Deep Space Advance Frigate Shuttle 01/ Harpy

"No I've never heard of it but it's definitely further than where I could throw you," Shepard returned.

Lance chuckled before his expression sobered. "We have the knowledge but not the means. To begin a settlement, we need a lot of materials. We kick start some of the salvageable Cerberus mining industries, reestablished trade with merchants who had stockpiles of what we needed. Namely, delivering supplies to those I've saved. They would pay me in edible provisions for humans."

"To those you saved?"

"You remember Conrad Verner? During the war, I took over and diverted a small Cerberus force to find aliens who survived attacks on their homes and evacuation fleets. Many were adrift in wrecks and lifepods. They took them to the abandoned Cerberus base in the Erebus System where you found them. I also removed some of the refugees who were settled on the colonies Terra Firma established before they could be sent to Omega."

"Why would you do that? You have no love for aliens."

"No but they could serve many purposes. Then, I see them as an alternate resource for the war. Those who were able and trained would be the reserves that could be called upon if the need arises. As Cerberus were considered Reaper allies, they could move easily in enemy territories. If asked, they could say they were picking up survivors to be made into thralls. The survivors were offloaded into freighters where a human face, than a Cerberus uniform, were accepted more readily."

"Why would the merchants agree to a trade arrangement?"

"Some of the refugees are related or friends with those merchants. I provided proof and communication exchanges. With the TI rampaging across their homeworlds, they chose to stay where they were."

"You could still get your payment without bothering to deliver the food."

"Ahhh April." He wagged a chiding finger at her. "I admit to having no love for them, I didn't say I'm sadistic or a psychopath. I made arrangements to have Terra Firma personnel attached to outflung Cerberus outposts leave as soon as they could. Those with unaffiliated colonies couldn't leave without rousing suspicion and alarm so we arranged it so their disappearances would seem the work of TI."

"About the connection with the TI..." began Shepard.

"It's a communication web established by the Cerberus leadership after the Reapers were gone. They wanted to tap TI resources to have ground forces ready to work concurrently with Cerberus forces when they attacked Earth. Creating trouble at other homeworlds would ensure no one would aid the Alliance. That was their intention but of course they didn't put it that way. What they did not anticipate was conflict with their spiel that Earth would be the springboard to the Reapers' return. The turians said no, Palaven was more important because turians were the best and strongest fighters. The asari TI said the same thing except that they argued Thessia had more resources and everyone of them was a biotic. Every other TI on other homeworlds had the same view that they themselves knew best how to avenge and bring back their masters."

"Thank heavens for small favours," muttered Shepard.

"Indeed. Sane or insane, they couldn't work together without the Reapers sitting on them. The idea of building up their individual armies took hold. That's why a slew of kidnappings occurred but with the indoctrination process taking time, they had to try to find other means to speed it up."

"Couldn't they have turned them into husks?"

"A husk is basically a semi-organic robot programmed with a set of orders and would carry it out with no deviation unless the Reapers chose to change it," he said with an air of patience, clearly expecting her to know all the salient points of Reaper minions by now but was prepared to humor her.

"A TI implanted with a similar directive, retained mental faculties and operate autonomously up to a certain point. Turning their victims into husks would gain them plenty of robots and unable to input new directives. They would be nothing more than dumb targets for automated defense fire. They wanted thralls with the ability to plan, to devise and craft. The Cerberus leadership agreed to give them a helping hand, using data from various projects."

"The Adjutants."

"Yes. Admiral Hackett was a determined man who knew what had to be done. He would have the TI removed from Earth and conducted such a rigorous campaign that the human TI didn't have much leeway to counter the pummeling. Driven from pillar to post, they appealed for aid from the Cerberus leadership who for some reason I could not discern, did not give them the Adjutant data. Perhaps some form of sanity remained within them. Perhaps it was counterproductive to their objectives. My clone counterpart furnished reports that Cerberus forces were too weak to overcome the garrisons around the planet. It's not hard to convince the leadership. With the Citadel and two combined fleets parked right next to Earth, they could add the numbers. It was at this time, Saracino broke free of the conditioning."

"How?"

