Chapter 24

? - ?

He snorted as he did his laps again, unsure what he was even doing here. The ship, its crew, the duty stations, they were all like set pieces. He strolled through the close quarters of the ship's corridors and made his way downstairs before taking the elevator down to engineering. He visited her in the cargo bay where she liked to hang around with their friends from the crew. Sometimes they'd all be up in the mess together, but she much preferred the hum of the engines nearby as it brought her peace of mind.

He found himself more and more unnerved as he kept coming back to the ship. He knew from every visit to every other place that something had been off, but this was the one place he was hoping he never had to worry about. Unfortunately, the same odd occurrences were happening aboard the ship as well. The crew were eerily silent, the ship's halls seemed to change on him at random moments, and even the gravitational center of the ship, the captain, seemed to just exist. He had cycled in and out of darkness for a long, long time and the fear that he may be in some form of limbo began to gnaw at his mind more and more as the days wore on.

But his worries faded once more as the elevator door opened and her face came into view. Smiling gently, he walked in and she waved to him before dragging him over to the others for a chat. He gently ran his strong fingers through her hair and inhaled deeply, the feeling comforting him greatly. Whatever the hell was going on, he knew he wouldn't be sane without her.


Life Support – Normandy SR2

"You sure this is where you wanna stay?" asked Shepard as she eyed the room curiously. It was compact to the point of claustrophobia. But then again, that might fit an assassin.

"Closed quarters, no place to surprise me from, and the air in here is dry," said the drell as he turned in his small seat and looked over at her.

"Is it because it's dark too?" asked the spectre, noticing the low light of the room.

"Most drell prefer low lights. Our eyes function better with less light, unlike most species," he said as he welcomed her in by turning the light on. "I will try to accommodate you when you visit."

"That's fine…" she said waving the offer away. He offered her a small stool he had brought with him and she unfolded it and sat down opposite him. "So, you said you're dying."

"I am," he said as he lowered his gaze. "A disease common to drell who stay on Kahje. It's known as Keprel's Syndrome."

"It rings a bell, but I still need information," said the spectre.

"Basically, drell come from Rakhana, a planet that consists almost entirely of deserts. We lived and thrived in the hot, dry atmosphere of a world that sits on the inner orbit of the habitable zone of its star. Our society collapsed due to rampant capitalism. Our industrial sector salted the earth, poisoned the sea, and made living on our homeworld impossible for many. But as fate would have it, the hanar of the Illuminated Primacy discovered our homeworld and uplifted many thousands of us, taking us to their homeworld of Kahje," he said, stopping his speech to give a dry cough into the crook of his arm.

"So, the change in climate, breathing mostly dry arid desert air and suddenly switching to the atmosphere of an ocean planet with humidity at 100% almost constantly caused a biological error?" she asked curiously.

"In a manner of speaking," he said with a simple nod. "The constant humidity causes many drell to develop stage 1 Keprel's Syndrome, a bacterial infection that infects our lungs and begins eating away at our other organs as well."

"Have the drell tried… not living on Kahje?" asked Shepard, knowing that she wasn't the first to have thought of the plan.

"The chance of this illness is a small price to pay to the hanar for rescuing our people from disaster," he said firmly, getting a nod from her.

"And the rest of your people are still on Rakhana?" asked the spectre as she rested her chin in her hand.

"Those that are left, yes. Most have likely perished from starvation or war. Those of us that had the honor of being saved from our homeworld now live on Kahje. And on occasion, we develop this disease. Only the symptoms are treatable and it's fatal within a few years of the diagnosis," he said as he waved his hand towards her. "It is as I said. I'm not contagious, as the infection comes from the homeworld itself and is not transmissible. And it will not interfere with my work as coughing up blood doesn't stop me from fighting."

"But getting into a coughing fit in the middle of a firefight could be lethal," she said firmly as she set her gaze on him.

"Perhaps, but I haven't survived this long as an assassin because of luck. I handle my sickness with care and it hasn't gotten me into trouble yet," said the drell as he put the matter to rest.

"If you say so," she said as she tilted her head curiously. "Why did Nassana seem surprised to hear you were there for her?"

