Chapter 48 - The Summit Preparations
Wrex, you old reptile. Shepard here. Yep, I'm back in action.
I don't know if Tuchanka has seen any Reaper action yet, but they sure as hell are beating the crap out of all the other races. Maybe the sweet sound of turians weeping has reached your ears already, but they are begging for the old galactic muscle of the krogan to be brought back into business.
We're putting together a war summit with the turians, the salarians and the asari, and the new turian Primarch (an alright guy... for a turian) really wants a krogan representative to be there. Let me know if you're in, Wrex. Judging by how desperate the Council races are, this could be a good opportunity for your people. I suggest you join us, I will be awaiting your reply.
P.S. This isn't a bad time to start thinking about some demands in return for your gracious help. (Shepard's tip of the day: ask for a better planet, or maybe two. Tuchanka is crap.)
Your old friend,
Shepard
Smiling at herself, Shepard hits the button to send the message, before leaving the Normandy's comm room, then stopping in the hallway to listen in on the voices from the War Room. "We've lost two more of our dreadnaughts in the past hour," she recognizes Victus' grim tone.
"Yeah, I'm seeing the numbers too," Garrus is with him in the War Room. "I agree, we need the krogan to turn this around. And if anyone can get them to cooperate, it's Shepard. She's an old friend of Urdnot Wrex."
"Let's just hope that friendship still counts for something in this war," Victus sighs.
Shepard finally decides to join them, stepping into the War Room. "It will count for a great deal, Primarch," she tells Victus, clapping her hands together in a determined manner. "So, what's our next step?"
"We await a reply from your krogan friend," Victus says. "If they are willing to join us, we inform the asari and the salarians and see if they remain onboard or not. Then we set up a place for this summit and get things moving ASAP."
"Sounds good to me," Morgan nods. "Shouldn't be too long until we hear from Wrex. Until then, I suggest we all get some rest while we still can. I don't trust anything in this war to go smoothly."
"Nothing is more relaxing than calibrating a giant gun," Garrus says, smirking at Morgan's knowing grin. "If you want to talk, you know where to find me, Shepard," he adds before leaving.
"I would like to continue monitoring the data feeds from Palaven, if you don't mind, Shepard," Victus says, refusing to abandon the communication consoles. "Commander... it occurs to me I never properly thanked you for your aid, and now, for allowing to use your ship. The gesture is appreciated."
"It was the least I could do," Shepard shrugs. "Have you settled in with your new role?" she asks a while later.
"It's not quite what I imagined," Victus admits. "My turian brothers and sisters are fighting for Palaven, and I am light-years away, reading casualty reports in the millions. This is not where my heart wants me to be."
"Yeah, I... I knew that I needed to leave Earth in order to save my people, but it was still... hard to do," Shepard admits.
"I'm not surprised to hear that," Victus nods. "Garrus speaks very highly of you. You never asked to be a leader, yet your people will die if you refuse."
"Well, before all this shit hit the proverbial fan, some of them were ready to crucify me just to placate a few batarian terrorists," Shepard says, wincing. I shouldn't dwell on that anymore, what's done is done, she tells herself. "But yeah, what you're saying sounds about right."
"It seems that we find ourselves in similar circumstances, Commander. I never asked for any of this either."
"That's the way it goes, Primarch," Shepard smiles thinly, turning to leave. "Don't spend all the time staring at the casualty reports. It burns you out. I should know..."
She heads out of the War Room and back towards the CIC, where Traynor is yawning, half-asleep at the terminals. Knowing that they are back in the relative safety of the Council space, drifting idle and waiting for the news, Shepard orders Samantha to get some rest and she gratefully accepts this particular command. That girl is working a bit too hard, trying to prove herself, Morgan decides, briefly wondering where to take the elevator. Her exhausted body cries for the comfy bed of her own quarters, but her heart insists on seeing Liara in the XO quarters. In the end, it's not much of a decision.
"Greetings, Commander!" the annoying info drone spooks her again as she steps through the doors of Liara's quarters.
She glares at the drone, before turning to Liara sifting through her Shadow Broker data feeds. "I see you managed to fix your little... friend," she remarks.
"Yes, I thought that by referring to everyone as Shadow Broker, it might arouse some suspicion," Liara replies, not taking her eyes off the consoles. "I'm trying to get into the habit of referring to it as Glyph. Just a name I thought appropriate."
"Dr. T'Soni now uses the expression 'info drone' only 20% of the time," Glyph happily announces.
"Well, good for you," Shepard says, turning her attention back to Liara. "Busy? Anything interesting coming in?"
"Mostly casualty reports," Liara replies in a hollow voice. "I find that as I read more and more of them, they just become cold, impersonal numbers. Then I remember Palaven, and suddenly... I feel as if I can see a face behind everyone reported dead."
"Don't spend too much time staring at those numbers, babe," Shepard says gently. "They can really get to you after a while."
