Author's Note:
Thank you to all who have followed this story. As it winds down to the end – one more chapter to go – I have to say that the continued interest whether through reviews, PMs, alerts or favs has motivated me when I've been discouraged, and energized me when I've been weary. Kudos to you for helping me see this wickedly long story through to the end. *grin*

Along with that, it would be absurd of me – and quite the travesty – if I didn't also extend my humblest of gratitude toward my beta reader, Lyaksandra. Thank you for all of those tidbits, suggestions and kicks in the ass that go above and beyond the "normal" definitions of a beta reader. Thanks for being abnormal. ;)

Chapter 26

Lakota stared at the shimmering figure in front of her, surrounded by the forest background, and felt the cold, tingling sensation of déjà vu slither down her spine.

"Vindication?" she said, a small sigh escaping her lips. "So… you're a Prothean VI?"

With an air of practiced superiority and intolerance, Vindication stated, "I am an advanced non-organic analysis system with the personality imprints from Zjal Ashad, chief overseer of the Eletania research facility."

"So… you're a VI," the Spectre repeated, the tone of her words was light but laced with sarcasm.

Although she had encountered her first Prothean VI on Ilos, it wasn't until Javik joined her squad that she understood the VI's true significance within Prothean culture. During one of their initial discussions, she learned that within Prothean society unique individuals, those who rose above the rest, were chosen to be avatars, the embodiment of a single coveted trait, such as bravery, strength and cunning. Javik, she discovered, was the exemplar of Vengeance. Over the course of the last four years, she had encountered enough Prothean VIs to deduce that those individual chosen for this honor also imbued their VI's likeness with the same epitaph they carried in life. Vigil on Ilos, Victory on Eden Prime, Vendetta on Thessia. Each had been modeled after their creator and their creator's distinguished trait. She had a feeling that she would soon be finding out exactly what kind of vindication Zjal Ashad had attempted to sow in his lifetime.

While Lakota talked with the VI, Liara's mind raced with questions, her fingers tightening around the Spectre's hand which was still clasped in hers. "What kind of research occurred here?"

"The Prothean scientists in this facility observed primitive species, cultivating those they deemed to have potential and who would eventually be given the choice to join The Empire."

Shepard scoffed. "The choice? Not much of a choice if it's 'join us or die'."

"They didn't just study other species," Liara snarled. She suddenly felt as though she were back on the Normandy having a heated debate with Javik about the morality of Prothean interference in another race's natural development, her own included. No matter how many times she reminded herself that the atrocities committed on her people by the Protheans had occurred numerous millennia ago, the knowledge still felt like an open wound. An irritating wound that would take time to mend. "They influenced their development down paths that would ultimately benefit the Prothean Empire!"

Vindication tilted its head as if noticing Liara for the first time. "You are Asari. Your species was one of many to be nurtured and uplifted from their primitive existence."

"As some sort of science experiment turned war asset!" Liara accused, her words full of hostility and aggression clearly indicating that the bitterness she felt would not likely be eased anytime soon.

"It was believed that the inherent wisdom and patience of your species set them apart from the others that had been studied. In the event that the Empire fell, it was our hope that your species' advancement would provide the advantage and the knowledge needed to defeat the Reapers in the next cycle."

To Liara those words sounded hollow and clashed with her knowledge about the Prothean Empire and its bid for supremacy and dominance. And while one part of her mind acknowledged the fact that it was silly to argue with a digital construct of a long dead scientist, the other part of her mind rejoiced at the opportunity to release some of her pent up ire regarding past events.

"You had no right to tamper with our evolution!" she said, defiantly. "No right to experiment on our DNA." She emphasized the last few words, the intonation of her voice ice cold.

"You are here. The Reapers are no more." A light tone of arrogance colored Vindication's words. "Do you deny that Prothean tampering saved your cycle?"

Liara stepped forward, her blue eyes burning with resentment. "The combined might of every sentient species' military saved our cycle! Shepard saved our cycle!"

Vindication's aloof gaze turned towards Lakota. "And who gave Shepard the means to stop the Reapers?"

"Okay, enough," Lakota said, holding up her left hand, a signal that the turn in conversation had come to an end. "We can argue Prothean ethics or lack of them another time. Right now, there are more important questions… like, where are we?"

"Your physical body is still within the ruin. But this pocket of space is within your mind."

"Why didn't you just show yourself in the ruin?" Lakota asked. After her experience with the Leviathan on the ocean floor of 2181 Despoina, the idea of having a conversation within her mind was no longer shocking.

"In this realm, I am able to access your memories and monitor the Contagion."