"She was one of my biggest employers," he said before clearing his throat. "Illium is one of the few places in the galaxy where an assassin can find work almost anywhere. While murder is technically illegal there, hiring an assassin is not."

"So, she hired you multiple times to do her dirty work. Why did you kill her?" asked Shepard as she tried to get a grasp of the man.

"When I finally decided to clean the galaxy up before my untimely death, I went back over all of my employers and chose many of them to be on my list of unfinished business. I did this because of the things they hired me for," he said, even his sigh sounding gravelly.

"Wait…" said Shepard as her brow rose. "They paid you to kill people, so you came back and killed them for it?"

"Yes," he answered simply.

"Did you kill the original people they asked you to?" she asked, feeling as if the logic was trying to fit a triangle block into a square hole.

"I did," he again answered astutely.

"And you don't see any kind of logical clash here?" she asked bewildered. "They hired you, you killed their target, and then once you find out you're dying, you kill the people who hired you to kill those people."

"It may be confusing to a human, but drell see the galaxy differently," he said as he held up both of his hands. "You have the body. Your head, arms, legs, flesh, bone, and everything tangible that can be seen. Then," he said as he closed the other hand. "You have the soul. This is the culmination of your knowledge, your thoughts and opinions, your character. It's who you are down to your core, and it cannot be seen or measured. These two are equal but separate parts of a being."

"I understand the concept of a soul separate from the body. Many human religions have battled over this concept over the millennia," said the spectre firmly.

"Interesting. Then you also understand that the body and soul can act independently of one another," explained the assassin. "If someone were to put a control chip into my brain, they could feasibly force my body to do what they wish regardless of whether I want them to or not. The same is true for biotic domination."

"I don't particularly believe in the concept of a soul, but I'm going to ignore that for a moment to point out that nobody was controlling you," she said as she eyed him suspiciously. She couldn't figure out of he was really trying to put the blame of his assassinations on his employers or not, but she knew that no courtroom nor the asari justicar two rooms over would accept his interpretation of autonomy.

"I am what is known as a Seeker. We are raised from a young age to assist the hanar with things they are incapable of doing themselves," he said with his arms akimbo. "It's not exactly a breaking news alert that society was not made with the hanar in mind."

"Bipedal terrestrial species found the Citadel first, and happen to make up most of the Citadel species, so yeah," she said with a shrug. "Society was built to accommodate them first."

"Bipedal terrestrial species with eyes," he said as he pointed to both of his large, dark, eyes. "Other species sometimes forget that hanar cannot see the same way other species can. They can take in the light cast off other objects. They will be able to see you or I standing in front of them as a silhouette. The fact that they can parse the details of different species to tell them apart is fascinating to try and comprehend. But they cannot see as you or I see. And society itself revolves around species who are capable of stereoscopic vision."

"I guess it makes sense that they'd need another species to help them," she said as she eyed him. "But that doesn't explain the training."

"Our training begins from a very young age. Typically, we train under one master, and then we are to assist one hanar throughout their life before we are freed," he said as he looked at the ground solemnly. "I was ward to a Primacy Luminary by the face name Zymnema. They were very kind to me, so I did my best to assist them in any way I could. Sometimes this meant searching the extranet for a specialized jacuzzi that they enjoyed, and sometimes that meant erasing people from the galaxy."

"So, the work you did for Zymnema was your choice," she asked, almost snorting at the picture of a hanar relaxing in a jacuzzi with one of its appendages resting in a glass of wine.

"It was. They didn't have me do work like most hanar would, but I did it regardless to keep them safe," he said as he closed his eyes briefly. "Volus corporate merger, potential to cause bankruptcy in many hanar businesses, five days to track down target, five minutes to corner him, five seconds to finish him. Corporate merger fell, business was safe," he said in an almost static voice as if reading something from a script. Finally, he opened his eyes again. "I was very protective of Zymnema."

Ignoring the almost robotic trance he went into, Shepard shrugged. "But after Zymnema?"