"Perhaps it was my earlier meddling when I tried to set him free. I'm not certain. I received a comm call from him, on a channel only we knew, that he was in charge of Cerberus and that the leadership was dead. I was delighted, ecstatic. With him in charge, we could quickly accomplish what we wanted. We were at the final stages so I left most of the reins of Terra Firma to him and worked to collate the inventories and finalise the logistics of the migration. It wasn't a few months later that I found that he wasn't really himself."

"What did he do?"

"He formed odd perceptions and ideas about the people on Earth. They were lost sheep. They had to be controlled so they wouldn't listen blindly to aliens. If they would not submit, then they must be forced to that point. Then they would see that they must leave Earth and set up a new home in the place we found. I knew then he was damaged. I found that he had shifted Cerberus forces to staging areas from which he hoped to lure and destroy Alliance vessels. He made plans to retake Omega even knowing that it was abandoned when research subjects broke free and destroyed most of the forces stationed there. The cost for such a venture was not considered. What was worse, he had directed Terra Firma merchant freighters to seed missile pods in the debris field in Earth orbit after the war. I could not divert him from his decision to bombard the planet. I had to find ways to circumvent his directives. He was lucid enough to know he didn't have long to live. I knew he took his own life later on rather than turned into a husk."

"If you're no sadist, why send non-humans to Omega?" she asked in a hard voice.

"You're assuming I'm Saracino's only hand," he said, "and that I had a free hand. He had other followers who believed Cerberus had the right tact when it came to aliens. Not all Terra Firma members are decent humans. There are xenophobes and radicals who would not hesitate to carry out a cleansing. The order to segregate the aliens was prudent, it saved their lives. However, I could not countermand the order for them to be sent to Omega. The Cerberus leadership were still existent when it was given."

"And you are going to set up a new shop with bugs in it," Shepard said dryly.

"There won't be any by the time we reach our destination."

She stared at him for a moment. "What. Are you going to pitch them out during the journey?"

He shook his head disapprovingly. "A waste of resources. They're healthy, with useful skills. The only thing that need to be done is to adjust their views."

"That's..."

"We'll be alone," he interrupted. "We'll be the only humans. We have to be of one purpose, there cannot be dissension nor any actions carried out on extreme principles."

There was nothing she could add to that for she saw his point, unethical as it was. It was his problem, not hers. For now. "So you redirected the attack on Earth?"

"I did. For all our hopes and dreams, our assumptions and predictions based on the data, it is still a risky venture into the unknown. Earth is the cradle from which humans are born. I will not have it destroyed. If we fail, there will still be humans. It was an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. I would destroy the missile pods and at the same time, destroy the remaining TI on Earth. Of those who believed in me and were still on Earth, I asked for a sacrifice. Three of them made their way to the TI headquarters, ostensibly to coordinate a joint attack but in reality to pinpoint every single device and stockpiles the TI had."

"Of course you just have to take out a few Alliance ships along the way."

"I'm sorry for the lost of lives but without those ships, the Alliance would be forced to stay closer to Earth."

"You didn't want inconvenient eyes," she said.

"No. The imprudent decisions of the Cerberus leadership exposed their existence unnecessarily and drew attention. Although the odds were against the Alliance picking up our trail, I couldn't risk it. Not with the geth and their countless mechanisms for scouting nor the sharp silent eyes of the Rachni. Oh yes," he said when she straightened in astonishment. "Your buggy friends may not be prominent in public but they're in many sectors. Their history with the Reapers was not kind. They will not forget they were nearly wiped out. They're now vigilant, they explore, probe and watch. I would be surprised if they remain quiet and quiescent if they found any threats or suspicious activities."

"I need to focus the Alliance's attention. The assault on Asteria accomplished a few objectives. One, as a distraction. Two, get the grain which suited our settlement purposes and getting our people out. Three, it removed a number of Cerberus forces that were beyond hope and irrelevant. I regret the lives lost but it had to be. Four, Alliance and Allied ability to field any units of strength was whittled down. Earth, their homeworlds, would be their first priority, not Cerberus, not Terra Firma. Even so, I knew they need only send a good hunter who could do the job of a team of their best marines."

"So you pre-empt that decision to get us to go in the direction you want."

