"Ah, here she is now."

Liara crossed the floor to where the Council were standing in company with two human men. By their uniforms, both were Alliance- one a captain, and the other an admiral. They turned to regard her, and she gave them a stiff nod, her eyes shifting to Councilor Tevos as the older asari spoke.

"Liara, this is Admiral Steven Hackett and Captain David Anderson of the Alliance. Gentlemen, this is Liara T'Soni."

"We spoke via QEC when you were selected to oversee Williams and Feris," Hackett said, offering her his hand. "It is good to meet you face to face."

"It is my honor," she replied, accepting the hand briefly.

"I take it Dr. Shepard is safely at Huerta," Sparatus, the turian councilor, said. "What is her condition?"

"Minor injuries. The doctors expect her to wake and be on her feet shortly. C-Sec has the entire floor locked down and at the moment, Ashley Williams is providing guard in her room."

"As safe as can be expected for now," Anderson said, and looked at Tevos. "We have also taken her family into protective custody. We don't expect the same kind of attack upon them, however they are at risk to be taken as leverage against her cooperation."

"We need to question her," Sparatus said, folding his arms.

"With all due respect, Councilor- if Dr. Shepard were involved with the events on Purdue then Orthrus would not be trying to eliminate her," Anderson said. Sparatus narrowed his eyes a little.

"I am aware of that, Captain. However, she may know more than we realize- or even she realizes. We need her help, but in the event- however unlikely- that we lose her, we need all the information she can give us. It may mean the difference between victory and a tragedy of unprecedented proportion."

"Captain, my associate is not suggesting an interrogation," Tevos said. "Merely questioning. Liara, I trust you can handle the matter with tact?"

"Of course," Liara replied.

"T'Soni has two of your own best and brightest under her purview at the moment," Valern told the men. "They will be present during questioning, and will share in the duties of both guarding and escorting Dr. Shepard. She will be in no better hands, I assure you- and the Alliance will be given regular reports as to progress and information that is gathered."

"Very well," Hackett agreed. "Then you have the Alliance's full cooperation."

"Good. We are all hoping for a swift and satisfactory end to these horrible events," Tevos said. "Liara, you are authorized to fully brief Dr. Shepard as well. This meeting is concluded."

Liara nodded, but as she turned to head back to the hospital, Anderson strode up beside her. "Captain T'Soni, if you don't mind, I will accompany you back to Heurta to speak with Dr. Shepard."

She paused, lifting a brow as she regarded him. "You feel she may not be inclined to speak with me?"

"I know you have been briefed on Dr. Shepard's career. Her entire life has been opened up and scrutinized by dozens of eyes these last forty-eight hours, but even so, there are some things you must understand. Dr. Shepard grew up on Earth. During her pre-graduate medical studies she dissected hundreds of donated bodies from nearly every sentient species, however she has never encountered any living non-human face to face. Before she moved to our colony on Virmire five years ago, she had never even set foot off-world."

"You think she would be disinclined to cooperate with me because I am asari."

"I didn't get the sense from her psych profile that she would be outright xenophobic, but being face to face with an alien for the first time might make her nervous. She might be more relaxed with me, and given the added difficulties her family might pose-"

"Why would her family be a cause for concern?"

"You have to understand. Dr. Shepard's family are incredibly wealthy and influential-"

"Yes, her father is Senator Jacob Shepard, and her mother Verona is the daughter of a former Prime Minister. Her older sister Inna is the current Prime Minister's domestic liaison."

"Exactly. Jake Shepard is also an incredibly stubborn man. A good man, mind, and charming- but more than used to getting his own way. At this very moment, Alliance security is making the three of them virtual prisoners in their own homes. In less than half an hour, newsfeeds from here to the Traverse will be on fire with the news, and people are going to want to know where the good doctor is- including Senator Shepard."

"The events on Purdue are currently classified," Liara said softly, nodding.

