VI swore him in.

"Your witness Defense." The VI said calmly before shimmering away.

Giana rose silently from where she sat and walked over to Lieutenant Zabaleta. Her demeanor was business. Just the facts and no bullshit. His expression was strictly military. Head up, shoulders back, eyes straight.

"Lieutenant. Do you know the Defendant?" Giana asked. Her eyes looked intently on this new comer. A figure that had not be apart of the equation. An unknown integer.

"If you mean by 'defendant'; Do I know El'Jaid Shepard, Council Specter, Commander of the Council Military Academy on New Celyon, and Captain in the Systems Alliance Navy. Yes ma'am I do." He said calmly.

Giana's face slight reddened at the soft rebuke.

Remember who she is... Liara thought as she continued to see how the events would unfold.

"Did you ever serve with her?"

"No ma'am."

"Then how do you know her?"

"I found her ma'am."

"You found her? Were you her military recruiter?" Giana asked quizzically.

Liara could tell that Giana had no immediate background information on him. Good... She looked over and saw the prosecution busily tapping on their data pads. They must be trying to find something about him. It won't matter.

"No ma'am. I found her during Mindoir." His voice was steady, but the sheer mention of that accursed world make his face twitch slightly just below his right eye. But like his voice his eyes were straight ahead.

"But that means she was only seventeen when you found her..." Giana said in surprise. She wasn't the only one as even the Council contained the look. "You were apart of the Alliance response there..."

"Yes Ma'am."

"Lieutenant. What can you tell me of El'Jaid Shepard?"

"Objection! The question is far to broad!" Cassandra rang as she leaned against the desk.

"Defense, please restate your question in a more precise manner." Councilor Daice responded with a cold rebuke. But before Giana could respond, Zabaleta spoke.

"I can't tell you about who she is now. I have no position to speak to what has happened concerning her after Mindoir. So I won't even try." He took a deep breath as if to clear his head. "But I can tell you about how I found her. I can tell you about Shepard when she was seventeen."

"Then please continue." Giana asked.

For the first time her turned his head to look at El'Jaid. His gaze appraising as if to try to see the child he remembered. Then he turned his gaze back again, looking straight ahead.

"The Batarians held Mindoir for two weeks. It took three days for my Unit to even set foot near the main colony. It was the dress rehearsal for hell. Then just as quickly as they arrived, the Batarian's were gone, and we were left us picking up the pieces." For the first time his gaze fell to the floor. There was a moment of silence in the room until he remembered where he was and his gave then returned to all ahead full.

"My squad was tasked for clearing out the central part of the colony and searching for survivors. It had been hit bad. About the only freestanding building that was still mostly intact was the hotel. It was around sunset when we went in to the area. The first tip off that someone was still alive were the bodies we found littering the street and way to the entrance. We also found a few bodies in the other buildings near it."

"Were the bodies you found of the colonists?" Giana asked.

"Most, but they had long been killed and burned. The ones we could recognize were Slavers." He responded.

"So what was interesting about the bodies you had found Lieutenant?"

"The slaver bodies outside the hotel had been shot with a high powered rifle. A shotgun with slug ammo to be exact which was used as makeshift sniper rifle, or more precisely a rail gun. Only way anyone could get the shots off without drawing too much attention to their exact position was the hotel."

"Was Shepard the shooter?" Giana asked.

Zabaleta was quiet for a moment. Again he looked over to El'Jaid, and his face again twitched.

Giana looked more closely at him, the color of her face slightly stolen away. "Was Shepard the shooter..." She said again.

The crowd erupted again. Their tone was of surprise and of disquiet.

"Your under Oath Lieutenant Zabaleta..." a rankled Councilor Valern said.

Moments of silence passed. The Lieutenant didn't want to answer, but he also knew he had no choice.

"Yes. She was. My squad found her with the gun, along with seven other children she had been protecting. She said they had been in that hotel for four days. I made a call to Admiral Hackett requesting pickup for them." Zabaleta breathed. "Shepard and the other Children were then picked up by the Alliance. When I found her, it was the last time I saw her. I found a girl who had lost her family, but was still determined to defend and fight for people she barely even knew."

Liara closed her eyes. Thank the goddess... And she exhaled a quiet breath. The Court mass also seemed to quiet somewhat at hi revelation.

"Thank you Lieutenant. Those are all of the questions I have." Giana said professionally. She seemed satisfied at his response.

"Yes ma'am." Zabaleta said.

[][][][][]

Cassandra's heart was racing. Where the hell did he come from? He wasn't even on the witness list... She screamed as she ran across reports on her data pad. This was possibly one of the worst things to happen. She had not expected this. Not expected to see anyone from the squad that had found Shepard. But here he was, Lieutenant Zabaleta in the flesh. This could really fuck with the plan. Paint her as some kind of tragic saint...