"After Zymnema embraced the Enkindlers… a result of a bacterial waterborne virus, I worked independently for many other hanar. The work I did for them wasn't my own. As a seeker, I am a tool for the Illuminated Primacy to be used when they see fit. I consider this the case for all of my employers. My abilities and skills are tantamount to a gun or knife, and you cannot put those things on trial for murder," he said firmly.

"A gun or knife can't say no to its wielder," she said with a glare.

He held up his hands defensively. "I hope you do not misunderstand my meaning. I do not mean to try and claim I am innocent and that my employers are the ones who are guilty. I believe I am just as culpable in the deaths of their targets as they are. I simply wish to explain that though I was the tool used, I was not the true killer."

She stared at him for a long moment before letting out a heavy sigh. "Alright, I get your point. But when you work for me, I hope you have this whole body and soul connection thing figured out. I don't want to hear that as an excuse if I give an order."

"You will get no such trouble from me," he said with a shake of his head. "I assure you, you are doing me a great kindness by inviting me on your mission. It is a kindness I can never repay."

She smirked and stood up before ruffling her hair. "Tell me that when you're neck deep in insectoid death machines," she said before turning and then pausing. "Oh… and just so you're 100% caught up on all of the background with the reapers, I'll set up an appointment with the XO."

"Understood. I will be there," he said as he set out a table and began disassembling his gun.


The Trench – SSV Normandy SR2

"See, this is why biotics need their own damn therapists," snapped Jack angrily.

Kelly held up her hands defensively. "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware of this inner world that biotics have."

The convict glared at her before sighing heavily. "Can't really blame you. I've been a biotic my whole life and didn't know about it until last week," she said as she leaned back against the wall. "It's a psychological safe place that biotics can go to. According to the blue battering ram up stairs it's a method of training and it keeps biotics mentally safe from intrusion."

"I see," said Kelly as she began typing on her datapad. The yeoman noted the biotic feature and looked up to see Jack glaring at her once again. Looking down at her datapad, she set it aside. "We can just do this analogue and I'll take notes later."

"Don't take any notes on me," growled the biotic.

Kelly cocked her head to the side. "How come?"

"Cerberus has enough shit on me already. They've already invaded my head more than I'd like, I don't need them knowing my innermost thoughts," she snapped angrily.

"Hmmm…" hummed the yeoman as she thought to herself. "I think I have an idea that'll work for the future. But right now, we'll skip the note taking."

"Fine," said Jack with a snort. Kelly could see the young woman eyeing her up like a piece of meat. She didn't know whether it was some form of attraction or if she was measuring how easily it would be to break her in two.

"So, last time you just told me why you were angry. I didn't understand entirely, so I was hoping we could start at the beginning," said Kelly as she crossed her arms and leaned against the wall as well, trying to mimic Jack's relaxed pose.

"You mean when Cerberus kidnapped me as an infant?" said Jack with poison in her voice. Immediately, Kelly's defenses cracked. "Or how about when they locked me in a cell and fed me through a slot in my door?"

"Cerberus… did this to you?" asked Kelly, bewildered at the claim.

"Your goddamn right they did. When I was … I think I was seven," said the biotic as she ran a hand over her smooth cranium. "They had me strapped to a table. They wanted to test a new biotic enhancing drug on me. They always made me sick so I started whining and crying like a bitch. That got me a backhand to the face," she said as she reached up and rubbed her cheek. "Didn't even cry after that, just so stunned it happened that I just stopped doing anything."

Kelly could almost feel the disgust building up in her. But she hid it behind a barely contained smile. "Do you know what their goal was?"

Jack shrugged honestly. "They wanted to make a human super biotic. I don't know if they had some measurable goal or endgame planned for me. Maybe if I hadn't escaped the facility, they would have put a chip in my head and made me start fighting their enemies. Or maybe once they figured out the formula, they would have killed me and started the process over on new kids while brainwashing them."

"So, you believe they were using you as the test subject so they could continue making biotic soldiers?" she asked as her hand began to grip her knee mercilessly.

