The Candidate – 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Mass Effect. It belongs to Bioware and Drew Karpyshyn. I am merely playing in their universe.

Checks in the Investigations

"Let us go over this bit carefully, Williams," remarked Shepard, his reading glasses pushed back from his eyes, and his forehead creased with concern. "The only people who felt this `piercing noise' were those in the immediate vicinity of that giant dreadnought."

"Yes, sir."

"And according to the maps of our positions sent us by the Alliance, the only radio tower in the region was about four miles north of the dig site."

"Sir."

"What do you make of this `piercing sound', Chief?" inquired Shepard.

"It was probably a jamming signal, Commander," replied the Gunnery Chief dismissively.

Shepard said nothing but he laced his fingers underneath his chin, and his eyes remained grave and troubled, and seeing his preoccupation, she said, "But you don't believe it, Commander?"

"I merely find it very odd, Williams. There are three things that militate against that noise emanating from a comm-jammer. First, the comm-jamming signal was in effect over a much larger area than those who felt this noise. You were unable to communicate with anyone as well, even though you were well away from the dreadnought. Yet, you did not feel this `piercing noise', did you?"

"No, sir," returned the woman.

"Secondly, any comm-jammer would be centred on the dig-site where the Prothean beacon would be supposed to exist or on the radio tower. These two would have been the primary targets for any comm-jammers. Yet, according to these reports, even Dr. Warren and her assistant, Dr. Manuel, at the dig site did not suffer from this piercing noise, nor did Lt. Verma at the radio tower, although they were both affected by communications disruptions."

"Finally, the `piercing noise' stopped once the dreadnought left. However, the comm jamming was still in place then, and Lt. Verma was unable to broadcast his distress calls until much later."

"So what do you think it is, sir? Magnetic disturbances from the eezo discharges? Landing resonance from the dreadnought?"

"The atmospheric nuclear magnetic resonance scans don't support the magnetic disturbances theory. The readings are lower than the magnetic disturbances usually found for dreadnoughts of that size, and we know of no dreadnoughts whose landing gives everyone in the neighbourhood a headache and makes them hear `piercing sounds'. Landing resonance is also not supported by the seismographic data. Further, landing resonance vibrations occur only at the time of actual landing and take off. In contrast, the people heard the sound the entire time the dreadnought was on Eden Prime."

"So what is the answer?" asked Ashley.

"I do now know, Williams. Just that it is something we need to keep in mind. In any case, there are two more points that is surprising in this Eden Prime raid."

"Sir?"

"First is the appearance of that geth[1] dreadnought itself. Why did Saren bring that ship to raid Eden Prime, especially since it played no part in the attack? Only the geth attacked the colony, after all, alongside Saren."

"But if there had been Alliance ships in the area, or he had run into other resistance ..."

"There are plenty of geth ships that would be easily capable of overrunning any ad-hoc Alliance resistance. But even though he brought geth troops, he did not bring any geth ships, as you see. Why was that?"

"Why shouldn't he bring the dreadnought, skipper?" demanded Ashley. "After all, it was quite capable of doing the job very efficiently. And it is easier to bring in one large ship, than a horde of geth ships."

"Because I don't think that Saren wants anyone to know that he has got his own personal dreadnought that dwarfs even the Destiny: Ascension. Even a trusted Spectre would be called to account for possession of such a ship, if he was found using it. He would not want any attention focussed on that ship, even if his connection to the ship had not been traced. In fact, I don't think he travels around in it in Citadel space or the Traverse. And believe me, it is hard to hide a ship that size in Citadel space or even the Attican Traverse if you are running around in it regularly. Eden Prime is in a well frequented area, Williams, and there are a number of ships plying the area. There is always a very good chance that someone might catch that dreadnought on their radar scans, and report it. We may safely assume that when Saren plies the Citadel space, or the Traverse, he travels in more modest transport."

"So why did he bring in the ship to Eden Prime, then?"

"Logistics," answered Shepard. "This raid originated far from Eden Prime. Eden Prime, Williams, is well within Alliance space, and is regularly patrolled. Regular geth ships – whose ranges I have verified with Tali – would need multiple stops to discharge FTL build ups from the hulls, and refuel themselves, and would most likely be detected before they got close to Eden Prime. Regular geth ships are also not welcome at the refuelling stations close enough to Eden Prome. The only ship Saren has that has the required range is that dreadnought.