"Exactly. Until we get a handle on this there is no reason to cause a galaxy-wide panic, but I can almost guarantee the Senator will be vocal in his demands regarding his youngest child. He will want to know exactly where she is and what danger she is in, and will view any redirection of his demands as grounds to dig his heels in even deeper, demand even louder. The Alliance can run interference and keep him more or less under control…however Shepard herself may insist on at least contacting her family. If she talks to her father she may be easily swayed, become uncooperative. He may lay a blanket of politics on this so thick it will take years to cut the red tape…years we don't have. This whole thing could explode out of control very quickly. I think for her sake, as well as the sake of the greater galaxy, it is best if she is kept out of contact of her family completely for now."

"I do not know the doctor personally, but would that not also risk losing her cooperation? If she feels she is being lied to or that she is being kept from her family…"

"It's possible, yes, but we have little choice. I can reassure her that her family is fine, and let her know we can send her pictures and updates about their well-being on a regular basis. I can convince her that it is for their own good, their own safety, that she remain out of contact. I do not know the doctor either, but if she is the kind of person I suspect she is from her file, once she is aware of the real gravity of what is happening, she'll cooperate."

"Very well. I will defer to you for the moment, Captain."

"I appreciate that, thank you."

"She should be awake by the time we make it back to the hospital. I have a car waiting that will take us there."


When they arrived on the secure floor in Huerta, Feris was outside the room door in full hard-suit, talking with the doctor. Though C-Sec was officially in charge of keeping everyone but authorized personnel off this floor, the two cousins had remained to insure that no one passed in or out of the room with intent to harm their charge. Feris being out here meant Williams was currently inside, also seated by the door and just as armed and armored as the younger commander.

As Liara and Anderson appeared in view, Feris straightened and saluted. Anderson returned it with a nod. "Good to see you again, Sam."

"And you, sir. Everything is green, no incidents to report."

"Good. How is she?" His attention shifted to the doctor, who cleared his throat.

"She's awake, and walking some. She'll be sore for a day or two but there's no permanent damage. She's asking questions we can't answer, however."

"We'll take care of that, doctor, thank you. Sam, stay here. No one is to enter until we come back out, understood?"

"Of course, sir."

She punched in the code to unlock the door, Liara and Anderson stepping inside. Ashley, sitting in a chair near the door, immediately stood up, a hand going to her pistol before she relaxed and saluted, then resealed the door.

Dr. Shepard was sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing hospital scrubs, her feet bare. She was still bruised, but the scrapes and fractures had been repaired. She had one hand over her stomach, and her long dark hair was mussed as she peered almost tentatively at the two who came in.

"Dr. Shepard, I'm Captain Anderson of the Alliance. Do you mind if I speak with you?"

"I would be ecstatic if someone would," she replied. "No one will tell me anything."

"I'm sorry about that, but unfortunately the situation is rather…delicate. This is Liara T'Soni, a Council Spectre. Do you remember her from Virmire?"

Shepard's dark brown eyes shifted to Liara and ever so subtly she seemed to shrink a little, become slightly smaller, slightly younger. She absent-mindedly brushed a loose lock of hair back behind her ear, and nodded. "Yes. I do."

"Good. This is Commander Williams. Commander Feris is just outside the door. They are working with Liara right now on a matter of grave importance-"

"A matter that obviously involves me."

"Yes, indeed. Do you mind if I sit?"

She shook her head, and he pulled over a chair, sitting and facing her. "Dr. Shepard, the mercs who attacked you at your home…did any of them speak to you?"

"No," she said. "My first clue they were there is when my computer systems went down, and my windows exploded. After that, they only seemed interested in shooting at me."

"Yes. The mercs were from a group called Orthrus. Normally they operate on the outskirts of Council space and within the Traverse."

He produced a small data pad, pulling up an image before offering it to her. "Do you know who this is?"

She took the pad, her lips tightening and her ears drawing back slightly as she looked at the photo. "Yes," she said after a moment. "This is Dr. Gellian Osco. What does she have to do with anything?"