She half paid attention to Parasinni questioning him, but her attention was fixed on trying to find something of any angle to use. As she ran through his service record her pounding heart slowed somewhat. I can use this...

Then she read through the summaries of the reports filed by other members of his squad during their action on Mindoir. Then she watched him, for the most part he was as hard to read as Fort Knox had been to crack. But then she saw his eyes dart down, she noticed when he would look over to Shepard, s if he was trying to ask her for something. Then there was the twitch. I can definitely use this... She thought as a cruel smile quietly filled her lips. Next to her, she could tell that Executor Shomon was nervous, his mandibles twitching.

"Don't worry. I've got this." She spoke quietly to him as she let the Defense finish their time with Zabaleta. All he did was nod in return.

"Prosecution. Your witness." The VI said calmly.

Cassandra stood up and too her time walking towards Zabaleta. Her eyes vivisecting him. His expression still like stone, his eyes looking straight ahead into nothing.

"'Lieutenant'. Would you be so kind as to tell us of your service record with the Alliance?" She asked politely.

"Objection! What relevance does the question have?" Giana shouted.

Played right in to my hands... Cassandra thought, and before the Council could respond she spoke again. "Actually, are you still with the Alliance?"

The Council was silent as Cassandera continued to bore into Zabaleta. She kept passing in front of him like a hungry wolf.

"No ma'am." He quipped, his gaze never faltering.

"No? They why are you wearing that uniform? You were discharged weren't you? I see in your file you are currently working as a warehouse manager on Elysium."

"As a sign of respect for the Captain ma'am, and yes I was discharged." Zabaleta gritted out.

"Would please tell the court the nature of your discharge." Cassandra said with satisfaction.

Zabaleta's face twitched and he was silent.

"Mr. Zabaleta, I shouldn't remind you that you are under oath." She said caustically.

"I was discharged from the Alliance military in 2173 for Post-traumatic stress syndrome." He responded.

"There is more to it than that isn't there." She held up a data pad that had the full report. "You were discharged for alcohol abuse. You showed up to many of your work shifts blind drunk. Is that correct Mr. Zabaleta?" She charged.

His face held no response. The light in the tribunal had started to take on a reddish hue, some of the attendants started to mop sweat from their brows.

"Is that correct Mr. Zabaleta?" She roared.

"Yes ma'am." He said, his voice still strong.

"So your testimony is colored Mr. Zabaleta." She said smiling.

"Objection! The prosecution is badgering the witness!" Giana yelled again, but it fell on deaf ears as Cassandera continued her assault.

"Mr. Zabaleta, according to your report and others from members of your squad, the weapon used to kill the Slavers wasn't the only...interesting...thing about the bodies. Especially the ones you found inside the hotel was it."

Zabaleta scowled, he knew where this was heading, and Cassandera didn't wait for an answer.

"To quote Sergeant Capella. 'Some of the Slavers inside looked like they had been crushed by a heavy blow or thrown a great distance. This type of trauma is congruent with either a heavy physical impact, or biotics.' Yet, according to the Defendant's file; she wasn't identified or registered as a biotic till after you had found her. Is that correct?"

"That's correct." Zabaleta confirmed.

"So you were dealing with an armed unregistered biotic..." Cassandra started.

"Her parents had their reasons for keeping quiet about her..." Zabaleta interjected.

"Her parents flouted Council and Alliance Law!" Cassandera roared. She looked over and saw Shepard balling her fists up, her eyes smoldering red. Good. Get angry, because I'm just warming up... "How exactly did you find the Defendant?" Cassandra continued unabated.

"It was night, and we found her when we were finishing our sweep of the hotel." Zabaleta said.

"You said you found her with the weapon. Yes?"

"That is correct."

"So you found her armed. Is that true?"

His face twitched. "She was defending other children."

"Yes. Well according to Corporal Vickers, he was jumped by her. She was stalking him, ready to kill him..."

"She was scared and had been fighting for her life and defending others for days..." Zabaleta forced out as his eyes dropped to the ground.

Cassandra continued on despite his words. "In fact, not only did she hit him with a biotic field, she also had the shotgun pushing up against him, and yelling obscenities. And that was after she found out he was with the Alliance. Tell me Mr. Zabaleta, did other survivors treat Alliance troops this way? According to what I read, other Mindoir survivors were elated that the Alliance had come to Mindoir's aid."

Lieutenant looked at the ground for a moment, he was shaking slightly. From rage or from the old ghosts that still haunted him Cassandra couldn't be sure. Yet she heard him whisper something quietly.

"I'm sorry I didn't quiet hear that Mr. Zabaleta..." She said mockingly.

He looked up at her, his cold blue cobalt eyes were unwavering, but gone was the stone calm of his face. It was now twisted in an ugly sneer.

"We were too late. The Alliance was too goddamn late..."