Ashley Williams nodded slowly at the Commander's reasoning. The Commander continued, "The other interesting fact is that he brought geth to the attack, Williams. Why? After all, there are tons of mercs who would be glad to do it for the requisite amount of credits. And the attack on Eden Prime would be put down to another audacious attack by mercs. Why did he not do that, Williams?"

"I give up, skipper," said the woman.

Shepard smiled and answered softly, "Because he did not have the time to recruit enough mercs. The Prothean beacon was discovered only a week before the attack on Eden Prime. Discreetly recruiting the number of mercs needed to raid Eden Prime takes time, and Saren could not do it fast enough without openly showing his own hand. Also, he wanted no one to know he was after the Prothean beacon, not even mercs or their handlers. So he used geth. After all, geth don't talk to organics, do they?"

"But what does all this mean, skipper? I mean – how does knowing this help us?"

"It tells us that he wanted the beacon desperately enough that he was willing to expose the geth. I confess I am interested in knowing what the beacon said – a cursory examination by Liara showed no reason why he should want it so desperately. But apart from all this, knowing Saren's method and reasons tells us that Saren has the geth securely in his pocket. He trusts them enough that he dares let them know his plans – at least, in part. He does not fear betrayal from them. And it tells us that he has his base somewhere far from Eden Prime. He may still run through Alliance and Citadel space, but his main base of operations is well outside the range of any geth ship from Eden Prime. Therefore we need to start looking for his base from the far end of the Attican Traverse outwards towards the Terminus Systems and Geth space. And while it is a huge area, it is still a starting point to start looking for him."

"And how are we going to do it."

"I have already started, Williams," smiled Shepard, and for the first time, the smile actually touched his eyes, and not merely his lips. "I've already activated every listening post and agent of mine bordering geth space and in the Traverse!"

-(Scene Break)-

Garrus Vakarian entered Shepard's office, to find the commander typing on his keyboard. "Ah, Garrus, do come in. Have a seat." The commander waved his hand to one of the chairs in front of his desk.

The well built and tall turian sat down on the proffered seat. "What's new?" queried the Commander.

"Two things, Commander," returned the turian. "The orderly, Tressan Lucullus, has left the Citadel since being suspended from the job. He is now on Vallum on Taetrus. But there is one interesting fact – he travelled to Monoi in Lusia before going to Vallum."

"Ahh!" From Shepard's exclamation, the Turian gathered that the travel meant as much to the commander as it did to him. Lusia was the headquarters of the most powerful banking conglomerates in the galaxy, and the most secretive. Lusia was a kind of posh and well ordered pirates' port – the place where all financial transactions of significance were handled with utmost discretion and secrecy. The self righteous bankers of the planet would guarantee their investors full anonymity, and every large criminal who wished to hide his wealth had an account in Lusia. And for the most part, it was all but impossible to breach the security afforded the clients by the Lusian banks. Many times the Asari on Thessia and other planets had tried to bring the planet in line with the other planets' disclosure laws, but with indifferent success. The bankers of Lusia were simply too powerful to be so easily compelled. "Very clever," murmured Shepard. "We know how the Lusian Asari there feel about revealing the names of their customers or their details."

"Indeed," nodded Garrus.

There was a long moment of silence. Garrus noticed that the commander's eyes were focussed on something a million miles away, and he drummed his fingers absently on the table. Before the turian could interrupt his superior's thoughts, the commander gave an angry shake of his head, and briskly returned to the present. "You've done very well, Garrus. Any idea which bank he visited on Vallum?"

Garrus shook his head. Shepard proceeded, "Okay, what is the other news?"

"The dead Turian thug, Ionaticus Tarsus, used for a local gangster named Fist. He was part of that gang, and has been photographed in the company of Fist's riff-raff many times."

"Interesting, Garrus. Tell me more about this Fist."

"Fist is a criminal that works on the Wards here on the Citadel, Commander. He is usually found in the Chora's den – a dingy pub in the Lower Wards. C-Sec has a fuller file on Fist, I am sure."