"Correct. Dr. Osco is the controlling force behind Orthrus."

"Osco?" She blinked. "What would she be doing with mercs? And why would she send them after me? I haven't even spoken to her in three years!"

"What can you tell us about Dr. Osco?" he asked.

She gestured helplessly. "I…met her during my undergraduate work. She was the top geneticist in her field, and I was lucky enough to intern for her. She saw promise in my work, and after graduation she sponsored me to join a team at her labs on Virmire…that's why I moved there."

"What kind of work were you doing on Virmire?"

"Research, chemical therapy, multi-species DNA mapping…the goal was to find if there was a way to use genetic manipulation and DNA rewriting to reprogram stem-cells from one sentient species to replicate and incorporate mitochondrial code for another. Basically, we were hoping to be able to take human stem-cells to regrow replaceable organs or correct DNA sequences for turians, or vice versa, for disease elimination. Turians don't get cancer or cystic fibrosis, and humans don't get Carthiogis Syndrome or Krepaulson's. By isolating the turian genetic resistance to, say, cancer, and rewriting it via cultured stem-cells introduced into developing human embryos, we could introduce a natural genetic resistance in humans to several diseases, and the same for turians, by doing the reverse. Or asari, or drell, or anyone."

"Sounds ambitious," Liara said. Shepard glanced at her, and then shook her head.

"Impossible, as it turned out. We had some promising starts but in the end, we had no real favorable or duplicable results. Funding was funneled into more promising programs off world and the labs were closed. I moved to Thenn Labs on the other side of Virmire and began my current work on proscriptive micro-cellular therapy and I haven't spoken to Gellian since. All of which you already know, since the Alliance was where she got half of her funding."

He chose to ignore this. "Dr. Shepard, what was your take on Dr. Osco? If you had to describe her to me…"

"Smart," she said instantly. "Incredibly, outrageously, and almost frighteningly smart. The most intelligent person I ever met- and unstable."

"Unstable?"

She eyed him. "I don't mean to be rude, Captain, but this is all in her records. Why are you asking me what the Alliance already knows?"

"Records are impersonal," he said. "They list evaluations, aptitudes, statistics, but cannot tell you the heart and soul of a person."

"And you need to know Gellian's heart and soul?"

When he said nothing, she sighed. "Look, I admired Gellian. We got along decently well, but truth be told, the woman frightened me. She was on a dozen different medications- both prescribed and not. She was prone to talking to herself. She slept maybe four hours out of any given night and I don't think I once ever saw her eat anything. She was obsessive, meticulous-amiable one moment and the next screaming about an error in calculation or an unfavorable result. She was absolutely obsessed with perfection. I know she suffered from Petit Wahler's and that was a lot of the cause of both her genius and her instability. She was a hard person to get to know, if not impossible. None of it explains what she's doing with mercenaries or why she had them attack my home!"

Anderson sat back a little. "Dr. Shepard, the answer to those questions is classified information. If we can count on you for your assistance, I can extend to you the title of Advisor to the Military, which will give you clearance to the answers…however, I need you to understand all that entails. We are in need of your expertise, but from the moment of your agreement until further notice, you cannot disseminate anything you might learn to any unauthorized persons. That includes your family, friends, and any member of the media. To break that classification would be considered treason, not only to the Alliance but to the authorities of Council Space."

She stared at him, her eyes flicking nervously a moment toward Liara, before she looked down at her lap. After a moment, she looked back up at him.

"Are people in danger? Besides me, I mean?"

"Yes."

"And you are certain I can help?"

"I have every faith that you can. So does Gellian, apparently, or those mercs never would have been on Virmire."

"Can you guarantee my safety, my family-…?"

"Your family is in protective custody. Due to the classification, you will not be able to communicate with them for the duration. To do so not only puts you at risk but them as well. I can promise you that they will be safe…no one is going to get to them without wiping out the entire Alliance forces in the process. You, however…you may be required to enter into some dangerous situations. It's unavoidable. You will be under Liara's protection and she and her crew will do their utmost to keep you safe, but no. I cannot guarantee that safety. No one can."