"I don't see an organization like Cerberus torturing kids for the fun of it," said Jack with a glare. "Especially at that reported price tag. They used us, beat us, experimented on us, and then for entertainment, they put us in a ring and made us fight one another.

"You fought other kids?" asked Kelly in surprise.

Jack's glare narrowed and she leaned forward, staring daggers at her. "Listen, Kitten, here are the facts. Unlike the other kids, I was locked up alone. The only time I got out of my cell was when they were sticking needles in me, cutting me open, or for fights. And when I didn't fight, they tasered me. When I did fight, they gave me small doses of drugs. So, try and figure out how I come out on your shiny moral high ground in that situation."

"I didn't mean to imply…" said Kelly, stopping as she took a deep breath. "I'm not judging you Jack. I couldn't begin to understand what you've been through."

"You're the first shrink who has ever admitted that," said the biotic as she snorted. "Most just nod and go on writing in their stupid pretentious little books."

"I understand why that would make you angry," said Kelly with a sigh. She knew many in her profession couldn't turn off the business. She understood that they had many patients they had to see, but also being cold and clinical in the profession seemed to only exacerbate issues. "Getting back on track, how about you tell me about your cell."

"My cell?" asked Jack incredulously. "What's to tell? It had a bed, a big window, a desk, and a bathroom with no door on it."

Immediately, Kelly felt something pulling at her as she mentioned the furniture. "Your desk. What did you use it for?"

"I dunno. Sometimes I'd draw. Sometimes I'd write letters to people who would never be able to receive them," she began, her expression falling as she stared a thousand yards. "I'd sometimes write my mom and ask her if she missed me. Ask her if I was here because I was bad, or if she was looking for me. I'd promise to be better if she came to get me," said the biotic before she smirked. "What a dumbass kid…"

Getting to her feet, Kelly began pacing to make it look like she was thinking, but in reality she was hiding the fact that she felt her own heart breaking at every admission from Jack. "So, you used your desk a lot?"

Jack smirked at the question. "Yeah, I guess. Sometimes I'd climb under it and pretend I was on a ship to a different world. They'd sometimes let the kids outside watch cartoons. I'd have to watch through the window though, so no sound," said the young biotic as she pulled out a sucker and popped it into her mouth. "Saw some shows about a bunch of people in spandex fighting, saw some traveling the galaxy. I thought I'd like to do the same someday, but on some level, I figured I was never getting out of that place."

Kelly tilted her head as she turned to Jack again. "How about after you left the Teltin facility?"

"Not much better than in it. Every person I met used me and threw me away. Eventually, they started paying for that," said Jack as she eyed the young woman. "What are we doing? We're covering way too many topics to fix any of them. Seems like every time we start on one we move to the next."

"Well, actually in order to 'fix' something psychologically," said the yeoman using air quotes, as fixing was heavily subjective. "We have to trace our steps back and find the cause of it. And I think I've done just that…"

Jack's surprised expression couldn't be any more blatant. "You have? What? When?"

Sitting back down in her seat, Kelly laced her fingers together. "Jack, you said that any time you were out of your cell, you were either on the operating table or fighting for your life," said Kelly, getting a nod from the biotic. "Then when you escaped the facility, anywhere you went, anyone you went with, they all tried to use and betray you. Right?" asked the yeoman, getting another nod. "About how long did these relationships last before you realized they were using you?"

Jack scratched her head as she pulled the sucker from her mouth. "I guess the cult would be the longest. It's where I got this," she said as she pointed to the halo-like tattoo around her skull. "I was with them maybe six months before I started to see how they planned to use me." Then she shrugged. "The rest were all less corporate and more personal. They'd last anywhere from a week to two months depending. The longest personal one was that bitch on Omega."

Nodding, Kelly let out a heavy sigh. "Jack, your inner world is your cell not because your brain is broken or you're damaged beyond reason. It's because it's the only safe place you've ever had in your life," said Kelly, noting that Jack's jaw dropped at the claim. "Any time you talked about your desk, you smiled. Anytime you left the cell, you were tortured. When you escaped the cell, you continued to experience abuse, people using you, people trying to kill you."

"I… but…" said Jack as she looked at the ground and clenched her head with her hands.