"The Contagion?" Lakota asked. "What the hell is the Contagion?"

"You are the Contagion," Vindication stated matter-of-factly.

"Me? What does that mean?" Lakota barked while Liara simultaneously demanded, "What?! Explain yourself!"

Vindication regarded the Spectre with an air of indifference. "There is a pathogen within you. It is what ultimately destroyed the Reapers."

Lakota frowned, shaking her head in refusal. "Umm… no, there's not."

"I have accessed your memories," Vindication said, coolly. "I assure you, it is the truth."

Liara inched closer Lakota, settling into a protective stance. "How?! How is that possible?"

"Eletania was a top secret facility." Vindication's attention shifted to Liara as though preparing for her reaction with cold, clinical detachment. "Over centuries, scientists studied and aided the evolutionary path of certain primitive, organic races. Until the Reapers arrived. Then, the scientists joined the war effort, adjusting the parameters of their research. They focused on pathogens. They had only theories, but came to believe that they could create a virus within an organic that would end the Reapers."

Liara took a deep breath, attempting to maintain her composure in light of this new, unsettling information. "What happened?"

"The Reapers were a force unlike anything we had ever seen," Vindication said. "They seized control of the Citadel and through it, the mass relays. Our leaders were dead before we even realized we were under attack. Over the next decades, the Reapers systematically obliterated our people. World by world, system by system, they methodically wiped us out."

Lakota nodded. "Yes," she said, biting her lip to curb her impatience. "We heard the same story from Vigil, another VI, on Ilos."

"Then you know that through the Citadel, the Reapers had access to all of our records, maps, and census data. Information is power and they knew everything about us. We had lost the battle before it had even begun."

"How did this facility escape detection?" Liara asked.

"There were never any official records of the original project or the one adopted, so while the Prothean Empire came crashing down, Eletania was spared. All communication with the outside was severed and the facility went dark. Personnel retreated underground into the archives. Eventually, to conserve resources, everyone was put into cryogenic stasis. I was programmed to monitor the facility and wake the staff when the danger had passed. But the genocide of an entire species is a long, slow process. Years passed. Decades. Centuries. The Reapers persisted."

"The scientists didn't fight back?" Lakota said.

"They did, just not directly. The inhabitants of this facility were less than a hundred. Support staff. Security. Scientists. Their only hope was to remain undetected. Finally, the Reapers retreated back into dark space. When the scientists woke, they realized the Prothean species was doomed. They knew it was unlikely that there were other survivors, but by that time they had deduced the Reaper's pattern. They knew they would come again. There were only thirty-nine individuals left, far too few to sustain a viable population, yet they vowed to continue their research and find a way to break the cycle forever."

"This is when they focused on the creation of a virus?" Liara said as she constructed a timeline in her head.

"The scientists had studied the Reapers and their troops before going into stasis. They had surmised that the Reapers used the Citadel to guide each new cycle and also as the onset of its ending. They knew if nothing was done, then the next cycle would succumb to our same fate. So over the course of centuries of feverish research, the Contagion was created… a virus designed to end the Reapers."

"That just seems too good to be true," Lakota said skeptically. "A Reaper killing virus?"

Liara shook her head. "That still doesn't explain how Shepard was infected now… 50,000 years later. Unless…" Her eyes widening in understanding, she whispered,"…it was in the beacon on Eden Prime."

Vindication nodded. "At our apex, the beacons spanned the breadth of our empire. We used them as a single, galaxy-wide network to transmit data and communications rapidly from world to world. The Eletania scientists needed a way to store and transmit the virus, so they embedded it within a message and sent it across the beacon network. The virus was coded so only organic beings would be infected, but they discovered that most of the beacons had been destroyed during the invasion. To ensure the survival of the virus, the remaining members of the facility left to salvage what they could of the beacons. I do not know what became of them. It is unlikely they survived more than a few hundred years. I only know that they succeeded in their mission to embed the virus in the remaining active beacons. Your presence here proves their sacrifice was not in vain."

Raking her fingers roughly through the strands of her black hair, Lakota said, "So, I was given the virus when I touched the beacon on Eden Prime?"

"Yes."

"Saren touched the beacon," Lakota countered. "Was he infected, too?"

"No. The scientists knew of indoctrination and had identified a unique neural pattern within indoctrinated individuals. The virus was coded to ignore organics with those specific markers."

"Okay… so I touched the beacon, then became some sort of Reaper Typhoid Mary?" Lakota knew her comment sounded flippant, but she could see Liara become more agitated the further the conversation progressed. She hoped that some cheekiness would diffuse a little of the Asari's tension.