"Thanks, Garrus. I'll call it up. Excellent work. Let us look into this Fist."

With Shepard's Spectre authority, it took less than a few minutes to authorise its release to the Spectre. At the top of the file was a full face photograph of the man – it showed a rat faced creature, a weak chin with shifty eyes, and a small stature. The human and the turian read the file. The pith of the information was that the gangster was well organised – he was never directly connected to any of the dirty businesses he got his underlings involved in. Principally, the man was involved in two kinds of crime – extortion, and smuggling in red sand. The man was simply the coordinator of the whole operation. It had one important piece of information – it was suspected that the man's underlings were blackmailing a local doctor who had a clinic on the wards. A woman named Dr. Chloe Michel."

Shepard seemed pleased with the information. He leant back in his chair and thought for a long moment. It was unlikely that this gangster or his scum would talk easily. They were the hardened criminals and would not be easy to frighten or bluff. Of course, there was the fact that, being a Spectre, he could do what he wanted and it was unlikely that C-Sec or the Council would overly care if he tortured the men, but that was not Shepard's way. He had never descended to such barbarities, and he did not propose to begin now. Consequently, he instructed Garrus. "I want full information about this Fist, Garrus. Where he lives, what his movements are, who meets him, and how he is protected by his gangsters. Case the man thoroughly and let me know."

"At once, commander!" Garrus saluted and departed.

-(Scene Break)-

Shepard and Liara were seated in the Spectre's office, their foreheads almost touching each other. The Asari's hands were on Shepard's shoulder and her irises had gone dark, as she had initiated a meeting of the minds with the Spectre. On his part, Shepard's midnight black eyes were fiercely focussed on the woman in front of him, as he strove with every ounce of will to recollect every detail of the vision that the Prothean beacon had burnt into his mind. With a sigh, the Asari archaeologist broke the contact between their minds, and slumped back into her chair. "I saw nothing I haven't already told you about, Shepard," she intoned. "The message seems to be a warning about those sentient machines. It seems to warn about the monstrous machines and their dangers. But there is nothing else, apart from that."

Shepard did not say anything, but looked troubled. Liara saw his preternaturally grave expression and cried, "I swear, Shepard, there's nothing else I can make out!"

"Oh, I believe you," returned the commander. "It's the implications of it that worry me."

"Meaning?"

"Why did Saren want the colony and the beacon destroyed if there is nothing of much value in it? Why did he go to the extent of sending assassins after me, if the content of the beacon did not matter?"

"I don't know," sighed Liara. Her head dropped back in exhaustion.

The Spectre had jumped to his feet and looked anxiously at the tired maiden, "Are you alright, Liara?"

From her semi-recumbent position in her chair, Liara nodded, "Yes, just give me a minute. The Joining was draining."

Shepard walked to a shelf, took down a bottle of wine, and poured a measure of it into a glass and handed it to the Asari maiden. "Here, drink this. It should make you feel a bit better."

Liara raised the glass to her lips and suddenly stiffened, "Shepard, this is Thessia Red! Where did you get it from?"

There was a limpid smile on Shepard's lips. "Do you like it? I saw you had a bottle of it on Therum, and managed to get a couple of bottles here on the Citadel."

"It's my favourite," gushed the archaeologist. She sipped the wine with singular relish. "Thanks." Some of the strain seemed to seep out of her frame.

"I'm glad you like it, Liara," returned the Commander as he sampled his own drink.

"Back home on Armali, my mother kept this for special occasions," reminisced Liara. "Very important guests would get a sample of her Thessia Red."

"Well, being a very important diplomat and Councillor, I would imagine she received a lot of distinguished guests." Shepard then led the talk into a domain that had long made him curious. "You miss her, don't you?"

"Not directly as such, Shepard," returned the Asari guilelessly. "As I told you, she and I rarely spoke. Particularly once I became an archaeologist."

"Why?" Shepard's voice was politely inquisitive.

"With my mother's standing and position, everyone expected me to be a leader of our people, following in her footsteps. When I chose to study the Prothean archaeology, it was a great disappointment to my mother."

"And your mother did not approve of your interest in archaeology?"