"From what I understand of this inner world, it constructs the world inside you out of things YOU associate with safety, with security. And literally the only thing you've ever considered safe was your cell," she said getting a wide-eyed glare from Jack. The biotic stayed silent for a long moment, allowing Kelly to continue. "You've never lived anywhere else long enough for you to consider it safe. You've never met anyone who didn't try to use you. You've never known anything safer than the cell where you wrote letters and played alone as a child."

She had tried to hold back her sadness before, but when she saw tears stream from Jack's eyes at the claim, she felt her own starting as well. She reached up and rubbed her own eyes as the biotic scrubbed away hers. Finally, Jack was glaring at her again. "So, aside from a goddamn lobotomy, what the fuck do I do about that?"

"You need to find somewhere you're comfortable. You also need to meet people who aren't going to try and use you," she said with a light shrug. "Honestly, I think to fix it, you're kind of already doing it."

Jack gave an unamused stare. "What, you think me being around you all is going to make me feel all safe and snuggly?"

"I can't say for sure. But your mind will tell you whether you find it safe with us," said Kelly with a small grin. "Look, I understand you hatred of Cerberus. I…" she said looking down with a heated glare. "Really need to reconsider some stances I've taken in the past as well. But even if you ignore all of the non-ground crew, you've got Shepard herself. You know she hates Cerberus as much as you do."

"True," said Jack as she scratched her chin. "I hope you all have a plan for when we kick the collectors' asses by the way. Either way, someone is going to be coming after you. Shepard or Cerberus," said the biotic with a snicker.

Kelly gave her a deadpan look. "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it," said the yeoman unamused by her future prospects. "Then there's Grunt. You and him are buddies."

"He's a thousand-pound battering ram of annihilation. Of course I'm friends with him," said Jack in annoyance. "Though I guess I kinda get your point. Even coming aboard the Normandy I'm just waiting for everyone here to betray me too."

"I don't know if your inner world is ever going to change if you don't allow yourself to make friends again," said Kelly as she sat back in her seat.

Jack's eyes narrowed on the yeoman, making her shrink slightly in fear in case she said something wrong. "Anyone ever tell you that you're too smart to be with Cerberus?"

"Not… really," said Kelly, taking the compliment.

"Consider a career change. Cerberus likes their lackeys dumb enough to follow orders without question," said the biotic as she gave an aggressively defiant grin.

"I… have a lot of things in that vein to consider," said Kelly as she stood up and grabbed her datapad. "In the meantime, I hope I've helped you out a little bit."

"I don't want to kill you. That's all you get," said Jack nonchalantly.

"I'll take it," said Kelly as she powered down the datapad and headed back up the stairs.


Nos Astra – Illium

She had been trying to get into contact since they had arrived on Illium. The only time she had ever gone dark were the later phases of the Lazarus Project when Shepard was supposed to be healing and getting up, something that was cut short thanks to Wilson. But ever since she had gotten onto the Normandy, she continued regular contact with the family once more.

But there was a period after Horizon where the messages stopped. It happened on occasion, especially around holidays. But even she knew something was off this time. Not only were the calls not going through, but the comms on which she would message the family began returning her messages. Something had happened and she wasn't sure what, but it had her heart hammering against her ribcage as she flew over the city with her passenger clinging to anything he could.

Shepard had her business to take care of and it could be done without her assistance. She'd already spent a good amount of time upon arriving on Illium helping Shepard while trying to get in touch with her contacts here. But she'd had enough. She flew the aircar over the neighborhood that their house was in and landed directly outside of their suburban house. She spied the house curiously, trying to detect if anyone was inside or not. But she couldn't tell. She saw their aircar parked under the car shed, which meant they should be home.

Finally, she turned to the person sitting in the seat next to her. "Garrus, I need your assistance."

"Yeah, you said that when you practically threw me into the aircar back at the dock," he said as he eyed her strangely. "What's this all about Lawson? You broke three traffic laws on the way over here."

"Yeah, what's going on?" asked Tali from outside his open window, startling both the driver and passenger. Garrus had apparently been so startled that he accidentally hissed at her. "That was rude."