After a heartbeat, she nodded. "Then, I promise I will do what I can to help."

"You are absolutely certain, doctor?"

"Those mercs tried to kill me," she said. "They blew up my home, and from the sound of it you think they may go as far as to threaten my family. I believe you when you say other lives may be in danger too, and I know that you must be desperate if you're asking me for help, so…yes. I am certain. I will do what I can."

"Very well," he said. "Three days ago, a repurposed missile shell filled with an unidentified biochemical substance struck the center of a small human colony on the fringes of the Traverse called Purdue. Five hundred souls made up that colony, and within twenty minutes of the missile's impact, two hundred of them were dead."

He took back the data pad, cleared the image of Osco and pulled up a file, before handing it to her again. "There was no detonation or explosive contained in the missile, however on impact it released an extended mist. Most of those who came into contact with this mist remained fine for the first few minutes, then became seized with violent coughing and sneezing fits before they simply dropped dead. What quarantined autopsy reports we have on these individuals suggest cause of death is massive cardiac failure."

She looked over the report with a grim expression. "And you think that Gellian was responsible for this attack? Why would she do that?"

"We are not entirely sure, but we are positive Osco was behind this, and more…we have reason to believe that she may intend to release several more of these devices on worlds across Council space."

"A fatality rate of forty percent in twenty minutes…." She said softly, horrified. "You said most of those who came into contact directly with the fluid displayed symptoms and died of cardiac failure. What of the others? The remaining three hundred?"

"That's where it gets worse," he said. "Of the three hundred colonists that did not die immediately, at first there seemed to be no effect. They contacted the Alliance reporting the attack and requesting aid. Fortunately, the heads of the colony immediately put a halt on anyone leaving the planet's surface. Their quick thinking seems to have prevented the spread of this off world…for now. By the time our forces arrived, however, those that remained alive were…affected."

"Affected?"

"Roughly seventy-five percent of those still alive were mindless, hostile. They were hallucinating, combative, paranoid and extremely vicious. We had to send doctors down in hard-suits in addition to their regular static-free equipment. A lot of the colonists seemed to be somewhat feral, hiding in the surrounding hills. A few were captured when they attacked. You have their full medical workup there on that pad."

She filed through, selecting the required folder. The color draining from her face was almost visible. "They have almost no recognizable brain tissue…it looks…eaten away."

"Yes. Only the most primitive brainstem remains even remotely intact. Over a period of days they are reduced to animals, and attack anything that comes near them."

"And the remaining twenty-five percent?" she asked hesitantly.

"Confusing," he said. "Most show drastic and apparently random mutations. Spontaneously appearing cancers, cells dividing out of control…one fellow grew an arm out of the center of his back, and a second heart on his thigh. Others are growing tissues that don't even match their species. Given what you just told us about your research on Virmire, that should sound familiar."

Shepard looked baffled, horrified, and sick all at the same time. "Wh-why would she do this? Why do such a horrible thing?"

"That is what we hope to find out. Right now it is isolated on Purdue, but as I said…we don't think she intends to stop there. Our statisticians predict that should a missile with similar specs to the one that hit Purdue strike a heavily populated city center on Palaven, Thessia, or Earth- or should a detonation take place at a main interstellar hub like the Citadel or Omega- well. It would only be a matter of months, if not weeks, before it has spread through the entire galaxy. Billions would die. It would be a catastrophe unimaginable in scope and almost impossible to contain."

"Military operatives and special forces are already putting in every effort to find Gellian or her base of operations," Liara said. "Measures are being taken to stop the threat at the source. However what we need-"

"Is a cure," Shepard said, looking back down at the data pad.

"Yes. You are familiar with Osco's earlier work and possess the skills to identify and even dissect this plague, on a genetic level. You offer unique insights no one else in this galaxy-save Osco herself-can provide. You can identify the parameters of this plague and possibly help to develop measures, defenses, inoculations…if not an outright cure."