"I was almost done anyway," Liara says, stepping away from the terminals. "Two more agents didn't report today, both from systems with heavy Reaper activity."
Shepard sighs. "Soon there won't be a single safe place in the galaxy," she mutters angrily, before thinking to steer their talk elsewhere. "Any progress on the Prothean device?"
"EDI reported some discoveries, she has forwarded them to Hackett already. I planned to resume my research as well, I really ought to, but..." Liara's face is briefly twisted by expression of pure, undiluted pain. "When I close my eyes to think, the only thing etched in my mind is the image of Palaven burning..."
Shepard steps closer and puts her hands on Liara's shoulders. "The memory you spoke of earlier," she says quietly. "Please, I wish to see it. Will you share it with me?"
Liara looks up at her, her blue eyes swirling with emotion. "Of course, Morgan," she rises and takes Morgan by the hand, leading her towards the bed. They both lay down, Liara leaning over her, gently pressing her lips against Morgan's brow, before easing into a tight embrace, relaxing and allowing the joining of their minds.
Strange and alien is the beauty of Palaven. The mountains are glowing with metallic sheen, like covered with rivers of molten silver, bright white crystal caps covering the highest peaks. In the distance, the spires of turian cities dot the landscape, even in their glory appearing small and insignificant when compared to the majestic mountains that indeed do seem to go on forever. "Isn't the view just amazing? I thought you would like it here, my Little Wing," the beautiful asari in the yellow robe is bouncing her enthusiastic looking child on her knee. "I love you so much."
Liara slowly pulls away, but Shepard cannot bring herself to rise, tears pouring down her cheeks and she can do nothing to stop them. "I'm sorry, Morgan..." Liara whispers, leaning back against her. "I had no idea it would upset you so much."
"It's not that," Morgan manages, swallowing heavily. "It was a beautiful memory. It just... reminded me how much has been taken from you already."
"...I have seen what you have been through, Morgan," Liara says quietly. "I have been fortunate in comparison."
"I suppose it's only natural to feel like that when you truly care about someone," Shepard manages a small smile. "But I don't want to be sad and depressed when I am with you. I want to feel happy and enjoy the time we spend together." Though that's going to become increasingly difficult with all the shit going on around us...
"We should do something to distract us," Liara suggests. Shepard is about to raise an intrigued eyebrow, when her asari lover continues with something a little different than what she had expected Liara to say. "Before you showed up, I considered going to talk with Garrus. He would never tell us so, but I imagine he could do with some support now."
"Yes, when he left me with Victus, he implied that he might want to talk later," Shepard admits, feeling a little guilty for having her thoughts more on making out with her asari lover and less on a close, old friend who has just watched his homeworld burn under a devastating attack. "He'll be in the main battery... calibrating."
"Of course," Liara grins, pulling Shepard up from the bed with her and allowing Morgan to quickly wipe her cheeks dry.
The mess hall is empty when they emerge from Liara's quarters, the crew all save for unfortunate few on their posts taking the rare chance to enjoy some downtime. They find Garrus predictably hunched over the operating consoles of the Thanix cannon, grumbling and muttering something about 'human incompetence'.
"Ready for guests, Garrus?" Shepard grins as they quietly sneak up on him, but failing to truly startle the sharp-sighted turian.
"My favorite pair of troublemakers," Garrus chuckles. "Sure, I'm just relaxing here. After all we went through down there, this feels like a vacation."
"I'm just glad we found you, Garrus," Liara says. "It's good to have you back onboard. I actually feel better about our chances now."
"Thanks, Liara," the turian looks at her appreciatively. "Hearing that makes me feel better about leaving the fight. Still not totally convinced I made the right call, but pointless to dwell on it now."
"Pointless yes, but impossible not to," Shepard sighs. "Some of the sights as we escaped in the Normandy... I wish I could erase them from my head." She catches Liara's sorrowful expression, as if the asari knew what she was talking about. "Oh... damn," she realizes. "You saw it too, all of it, didn't you. Liara, gods, you shouldn't have..."
"I needed to know what was eating you from the inside," Liara admits, lowering her eyes. "Please, don't be mad at me."
"Mad? I'm not mad... I just wanted to protect you from seeing something that you didn't need to see. We've seen plenty of horrors already as it is, without you going out of your way looking for more..." Shepard shakes her head sadly.
"That's what you get for letting an asari messing with your head, Shepard," Garrus manages a chuckle. "You're not getting into my skull, T'Soni, so don't even look at me!"
Liara summons a shadow of a smile. "I think I will cope with the disappointment, Garrus."
"So, Garrus, I noticed that both Corinthus and Victus were treating you with, well... actual respect?" Shepard wonders. "What have you been up to lately?"
"You won't believe this, but at some point my government actually listened to me about the Reapers. They even gave me a small task force to shut me up," Garrus explains. "Made me their expert advisor on the Reapers. A failed C-Sec officer, vigilante... and I'm their expert advisor? When you put it down like that, doesn't make our chances in this war look good."