"She thought I was just wasting my time pursuing childish and pointless activities, when I could be learning to become a leader of our people. She thought I was being foolishly rebellious."

Shepard made no answer to it, and something came over Liara. She needed the opinion of the Commander. "What do you think, Shepard?

The Spectre's eyebrows went up. "Why does my opinion matter? There are surely others, nearer and dearer, older and wiser, who can better advise you."

Liara laughed bitterly, "There is no one near or dear to me. Mother was the only one and she stopped talking to me thirty years ago. Since then, I have been alone on dig sites."

"Didn't you ever feel lonely?"

"I – the solitude appealed to me," replied Liara, her voice shy and small. "I need to get away from people often."

Shepard nodded, as if he understood completely. Liara inquired, "What about you, Shepard?"

"Like you, I worked alone. I was often deep in Batarian space, or the Traverse, working to set up intelligence operations."

Liara nodded in complete understanding. Shepard returned to his questions. "And why did you choose to study the Protheans?" There was just the required amount of mild interest that encouraged Liara to continue."

"Commander, everyone sees them as a technology storehouse, to be mined and utilised. But few have tried to understand how their civilisation created the technology we so love. What was the Prothean society like? How advanced were they? And most importantly, why did they disappear? A civilisation as advanced as the Protheans should not have disappeared without a trace."

"In that, I agree with you," replied the Commander seriously. "They should not have disappeared. And you say the mass relays are older than their technology. That makes it a much more complex puzzle."

"Absolutely," nodded Liara vigorously. "Your vision actually gives the first solid clue about the fate of the Prothean civilisation. If they were destroyed by those sentient machines, then the sudden violent collapse of the Protheans can be explained." She amended, "To an extent."

Shepard nodded thoughtfully, "The sentient machines should have been around, then. Ah well – even if nothing else, this vision you have seen should let you publish a paper on the extinction of the Protheans."

"If anyone believes that theory, that is," returned the maiden. "Without the original beacon, that theory will not carry much credence," she sighed.

It may have been the wine, or it may have been a test for the Asari archaeologist, but Shepard said something that he rarely would have said. "Saren appears to believe it. And his geth."

Shepard rose to his feet. "Get some rest, Liara. You are overwrought. When you are restored, we can talk about what we do next."

"Shepard, you never answered my question." Liara's voice was anxious.

Shepard answered over his shoulder, "I'll tell you what I know, Liara. You must do the job you like, else you will never be happy. And you cannot succeed in a field you dislike. You say you like studying the Protheans – so that is what you must continue with."

"And is that what you are doing, too, Commander? Is this job what you like?" Liara's question was incredibly personal, but she felt she must know the answer to that one. She still could not see through the formal, but gentle and courtly politeness of the human Commander. The Commander was always considerate, and kind, but she never knew what he thought, and that troubled her.

"In my world, Liara, there are no likes and dislikes. There are only necessities and actions. Goodnight!" With which Parthian shot he was gone, leaving a puzzled Liara behind.

-(Scene Break)-

Half an hour later, just as Shepard was leaving the C-Sec office, he was accosted by a reporter, who introduced herself, "Commander Shepard, I am Khalisah bint Sinan al-Jilani, Westerlund News."

Shepard's lips had tightened into a grim line. That a reporter was seeking him out was not a good omen, but he replied courteously, "How may I help you, Ms. al-Jilani?

"Given that you have just been named humanity's first Spectre, what are your thoughts about it?"

Shepard felt a chill in his spine. So someone had already leaked out the fact that he was a Spectre. "What makes you think I am a Spectre?"

"Come now, Commander, my sources were very specific. You have just been appointed humanity's first Spectre. You need not be so coy."

Shepard's thin lips had all but disappeared, even as the chill in his spine intensified. Exactly how much of the details of his assignment had been leaked? And more importantly, who had leaked them? With a forced composure, he queried, "What exactly have your sources told you, Ms. al-Jilani?"

"We know you have been made a Spectre, Commander. We also know that the Council's throwing us a bone to keep us quiet after the Eden Prime attack. And rumours say that your first assignment is to track down a rogue Spectre, Saren Arterius."

"And is this news public, already?"