"No. You were infected, but the original strain of the virus remained dormant within your system for thirty-two days. Then, it became active."

"Active?" Lakota repeated. "How?"

Liara's free hand touched Lakota's shoulder. "Shepard… that's roughly when we were on Feros… The Cipher."

Rolling her eyes, Lakota said, "This just keeps getting better and better. Not only did the Cipher give me an understanding of Prothean culture and language, it activated a Reaper killer virus, which by the way, also seems to be turning me into a Prothean. Without the four eyes. At least… for now. But for the record, if that happens, it's really not going to be a good look for me."

Vindication's expression remained unreadable. "The scientists were unsure how the virus would affect organics in this time and they could not have accounted for the anomalies once the virus was implanted in your body."

"Why am I not surprised that they cared so little for future generations?" Liara grumbled rhetorically. Then, her brow furrowed in contemplation and she turned her questioning gaze toward the Prothean. "You said the original strain? What does that mean? Was Shepard infected again? Once wasn't enough?"

Ignoring Liara's accusatory tone, Vindication said, "The Contagion is a self-modifying virus. 1542 days ago, it mutated."

"1542 days ago…" Liara mumbled, doing the math in her head. "But that was four years ago. Shepard was—"

"Dead," Vindication finished. "Yes. As she suffocated in the vacuum of space, her physical body deteriorated and the virus adapted. To maintain its own functionality, it preserved her neural network. It kept her alive even in death."

Lakota shrugged her shoulders in a tentative acceptance. "I have to admit, that kinda explains how Miranda was able to bring me back without making me into Frankenstein's monster."

Liara gaped at the Spectre, clearly confused by her seemingly cavalier attitude toward the information regarding her own health. Then, she sighed heavily as a look of frustration flashed across her face. "Even if all of this is true, that doesn't explain how the virus in an organic host was supposed to infect and end the Reapers."

"The scientists' hope revolved around more beacons surviving. More organics being infected. When those organics or their progeny were indoctrinated or assimilated into Reaper ground troops, the virus would be unleashed. Obviously, that did not transpire."

"Okay then… what did transpire?" Lakota asked. "If you've accessed my memories, then you've seen the events of my life, the events on the Citadel." She took a deep breath and prepared herself for the unknown. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"Anything I would have to say would be conjecture."

Lakota's eyes narrowed, irritation flashing brightly within their pale green depths. "Please, conject away." There was no hint of playfulness in her tone this time.

Seconds ticked by and a thick silence descended on the group as Vindication held the Spectre's steadfast gaze.

Finally, the Prothean VI said, "The Contagion mutated the first time, preserving your mind. When you were revived, it mutated again, modifying itself to the new host body. The cybernetics used to restore your physical health had a Reaper signature and the virus became attuned to that unique code. It grew and learned from it. Combined with your DNA's innate adaptability, it became the perfect Reaper pathogen."

"So, EDI was right," Lakota murmured. "The Illusive Man was experimenting with Reaper tech even then."

"When you confronted the Intelligence and were given your choices, you decided to end the Reapers. When you destroyed the device, you thought you died, but in truth your digital essence was assimilated into the Reaper's collective intelligence, along with the virus. The Intelligence was unaware that you were the Contagion. Instead of eradicating all synthetic life, the energy wave, altered by the virus, isolated and destroyed all synthetic life with a Reaper signature."

Lakota took a moment to glimpse at Liara who had remained quiet and contemplative throughout the exchange as though committing every detail to memory for later study. Then, she squeezed the Asari's hand reassuringly and turned her gaze back on the Prothean.

"It assimilated my digital essence?" she said. "What about my body?"

"Your physical body was never on the Citadel. When you stepped into that beam of energy on Earth, your mind was transported to a place much like this one, but your physical-self remained on Earth."

"I knew it," Lakota whispered as a wave of nausea assaulted her senses causing her to pause momentarily. "Not at the time, of course… because, at the time, I thought it was all very real. But then, after the explosion, I was back on Earth and I felt so different. My body felt different. The pain felt different. Even breathing felt different. And, I knew something strange had just occurred. Something completely and utterly surreal."

As she recalled those incongruous moments of fading in and out of consciousness, she wondered, not for the first time, if she would ever have a normal life. She wondered how people defined the parameters of normal or if it could be defined. Whatever the answer, she knew that the events unfolding right now were not normal. This was not normal. This was out of her control, just like when she was trapped beneath the rubble on Earth with darkness consuming every inch of space and heaviness pressing her down, keeping her immobile.