"I removed your friend here," Lance turned and gestured to Feron who raised his head, eyes shining with rage, "as he was shearing too close an orbit to our business. He too, had his possibilities. He's very good in his role but he has one factor weighing against him." The hologram turned to look at Liara. "Too many already knew the identity of the present Shadow Broker. The old Shadow Broker was able to keep to the shadows for so long because he was canny, astute and ruthless."

"What did you do to Feron?" asked Liara, ignoring the implied allegation that she was not qualified to be that shadowy figure.

"Like I said, he had his possibilities but he served best as a messenger, a courier, nothing more. He was sent to deliver the codes to disable and destroy the missile pods and carry this crystal when the time is right. The droid that went with him was to create busywork and puzzles for the Alliance," Lance gestured to Shepard. "Knowing what you would be doing allowed us some breathing space. By then, we were all set and ready. We only had to make sure no one caught sight of us."

"You used Santino," Shepard said coldly.

"He was already a tool. One of a few choices on the board which I could use." Lance shrugged. "You do not like it, even though he betrayed your people to Cerberus, but I find it fitting. It was his choice to join Cerberus, not for their creed but for their money."

"Why the Erebus System?" asked Shepard.

Lance smiled. "Come now, you know why I sent the coordinates. The refugees couldn't last for much longer at the base if I didn't make that supply run."

"Why in particular the galactic core?"

"Because that is where you expect us to be. Why not satisfy that curiosity?"

"About the old Normandy-," she said.

"Why a broken up ship? Cerberus was experimenting with a new form of technology. You could call it a mending technology. It works, up to a certain point. It still needs refinement. As for the research facility, some of our own volunteered for the Eosian Project. It is an extension of the Hebe Project. I know what you're going to ask, was the Hebe Project my idea? No, it wasn't. The Lazarus Project was a success the Illusive Man wished to repeat. Unfortunately, it was one failure after another so he decided there was something unique in your genetic makeup. There were organic materials belonging to you that he grew into clones. As you saw, none of them revived."

"Why did you put those clones and members of the Akuze unit on those pathways?"

"The staff died months before you arrived. What you saw were the clean up efforts. Some of which weren't too clean, deliberately so as to monitor the effects in simulated environments. From the moment you and the teams stepped onboard, you were monitored and analysed. The Akuze marines who were taken, they were put there as closure. Your clones? For you to realise what had been done. The place where I had the augmented asari throw you was a cleansing zone. I wouldn't risk you."

"Why did you send your clone instead of yourself?"

"I had some matters to attend to. The clone was to get fresh genetic material from you. Without violence. Unfortunately, he did not follow his instructions. I apologise. There were certain criterion to be met, how much time I had to play with. I had to throw all of you off the station by initiating a fake meltdown."

Shepard felt she had to ask. "Why do you want my genetic material?"

"Like the Illusive Man, I knew there has to be something unique. Going on the old materials isn't going to generate any answers because they are old matter that hasn't integrated with the implants. The new sample containing the formation of the metamorphosis over the years may provide some insight. Additionally, the data pulled from your Alliance medical records is also promising," he took a deep breath and sighed heavily. "That was all I asked of Descroix of Binery Helix but he became greedy and went too far."

"Is he dead?"

"He is, along with Binery Helix."

"Why did you go so far as to make sure I'm safe?"

"The plans I left behind for you and your allies. There is a reason-," he looked down on his hands. Rubbing them together as if he felt cold. "The Reapers were masters of technology beyond our grasp. They built the relays and knew how they worked, what they could do. They could traverse space no one in this galaxy ever imagined or even thought possible. Going from one galaxy to the next is beyond anybody's grasp but we, Terra Firma, found such a possibility. There could be others. The point I'm trying to make is that this galaxy may not be the Reapers' only dining menu or the only place they travel to. There could be others."

"Prey and predators. Enemies and friends. The Reapers were enemies of many but they could also have allies in other galaxies. Whether they are indoctrinated or not, whether the Reapers shared technology with them is anybody's guess. That is a plausible threat that cannot be dismissed." He spread his hands appealing to Shepard. "I'm sure you can see my point of view."