"Goddammit… look!" snapped Miranda as she looked at them both. "Both of you swear a vow of secrecy to me here and now."

"I promise not to tell anyone except Shepard," said Tali with a stern glare.

"Uh…" said Garrus as he looked from one to the other. "What she said."

"Look, I don't care if Shepard knows, but she probably won't need to. Just, don't bring it up unless she asks, please?" begged Miranda as she clasped her hands together.

Both of them eyed her curiously before looking at the other. Finally, Tali spoke. "Fine."

"Alright," said Garrus as he looked over at Tali. "First question, how the hell did you get here?"

"I saw Miranda drag you away and refused to be left out of the loop. So, I tossed a Chatika projector into your vehicle and followed her signal here," said the quarian as she glared at the XO. "I thought I was going to catch you two in some kind of spicy romance, but that's clearly not the case."

Miranda looked into the back seat of the car and saw the small drone staring up at her before sighing. "Whatever," she said as she slapped the controls of the car. "Garrus, I need you to go knock on the door of that house for me."

"Why don't you do it?" asked the turian incredulously.

"Because that family adopted my sister and I want to make sure she is okay. But she doesn't know I exist, and if she sees me, then I'll have to explain a lot more than I want to," said the woman anxiously.

"Would she recognize you?" asked Tali whose eyebrow rose behind her mask.

"We're… twins. And we look enough alike that she would absolutely make the connection if she saw me," said the woman as she looked between the pair. "Please…"

Garrus let out a heavy sigh before he ducked and exited the car. "Fine. Talk to me on the comm if you want me to ask anything else," he said as he crossed the walkable road and approached the door. Tali slunk into his seat and stared out the window, watching as well as he walked up and hit the notification on the door.

Miranda watched for a long moment before the door finally opened and human man stood in the doorway. "Who the hell is that?"

"Not part of the family?" asked Tali curiously as she reached over and pushed the door open slightly.

"No," said Miranda as Garrus finally began talking.

"Sorry, we got a call that there was a disturbance on the property. Are you mister… uh…" he started but realized he hadn't asked the name of the family.

"The father's name is Alvin Valentine," said Miranda over the comm. She saw Garrus lean his head slightly as if hearing her, then continued.

"Sorry about that, are you mister Alvin Valentine?" asked the turian firmly.

"Who did you say you were with?" asked the man without answering the question.

"Something is wrong!" said Miranda, her voice shaking now.

"I'm a detective with the Lirelia PD. I'll ask you again, are you Alvin Valentine?" asked Garrus as he stood firm in the doorway.

"I am. Everything is fine here, now get off my property," ordered the man in a threatening tone.

"You 100% sure XO?" asked Garrus as he stopped the door from closing in front of him.

"I know Alvin, and that's not him!" snapped the woman as she kicked the car door open. But she didn't have to do anything. The human man swung the door open and got into Garrus's face. The turian threw a ridiculously fast punch directly to the man's nose and it seemingly shattered instantly, causing the man to scream as Garrus grabbed him by the throat and dragged him inside the house.

When Miranda finally made it inside the home, she was startled to find two more unconscious men laying on the floor of the living room, one of them laying in the shattered remains of the coffee table. "I'm going to assume none of these three armed men are your sister?"

Miranda glared at him for a moment before looking at them closer. "No. I don't recognize any of them," she said as she lit her biotics and stood over the Alvin imposter. "Where the hell did my sister go? What did you do with her?"

The man chuckled despite his nose being shattered. "Fuck you…"

The XO's anger flared and she was ready to end the man, but Tali grabbed her wrist and shook her head. "If your sister ends up coming back here, you don't want her seeing his body."

Growling, the XO turned away from them all and rubbed her face as her anxiety spiked. "What am I going to do? This is my father at work."

"Whoever took them lied to them to get them out of the house," said Garrus, causing the woman to look up at him. He pointed over to a pot on the stove. Tali walked over and touched the edge of it with the tips of her fingers. "There are no broken locks, no abrasions on the doors, no hacking attempts according to my readings," he said as he also tapped the vidprojector in the living room. There was a movie on the screen that was paused. "There are no signs of a struggle whatsoever. Which means whoever came for them evacuated them. They didn't take them by force."