"Hey, I'm a traitor to the humanity for working with Cerberus, accused of war crimes and genocide... yeah, I'm even less credible than you are, Garrus," Shepard chuckles. "But I just had a similar conversation with Victus. They treat you like dirt, make fun of your warnings, until hell shows up at their door... and then they put you in charge!"
"Too true," Garrus nods. "This isn't going to be like in the good old days, will it? Rogue Spectre and C-Sec agent running and gunning outside the lines, making it up as we went along..."
"Afraid not, Garrus," Shepard smiles. "Though you forgot to mention, shy, confused and highly fascinating archeologists in your resume," she adds, giving Liara a fond smile.
"All good heroes need attractive sidekicks," Garrus jokes, brushing off Liara's attempted glare. "But yeah, Shepard, we're actually respectable now. Who would have thought that?"
"Only until this war ends, I imagine," Shepard rolls her eyes. "I'm sure they'll find something to pin on us afterwards."
"Don't talk like that," Liara looks a little upset. "This is not the time to wallow in bitterness."
"Yeah, I know, I don't really mean that, babe," Shepard tries apologetically. "I honestly don't care what anyone thinks of me after this war, as long as we can lead our forces to victory."
"I will not allow you to lose yourself in this war," Liara looks at her with a determined stare. She then turns back towards Garrus. "You haven't heard anything new from your parents or your sister?"
Garrus shakes his head. "It has been... long enough for me to start worrying." He looks back at Liara then at Shepard. "Thessia has not been touched yet, but what about you, Shepard? Did you leave someone back on Earth?"
"No. Mother is with the Alliance," Shepard replies grimly, with all that's going on around her, it seems she doesn't even have the time to worry for her own mother, her ship possibly destroyed by the Reaper forces. "I'm still waiting to hear about her fate."
"I hate this war already," Garrus sighs. "Even if we manage to turn it around and win this thing, it's not going to be pretty. Probably even harder for you," he looks at Morgan. "We, turians, are bred to believe that as long as there's at least one survivor left standing at the end of the war, then it was worth it, but you humans just think differently. You want to save everyone. In this war... that's not going to happen."
"Yeah," Shepard admits tiredly. "It is like you say, even if I cannot allow myself to think like that, for in that case we have already failed."
"If we can get all the races to work together, then I believe we have good chances," Liara says, trying to sound brave. "Though I do hope we hear from Wrex soon. I can't imagine he would want to miss out on this!"
"And during the summit hopefully he won't strangle Victus and the salarian representative with their own intestines," Garrus remarks jovially.
"Gods, you're even more depressing than I am," Shepard grins. "Ah, I'm sure in that case we'll just find ourselves a new Primarch, we're really good at it. Hey, maybe it could be you, Garrus? Primarch Vakarian, honored war hero! Sounds good, doesn't it?"
"How far down the line of succession are you these days, Garrus?" Liara asks, but Garrus just looks mortally horrified at the idea of becoming the leader of the turian hierarchy.
"Uh... let's not go there," he gulps.
Shepard chuckles. "Alright, Garrus... we'll get out of your hai-... err, crest," she says, taking Liara's hand in hers.
"Yeah, I should get back to this," Garrus points at the weapons consoles. "Somebody really screwed up something down here. I should get the old girl back in fighting shape."
"Take care, Garrus," Liara says as together with Morgan they walk down towards the mess hall.
Morgan releases Liara's hand only to wrap her arm around the asari's waist, pulling her closer as they walk. "My quarters?" she whispers, aching with desire to finally be alone with her lover.
"An interesting offer," Liara replies teasingly. "Though I feel myself overcome with strange weakness. You might need to carry me all the way there," she leans against Shepard heavily and Morgan quickly scoops the light figure of her lover up in her arms.
"Gladly," she says, carrying Liara all the way to the elevator, trying not to get distracted by the asari's lips and tongue teasingly gliding along the skin of her neck, before she pulls herself a little higher and Morgan feels her lover's teeth nibbling at her earlobe.
"You have a strange fascination with my ears. And my hair," Morgan chuckles, as Liara punches the buttons to summon the elevator.
"I have a strange fascination with you, Morgan," Liara purrs, before kissing her passionately at the same moment as the elevator arrives at the crew deck... revealing James Vega standing in the elevator, staring at them with mild disbelief.
"Madre mia, Commander, this is... too much! Can't a guy even go to the mess hall in peace?" Vega exclaims, swiftly rushing off, muttering swearwords under his breath.
"What was that all about?" Liara asks as Morgan carries her into the elevator and she punches in the command to bring them up to the Commander's quarters.
"Don't know. Don't care," Shepard smiles in reply, no other thoughts in her head anymore except only those involving Liara and the next few undisturbed hours in the arms of her lover.