Unfortunately she could. "Yes, I can," Shepard admitted reluctantly. "The existence of the Reapers put heavy emphasis for such a possibility. We understand very little of them except their judgement of organic life. Where they come from is a mystery. Did they create themselves or did someone create them?"

"It maybe something that could be answered in the future. I wish to ensure a future for those back on Earth, for this galaxy. I cannot share everything we have learned but a part of it. It is a step forward, the rest of the steps you must take for yourselves, as we did. The answers are out there. There is another thing I must tell you." He paused and did not say another word for long minutes that she thought the comm link he was using was cut but then he shifted. "I created our offspring."

"What?" Shepard was sure she hadn't heard correctly. "What did you say?"

"I used part of your old and new genetic material, along with mine to create a new life. A child."

"What?!" Shepard sprang forward, hands reaching out but grasped only air.

"She is waiting for you, April."

"Why? Why did you do such a thing?" she demanded, shocked. He was joking surely?

"I have dreams. Of us but I know it's impossible. In all considerations, you are unique, you are needed here, in this galaxy. But your lifespan is finite. I know you wouldn't have any offspring of your body."

"What the-," Shepard spluttered, words evading her grasp in her disarray of disbelief and fury.

"She's my parting gift to you. Impart your knowledge, guide her. Let her grow into what she wants to be. I leave her naming to you."

"You-" She tried to speak but her brain refused to come up with the words.

"She is on her way to the Citadel onboard the merchant freighter, Primavera, and should be arriving soon. Her captain and her crew are innocent. I worked with them in the early years. They know nothing except that they must deliver their cargo safely. As a favour to me. I hope you will accept her, April. She is a part of you even if you have not actively participated in her creation. Cherish and love her as I would have. I recorded a message for her to be viewed when she's older. You only need to decide when, if you keep the crystal. I can promise you no more clones of you will be made. The remaining genetic materials will be used to find if the possibilities that occurred in your genetic structure can be replicated. If we made it to our destination and prosper, we will send a message. Last of all. April. Through the years since we parted, my feelings have not changed. I love you. Take care and farewell."

The hologram blinked off.

Grasping her helmet as she slumped against a bulkead, Shepard finally moaned into the thick frozen silence, "Tell me I'm dreaming. This is all a dream."

Javik solemnly stepped up to her and tapped on her helmet visor. "If you can feel that, I'm afraid it's no dream, Shepard."

"Damn it, can't you just lie?!"

Citadel
Crew Quarters, Room 632

The room was musty and reeked of stale beer fumes as she thought it would be. Arms akimbo, Tessie surveyed the dust covered living room, a still life testimony of a bachelor. Clothes left carelessly on sofa and chairs. Beers cans stood on the coffee table like an army of soldiers, with many more carpeting the floor as if felled by enemy action. Bits of rotting food and crackers were strewn in their midst. Clearly Westir had been drinking and eating in front of the viewer and didn't bother to tidy up after.

Nose wrinkling in disgust, Tessy poked the chicken and beef bones among the dried up mess of gravy and sauces with a foot. "Why do I even bother?" she muttered as she looked around.

She made her way to the small bedroom and was surprised. It was tidy. There was none of the mess in the living room. The bed was neatly made. The coverings of mauve and rose. She didn't think West's tastes ran to such colours. It had that air of remoteness, as if it was untouched for a long long time. A lamp, a book and a holopic stood on the sidetable. Definitely not West, she thought when she saw the book title; Ariel. Such books cost an arm and leg. She lifted the cover and flipped through the pages. West was no poet. The book wasn't his. A knitted black and yellow bookmark with a tree worked into the pattern dropped out. Picking it up, she tucked it into her pocket.

She peered at the holopic; a smiling West, a homely looking woman next to him, holding a small baby shirt in her hands. The ends of knitting needles sticking out of a basket behind them. A typical couple, expecting a bright future, never thinking that months further down, a bloody galactic war would break out.

Looking around the room with the pics of beautiful panorama of Earth and space, the knitting paraphernalia, the dark green wardrobe, footwear too small to be West's, odds and ends that couldn't be his, she sighed. West no doubt avoided using the bed. Avoided stepping into the bedroom and lived in the living room. How long would he have continued? She turned back to look into the other room and eyed the bottle army. No wonder he falsified his medical record. He wanted to go. Her heart ached. She wondered if he lived or was dead.