As those thoughts rushed through her mind in rapid-fire succession, the air around her grew warm and thick. Suffocating. Like the familiar yet unnerving sensation of smoke and ash invading her pores, constricting her lungs. All at once Lakota's heart began to race, her chest began to pound and she couldn't breathe. She desperately wanted to flee, but felt rooted in place.

Who the hell has a panic attack within their own mind?

She pushed that thought away as lightheadedness threatened to overtake her. Then, she felt her hand being squeezed tightly and she focused on that sensation, making it her sole lifeline through the swell of darkness smothering her in fear. When she was able to open her eyes, she found herself staring at the ground, and realized she had bent over while trying to catch her breath. At that moment, she knew, with perfect clarity, that she would never know what a normal life was like.

Liara knelt down so she could see her lover's face. Her normally light bronze skin was pale and withdrawn. "Shepard," she said, her voice full of concern, "what's wrong?"

Unable to speak, Lakota just shook her head. Rationally, she knew that this environment was not real. That her heart wasn't actually pounding erratically. Her skin wasn't truly clammy. She wasn't really hyperventilating. But irrationally, all of those things were devastatingly true and the need to escape was overwhelming.

"Vindication," she growled through clenched teeth, "get us out of here. Take us back to the ruin."

"We are within your mind. It is you who brought us to this place. Leaving is entirely up to you."

The words sounded eerily familiar to Lakota, then, she remembered the dream where the Prothean, this Prothean, first unveiled itself. Carefully, she straightened up, forcing herself to take slow, deep breaths. "Your image is somehow embedded within the virus. I saw you in my dream."

"The message sent across the beacon network was encrypted with Zjal Ashad image. The virus was not."

Lakota tightened her jaw muscles, her pithy retort caught in her throat as she fought down another sickly rush of nausea.

Seeing the Spectre's obvious distress, Liara stood and wrapped her arm around the human's, then turned confrontationally toward Vindication. "Was the virus supposed to take a form within the host's mind?" she asked icily.

"It was an unexpected development."

"Another mutation?"

"Human DNA is unpredictable."

Nonplussed, Liara rolled her eyes, and then, dryly reaffirmed her initial comment. "Another mutation."

With all the warmth generated by a polar ice cap, the Prothean VI stared at Liara as if evaluating something abnormal in a specimen tube. "As is your presence."

"I am not the interloper in Shepard's mind. You are!" Liara glanced at Lakota, her unease multiplying exponentially at the sight of her lover's persisting malady.

"You misunderstand. I am making no threat, just an observation. Your presence in the Human's mind is unprecedented."

"You'll find that our bond is unprecedented." The last word was spoken as a challenge.

"So it would seem."

Lakota had barely managed to follow the conversation. Even with Liara's support, her main concern had been to remain upright while her vision dimmed and the pounding within her chest continued to grow.

Could it be possible for someone to pass out in their own mind?

As interesting as that thought was, she decided that it wasn't something she wanted to explore. "This… has been fun," she gasped through shortened breaths, "but I think it's time to go."

Biting her lip, she forced down another debilitating wave of panic. Then, pinching the bridge of her nose with the forefinger and thumb of her left hand, she concentrated on the ruin, the room they were last in, its grey alien walls, the metal debris scattered on the floor, the smell of charred electronics in the air…

When Lakota finally opened her eyes back in reality, she and Liara were still standing in the ruin's underground room. Her left hand was still held by Liara's and her right hand was resting on the artifact.

Vindication's shimmering holographic image appeared next to the sphere a moment later, watching the Spectre with pointed interest.

Lakota stepped away from the orb, lost her balance and stumbled into Liara, who caught and held her upright.

Liara saw the Spectre's half-lidded eyes, the trail of blood trickling from her nose and knew something was seriously wrong, something that went beyond sharing her mind with another. Fear pressed in on her thoughts as she glared angrily at the VI. "What is happening?" she demanded.

"The Contagion was not designed to survive beyond the execution of its original task. Once it infected the Reapers, its life was over."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Lakota said, feebly. But as the words left her mouth, she was overcome with a weakness that swept through her body like a tidal wave. Her legs buckled and she slipped through Liara's arms, falling heavily to her knees. It took all of her remaining strength and concentration to keep from collapsing entirely.

Liara quickly dropped to her knees as well, wrapping a protective, steadying arm around Lakota. "Shepard, look at me. Look at me!" The researcher's hand cupped the human's cheek, steadying her wobbling head as panicky blue eyes sought out green.

Lakota squeezed her eyes tightly against the rush of blood pounding between her ears. Then, as the pressure abated, she blinked rapidly, trying to clear her blurry vision.