"I should imagine so, Commander," returned the dark skinned woman. "I mean – it is a matter of pride for us that you are a Spectre." The woman's lips twisted with sarcasm as she spoke the sentence. She continued, "Most news agencies have been publishing the fact that you've been made a Spectre."

Shepard closed his eyes in horror. Slowly, he opened them after a moment. "I see," he returned thoughtfully. "I am afraid I am not in a position to confirm or refute your assertions regarding my Spectre status, ma'am. Not can I comment about my assignment or its details. If you have other questions, however, perhaps I can answer them."

"I see," returned Khalisah, her beady eyes fixed on the Commander. "Is it true that you were on Eden Prime, commander? That you were part of the team that saved the colony?"

Shepard saw no problem in replying to that. After all, Saren already knew about it. "Yes, I was."

"And how do you explain how the Alliance failed to help those people, Commander? Is this indifference the best we can expect from the Alliance?"

"Khalisah, no one had expected a Geth raid on Eden Prime. No Geth has been seen outside the Perseus Veil in three hundred years and consequently, the possibility of a Geth attack was considered extremely remote. The defences of Eden Prime were geared towards defending the colony from the slavers and pirates, not a full scale attack by the Geth. Even so, the Alliance reacted fast, and within a day, the entire planet had been cleansed of the Geth."

"And yet," Khalisah all but snarled, "there were seven hundred dead in Eden Prime."

"Yes, there were," replied Shepard equably. "And there would have been a lot more if the Alliance had not reacted as quickly as it did. The first Alliance ship was helping the colony within an hour of the first attacks on Eden Prime. You are perhaps aware that it was because of the fast reaction of the Alliance that we could dismantle the explosives set to destroy the entire colony?" Seeing her reluctant nod, Shepard pressed home his advantage. "Facing a totally unexpected situation, the Alliance was able to save the colony, and drive out the geth. I think the Alliance has acquitted itself splendidly in the situation."

Changing the topic, Khalisah inquired, "And were you also on Noveria? Rumours say that you were asked by the Council to sabotage human research in Binary Helix."

Shepard thought for a moment. By now, Saren would have realised that he had got Benezia. He would have realised that the human had penetrated the Binary Helix operations and would have destroyed all evidence connecting him and Benezia to it. So he decided to give her a part of the truth. "No, no – my presence on Noveria had nothing to do with the Council. You are probably aware that I am an expert in communications and nanoelectronics?" Seeing her nod, the Commander explained, "There was an accident in the Binary Helix research facility on Noveria, and I was called in in my professional capacity to fix it."

"I see," returned Khalisah. "That is the most anyone has told us about the Binary Helix situation until now, Commander. And what was the nature of the accident, Commander Shepard?"

"I am afraid I cannot tell you, Ms. al-Jilani," returned Shepard. "However, I can tell you that the situation has been resolved and things are now back to normal."

"One last question, Commander. Isn't being a Spectre being a hired assassin and shill for the Council? Have you been asked to put aside human needs for them?"

Shepard was totally unimpressed by the question. His voice was cool and resolute, "I think the interview is over, Ms. al-Jilani."

What the reporter would have said to that became academic, as his comm tool buzzed. Shepard excused himself, and answered. Tali's voice was urgent. "Shepard, come as quickly as you can to your office. We've got a problem here."

"On my way," replied Shepard succinctly. He bowed to the reporter, "Ms. al-Jilani, I must bid you goodbye now, as I am needed in my office. It's been a pleasure, ma'am." The Commander bowed and left, leaving an angry and puzzled reporter in his wake.

-(Author's Notes)-

I know the dreadnought is not `Geth', but Shepard has no reason to suspect that it is a Reaper at this point. In his perspective, it is still a `Geth' ship.

Also, did no one wonder about Khalisah finding out that Shepard was a Spectre? I mean – the names and numbers of Spectres are supposed to be very secret and here is this woman party, not only to the fact that Shepard is a Spectre, but also many of his whereabouts and his assignment. If I was Shepard, I would be scared to death about being turned into a celebrity. The strength of an operative lies in his secrecy. If everyone knows what he is doing, it is like a clear target painted on his heart.

Coming up next, some more politics, and some breakthroughs in the investigations.

As usual, all comments are welcome.