She looked around again. There wasn't anything she could do with the clothing. The cleaners would gather them when they come in. They would be cleaned or recycled and then passed on to those who needed them or perhaps sold. Anything else of value, they no longer belonged to West. She reached for the book, hesitated, and made up her mind.

Picking it up, she took the holopic and all the images mounted on the walls. She went back to the living room and put them into the box she brought. All the ornaments hanging from the ceiling and walls also went into the box. A box of medals which looked like old fashioned military decorations, more of those precious books, a decorative looking stick no longer than her arm and anything else that looked interesting also went into the box.

It was a heavy load when she lifted it. She wished she brought Malon and Challa but they were busy and she was the only one who could slip away. After another look around, she let herself out and made her way to the lift. There wasn't any place she could think of to store it. Maybe they could distribute it among themselves. If West did come back, he would have some of his stuff. It was an optimistic view at best. She knew it in her bones that he was probably dead, lost down there in the Keeper tunnels.

There was no one in the lobby when she stepped out except a Keeper that was as usual, minding its own business, looking at a console mounted against a wall by the entrance. She grimaced when she stepped through. Months of a station devoid of the hustle and bustle and she still wasn't used to it. She didn't notice something fluttering out from her pocket as she moved away. The Keeper turned its head. Its liquid eyes widened. Reaching down, it picked it up and regarded the knitted black and yellow bookmark, a knobby finger moved to gently caress the image of the tree. It went still, as if deep in thought before it carefully tucked the bookmark away in one of many pouches on itself and turned back to the console.

Three Days Later

Shepard paced round and round the arrival lounge of the commercial docking bays, peering through the viewing windows each time she came near them. Trying not to duplicate her bondmate's restless prowling, Liara held Delenn on her lap, concentrating on the story she was telling and the images she was sending. Telienos, Chakwas and Hannah pretended they didn't hear the unintelligible agitated mutterings that popped into the air now and then. They discussed the finer points of Thessia as they waited. Javik sat placidly, reviewing a chapter of his book. The asari commandos and C-Sec officers looked on in fascination, probably wondering if Shepard would wear a hole through the deck.

A soft melodious chime cut through the air, bringing everything to stillness. The station V.I. announced the arrival of the MSV Primavera, docking bay 001. The commandos and C-Sec officers immediately went out to the docking apron as the docking clamps moved to latch onto the freighter. Two loud warning cry of a horn and another announcement that docking was secured. A large boarding ramp ran out against the cargo bay of the ship.

"Hold it right there," one of the C-Sec officers warned when the cargo bay hatch opened and a crew member in shipsuit stepped out.

Eyes wide when he saw the weapons lined up on him, the crewman held up both arms above his head. "Whoa, what? I didn't do anything!"

"Step over here, keep your arms up," the officer said, waving to the others to board. "That's it," he said as the crew member obeyed and ran a scan on him. "Name, rank!"

"Jonas Elpic, class two cargo handler."

"You're clean, you can bring down your arms. Stay here and don't move."

Jonas nodded with quick jerks of his head, anxious to convince the officer he was harmless. His eyes darted to the armed party on the dock, then to the silent group further away then back to the hatch where several of his crew mates appeared, all with raised arms. One by one, they were scanned and lined up in a row. The C-Sec officer gave the all clear to Shepard. When she reached him, he gestured to one of the asari, shaded a deep blue with hues of pink purple facial markings.

"She's the captain, Hesarine Sedri."

"Captain." Shepard nodded to her. "Why did you come to the Citadel when it is still effectively a restricted zone?"

A puzzled frown creasing her brow, Sedri said uncertainly, "A merchant friend, Greenacres, told me he was given special concession to deliver an important cargo but he's unable to do it himself as he had another consignment he had to personally see to. He showed me all the paperwork and paid for fuel and supplies."

"How long have you known Greenacres?"

"We have known each other for close to fifteen years. I first met him on a cargo run to one of the Earth colonies in the outer sectors."