"I'm okay," she said, weakly, playing down her symptoms as her hand attempted to wipe the blood off of her mouth and chin. "Same thing happened with the Leviathan."

"You are not okay!" Liara countered, her concern adding a frantic intensity to her tone. "This is not the same!"

While it was true that the Spectre suffered similar aftereffects on 2181 Despoina, this was far more debilitating, and with all they had just learned, far more frightening, as well. A light but steady stream of blood continued to flow from her nose, forming a dark, wet pool on the floor at their knees.

Lakota struggled to stay upright as her exhausted body swayed back and forth, until finally it slipped from her control and she collapsed into Liara, knocking them both to the floor.

"Shepard!" Liara twisted as they fell, making sure she landed in a seated position, gently cradling her lover's prone form in her arms. "Don't close your eyes. Stay focused on me. Look at me."

Lakota's head rested on Liara's shoulder, making it surprisingly easy for her bleary vision to find blue. She opened her mouth to speak, but weightlessness settled within her bones, siphoning away her remaining energy.

As trembling fingers smoothed back loose strands of black hair, Liara noticed another trail of blood initiating from her lover's ear. "Just keep looking at me," she said, her eyes swelling with moisture.

"The virus is still active within her system," Vindication said, casually, clearly not fazed by the scene.

Liara shot a deathly glare at the Prothean VI as she seethed, "Is that why her physiology is changing?! Why her cybernetics are failing?!"

Although a digital construct, Vindication had the wisdom not to reply.

"Liara," Lakota whispered as her right hand struggled to reach up, fingertips gently brushing along the Asari's cheek. When her hand dropped to her chest she noted with sadness that a red smear now marred blue skin. "You're right… different this time."

Within the gathering wetness of unshed tears, Liara's blue eyes sparkled like dark sapphires. "Shh… save your strength."

"So sorry…"

Choking back a sob, Liara shook her head and pleaded, "Lakota, no… it's not time… don't go..."

As the Spectre's breaths came in slower, her lungs struggling to do their work, the normal luster within her green eyes began to fade. "Don't think I can stay…"

"Of course you can." Liara, unable to rein in her tears any longer, blinked back the wetness that blurred her vision. "We have so much yet to do."

As her eyes closed, the corners of Lakota's lips rose in a faint, sorrowful smile.

Liara tightened her embrace, pulling their bodies closer together. Her voice shaking in anguish, she whispered, "I love you so much."

Numbness settled throughout the Spectre's body as her remaining strength slowly ebbed away and her already short breaths became barely perceptible gasps. She wanted to see Liara's face one more time, but her eyelids were far too heavy to open. Instead, she felt herself slipping into the soothing darkness.

Liara squeezed her eyes shut briefly against the image of her lover's swiftly declining health, then turned her venomous gaze on the Prothean VI. "You caused this! She's dying because of you!"

"That she survived this long with the active virus is a testament to her strength."

Liara didn't know if she could hate the Protheans and their evolutionary meddling any more than she did in that moment.

As tears poured down her cheeks unnoticed, she hissed, "May the Goddess find you a hell where you rot for Eternity!"

She returned her gaze to her lover's limp, inert form, transforming her anger and grief into determination. Without releasing her hold, she activated her omni-tool's medical diagnostic program, scanning the Spectre's body.

First, she initialized the immunity boosting system Miranda installed in the Spectre's armor, a last resort wild card if the cybernetic degradation became rampant. It would bolster the human's autoimmune system to avoid the risk of bacteremia, and in this case, fight off the spread of the virus. Then, she had the armor's biometric software administer a dose of synthetic platelets and analgesic which would curb the blood loss and aid in pain management.

"Your efforts will only delay the inevitable." The unemotional and impassive voice of the Prothean VI echoed within the room.

"Right now," Liara snapped, "time is the most valuable commodity in my universe."

She watched as the medications slowly began to have an effect, leveling out her lover's biometric readings, bringing some color back to her pallid skin. After a few agonizing seconds, Lakota took a long deep breath. And then another.

Liara's left hand covered her mouth, stifling a sob as she was immersed in a sudden flood of relief. Cheeks still damp with salty tears, she turned toward the Prothean VI.

"You have to do something," she demanded.

Vindication's appearance was one of indifference. "I cannot aid her."

"She destroyed the Reapers. She was the impetus of your people's vindication. Help her! You owe her that much!"

Seconds that felt like hours to Liara ticked by before the Prothean VI spoke again.

"There may be a way, but it will be painful for you."

Liara glanced at Lakota's unconscious, weakening form. Her voice shaking, she whispered, "I'll do anything."