Her brows knit, the faint tremble in her voice as she asked a question proving that she suspected the answer…and didn't want to know it.

"There were twenty of us in that project on Virmire. Why me? Any one of them could serve in the same capacity."

He leaned back, his expression serious. "Besides Osco, you were the most talented geneticist on staff on that project. Even if you were not, the others are now…beyond rendering their assistance."

"They're dead, you mean."

"Yes," he said with a sigh. "Most were targeted and taken out almost the same time the missile hit Purdue. Before we even knew what we were dealing with, the others were dropping like flies. We very nearly didn't even reach you in time. Osco was very systematic in eliminating anyone with not only the skills, but the background knowledge that might lead to a cure. Any other doctor, no matter how talented, would take years familiarizing themselves with the research and the data that you already know. Your hands-on experience makes you invaluable, and because of it, she desperately wants you out of the picture."

She carefully set the data pad down on the bed beside her, folding her hands in her lap. Her brows knit, then smoothed again as she met his eyes. "What about the survivor?"

"Survivor?"

"Of the last twenty-five percent, you said most showed dramatic mutations. No plague, natural or man-made, is ever one hundred percent effective. There is someone on Purdue who is showing no sign of the same mutation or neural degradation of the other infected, isn't there? Someone immune."

"Actually…there are two-"

"Good, with samples of their blood and of the infected tissue from some of the others, it should not be difficult to isolate the virus causing-"

"Easier said than done, doctor," he told her, holding his hands up. "Even without you, we have our best minds working on such samples now. They have been since the moment the Alliance responded to the attack. There is no virus."

"You're kidding me!"

"I wish I were. Unfortunately, we have heard the same report over and over again from our medical teams. There is no virus, no toxin, no bacteria…in fact, there is no carrier or foreign body- biological or technological- that they can identify."

"There has to be a carrier of some sort, Captain. This plague didn't just jump from the missile into these people's bodies on the power of Gellian Osco's wishes alone. "

"So the doctors keep telling me, and yet…there is no trace of one. One more mystery we're hoping you can solve."

She closed her eyes, one shaking hand pressing momentarily into her forehead. Anderson watched her a moment, then rose. "We need to get you to Purdue as quickly as possible. Liara will take you on the Aswa. If you leave immediately you can be there within four hours."

She dropped her hand and looked at him again. "I need to call my family."

"I'm afraid that won't be possible."

She scowled. "They need to know I'm safe."

"They are being informed of that as we speak. However for your safety and theirs, we cannot reveal your whereabouts or any details about what you are engaged in. Until we locate Osco, it's far too risky to all of you."

She said nothing, and he nodded. "I will see that appropriate clothing is brought to you. The Alliance appreciates everything you're able to do, Dr. Shepard."

She watched him go, then covered her face, letting out a heavy sigh. Liara watched her a moment.

"It is a lot to absorb," she said. Shepard glanced at her, bundling her hands in her lap again with a nod.

"Yeah, you could say that," she replied, then shook her head. "Osco was intense, unstable…but something like this? She's mad. She has to be. So many people…and I'm supposed to help them?"

"She must believe you can, or else she would not want you out of the way," Liara said.

Shepard's smile was weak, bitter. "So the crazy woman willing to infect an entire colony- if not the whole galaxy- with a horrific engineered plague has faith in me. That's reassuring."

Liara lifted a brow. "You also said she was the most intelligent person you had ever met."

"Yeah," she said, then tucked her hair behind her ear again, coloring a little. "Listen, I-I didn't get a chance to thank you yet. For, you know…saving my life and everything."

Liara inclined her head slightly. "You are welcome. I have a few things I need to see to before we leave. Ashley and Sam will see you safely to the Aswa after you have had a chance to change. I will meet you on board."

The asari turned and walked to the door, pausing only a moment to murmur softly with Williams before she stepped out. After she'd gone, Shepard closed her eyes miserably, and covered them with her hand.