"What was he doing then?"

"He was a cargomaster. We often meet up for drinks whenever I made the run to the colonies or when we crossed each other's paths. During the war, we met up again, serving on one of the privateers hired by the Illium Consortium to defend the system. After the war, I went back to trade and he did the same. Did he do something wrong?" Sedri glanced worriedly at the C-Sec officer and back again.

The permit she spoke of would be examined but Shepard didn't doubt it was a forgery. "What is the cargo and who are you to deliver to?"

"He said it's a cryo unit. It is extremely important that I deliver it to Shepard. I thought he was joking when he mentioned Shepard-," Sedri broke off suddenly as she looked carefully at the uniformed human before her. "But he wasn't," she said in dawning amazement. "You're Shepard."

"Why did you think he was joking?"

"If it's really important, wouldn't the military be involved? Why take the trouble of using civilian freighters? Slow and clumsy. Of course, I did think it was some sort of cloak and dagger stuff, extremely dangerous but he assured me it was more of the cloak and none of the dagger."

"Do you know where he is now?"

Sedri shook her head. "He said he was going somewhere and wouldn't be back. I have no idea what he meant. It didn't make sense."

Shepard glanced at the rest of the freighter crew. All of them looked wide eyed and astonished. "All right, captain, if you could show me the cryo unit?"

"Of course." Sedri glanced at the C-Sec officer who was listening to the boarding party's report.

"No explosive or any suspicious devices detected, " he said to Shepard.

"Of course not," Sedri said indignantly. "We run a tight ship, everything is checked every six hours."

Shepard almost smiled at Sedri's outrage at the implied insult that she would run a loose ship by setting off without checking from top to bottom. "Please, show me your cargo."

"This way." Hesarine stepped onto the boarding ramp with Shepard. Liara and the rest brought up the rear.

The huge cargo compartment was bare except for an enclosed and secured container that stood in the center. Going up to the security door set in the side, Sedri punched in the code. "Lance has this built. He set up a triple reinforcement buffer. I've never seen anyone take such care as he did. That said a lot about his desire to get this to you safe and sound."

"You have no idea what it is?" asked Liara.

"No. He didn't want to talk about it, only said it's precious. I respect his privacy but with a cryo unit, it has to be somebody."

The door slide open to cool dimness. Nestled in it was a sealed cryo unit a metre long.

"I check on it everyday, like he asked, to make sure everything is running smoothly. Here-," Sedri handed a datapad to Shepard. "Instructions on how to open it."

"What did he pay for you to make this run?" asked Hannah as she looked around the chamber. Telienos and Javik moving in behind her, added their scrutiny. Chakwas stepped up immediately to check the console attached to the foot of the cryo unit.

"Like I said, supplies and fuel for the small merchant fleet I own. He asked for a personal favour."

"Thank you. I'll have to ask you to step outside please," said Shepard. She waited until Sedri was out of earshot and under the watchful eye of the commandos. "You know," she said as she stared at the cryo unit, turning the datapad over and over in her hands. "I thought he was doing a massive leg pull on me. I was hoping he was and now-," she trailed off.

"Everything checks out here. It's going to active status from stasis," said Chakwas. "You want to do the honors?" She looked meaningfully at the sealed hatch of the unit.

Shepard didn't answer immediately and only stared at the unit. Liara touched her arm gently as Delenn blinked owlishly. "Right." She mentally shook herself and looked at the datapad. It blinked, asking for her thumbprint. She pressed her thumb on the screen which cleared. Taking a deep breath, she keyed in the code that appeared on the control panel below the hatch of the cryo unit. A green light blinked into view. The hatch slide back. Everyone gathered round.

A human baby blinked sleepily up at them, swaddled warmly. Running her medical probe over the baby, Chakwas watched the readouts carefully. "She's fine. I'll like to run a more thorough check later."

"She has your eyes," Liara murmured. "Look, a little sister for you, Delenn," she said softly as she brought Delenn closer to see.

"She looks like you," Hannah added, eyes misty.

"Damn, I-," muttered Shepard, hesitating before reaching for the baby. "I guess he wasn't joking," she whispered as she cradled the child.