Typical mindset. Cassandra thought. "The Alliance reacted with in the time it said it would..." Cassandra said.

"WE WERE TO LATE!" He roared. "The Batarian's knew how lightly defended Mindior was. They knew out patrol routes. They informed the Slavers..."

"The Hegemony knew nothing!" The Batarian ambassador responded.

"THEY KNEW!" Zabaleta screamed back at him.

The court was silent. Cassandra looked back in shock at the man on the stand.

Zabaleta turned on her shaking. "Can you blame her for her disgust with the Alliance? For her anger? For going after any slaver she found? Do you know what it's like to witness the kind of barbarism that she saw? The cruelty that only sentient a person can do to another? The screams that come from children as they are cut in to and implanted with control chips? To lose everything you know to that kind of savagery?"

She looked coldly back to him as she turned her own features to ice and stone. "And do you think it gives anyone the right to respond with brutal force? For anyone to continue to act like they did when they were seventeen?"

"I didn't think you did..." He said. "I think we are done here." He growled.

"I agree." She said coldly and she calmly walked away. I'll call that a partial victory.

"Your free to go Mr. Zabaleta. The court will take a short break." Councilor Tevos said. The court spring again in quiet chatter and the Councilors looked down to work through their dockets for the break.

But as Mr. Zabaleta stepped out of the witness stand he walked over to where Shepard was held, and again the tribunal's attention was riveted to him. With military precision only honed by years of duty he snapped a perfect salute to Shepard.

"I believe my rank is Lieutenant." He spoke aloud as he turned on his heal and walked off the floor. His posture was prefect. Back straight, head held high, shoulders back as he calmly marched up the stairs, and left the tribunal.

After he was gone, a chill entered.

[][][][][]

Salya shook his head. The full helmet felt clumsy to him, but it at least masked his identity. Every thing had been there waiting for him as it was promised. A fresh uniform, ID credentials, and access. Even a sniper rifle had been left for him. Before he had found any of it we was sure he was walking right in to a trap.

He looked to his left and right. The other catwalk snipers either seemed to be intently watching the trial below, or were daydreaming. He struggled to keep his heart rate low and his breathing easy. If I even tip them off ever so slightly that I'm not C-Sec, it's game over...

To get his mind out off the stress and to calm his tingling nerves he hoisted up the rifle and peered down the sight. I hate these damn things... he cursed. Close and personal was how he preferred to work. Sighting down a barrel at a target who was unaware of his presence just seemed...insulting... to him. The angle of the view was a razor thin line above the heads of the seated crowd. The design of the room had been intentional. It gave the snipers and excellent view of the crowd if they ever needed to take down an attendant, but also offered protection for the court's participants from an overzealous law agent.

He peered at his target below. She was tired, weary, and trapped. Good. Now you know how I've felt all of these years... But he also was power and defiance in her eyes. Before he would have taken her fire as being arrogance, but after hearing the trial so far he couldn't deign that he felt a small sense of, professional respect, for Shepard. But nothing changes for it. She still needs to pay for her transgressions.

He switched his view to the Defense. Shepard's lawyer had been fighting a losing uphill battle. She acted the part of a novice trying to play in the big leagues. And she was losing. But it wasn't just the evidence or her lack of experience that was working against her; but also the Council and perhaps more. Their ear was ever turned intently for the Prosecution, and some what deaf for the Defense. They feigned equality in rulings. Enough to keep the courtroom quiet, but they let the prosecution run the show by allowing Jagdhund to tear into the first witness, then completely disrespect and dismiss the second. All the while allowing the Prosecutor to continue sandbagging their own position.

He knew it was only going to get worse for Shepard as his lips curled in to a delicious grin. His eye then caught movement down below and he focused in on it. It was a Drell who was impatiently pacing back and forth like a caged tiger. His movements were controlled as to not cause a distraction to the general attendant, but to Salya the Drell looked like a nervous wreck.

Well if it isn't Vakarian's protégé. Salya thought. He had been wondering when he would show himself. Obviously he had been able to escape the net that had caught Vakarian, but then again the net was never meant for anyone else. The kid is just another powerless pawn in the game.

Salya had heard about Vakarian's escape. It didn't surprise him or impress him, given the Vigilante's background. The Executor was a fool to just simply try to keep him under lock and key. But Salya knew how Vakarian operated as well. His hands are tied. He can't make a move toward Shepard without being caught, or shot dead on the spot. Salya thought mirthfully to himself. Perfect. He is neutralized.

A smile continued to slither across his face. Any doubts and misgivings he had in the plan had faded. Now it was just a matter of time and letting the pieces fall into place. Soon justice will be served. And he was in a perfect place to see it happen.

Author's Note: Happy New year folks! It's 2012 and now only two months away from the release of Mass Effect 3! I hope everyone had a great New Years Eve, and all the best to everyone this year!