"They did so recently," said Tali, causing Miranda to turn to her. She lifted the lid on the pot and showed wisps of steam coming off the food. "The food is still slightly warm, which means they likely only left hours ago."

Miranda looked between them, thoughts of her sister in misery as her authoritarian father got his hands around her throat making her miserable. Yet these two had taken over in her stead and were piecing the puzzle together without even asking for her help. She pressed her stinging eyes with her fingertips, the stress of the situation bearing down on her. "Thank you… both of you," she said as she leaned against the wall.

Garrus stepped outside of the door and looked around for a moment. She didn't know what he was looking for, but he began walking over to another of the houses in the area while Tali came up and awkwardly patted her on the shoulder. "Look, Miranda…" said the quarian. The XO looked up at her, trying not to look as distraught as she felt. "You may be a… erm… Cerberus cheerleader bosh'tet, as Jack says. But I'm still going to help you in whatever way I can to get your sister back. Nobody deserves to have their family taken from them like that."

Miranda chuckled at the attempt to insult her and just buried her face in her hands with a sigh. "Thank you," she said before finally looking up at her. "I… I'm not going to say I understand your hatred a hundred percent, because I don't think I ever could. But I want you to know that you'll always be an ally to me."

"I hope you keep singing that song when Cerberus comes after me," said Tali with an amused chuckle as she looked down at one of the men who reached out and grabbed her ankle. Using her other foot, she kicked him hard enough to send him tumbling across the floor before stepping up to the door. "What is he doing?"

"I don't know, he just walked over to that house," said Miranda, her mind running a thousand miles a minute. She had to figure out how he found her, who helped him, and what his plans were. She didn't care if she had to kill him this time, he wasn't getting his slimy hands on her.

"What's your sister's name?" asked Tali as Garrus finally started marching back towards them.

"Oriana Valentine," said the XO as the turian finally approached.

"The neighbor's security camera caught the whole thing. They were dressed as police and used a police car to pick them up. So, whoever is behind it is attempting to relocate them without violence," said Garrus as his mandible twitched at her. "That's good news. It also means they're easily traceable."

"What if the cop car is fake?" asked Miranda curiously.

"This is the job of a professional, the kind who can hire a corrupt cop here in Nos Astra to do their dirty work for them. I doubt they'd risk screwing the whole thing up by having a fake cop car and getting nailed by the real police," he said as he waved towards the car. "Bring the car closer so I can throw them in the trunk."

"Okay, but what do we do now?" asked Miranda who was out of her depth at this point. She was smart, smarter than a lot of people. But when it came to crime solving, she was already over the deep end.

"We go get Shepard, and have the police track the ID number I saw on the police car. Then we get that officer to tell us where they took your sister," said Garrus firmly. "In the meantime, I need you to harden yourself. You can get as emotional as you want once we've rescued her, but right now I need you as sharp as a blade."

Miranda reached up and slapped herself so hard her cheek stung. Garrus eyed her curiously for a long moment before she shook her shaking hands and nodded. "Got it. Let's do this," she said as Tali landed the car right in front of the house.


Eternity Bar & Dance Club – Nos Astra – Illium

"Happy to finally be done here?" asked Liara curiously as she took a seat at the table in the bar.

Shepard sat across from her and gave a half-assed grin. "In a manner of speaking. I'd actually love to stay and visit with you and potentially see more of Illium without Eclipse shooting at me. But honestly, I do have to get out of here soon. I have to deliver our new human spectre candidate and now with all of the recruitment out of the way I can finally start getting things done."

"Has the Illusive Man given you any new updates on the collectors?" asked the asari as Jack sat at another table and ordered a drink.

"Gimme a beer! And fried food if you have it," said the biotic as she looked over at the two at the table next to them.

"Not yet, but we tore their ship up at Horizon. They might have needed some repairs after that," said the spectre as Zaeed took his place across from Jack.

The asari bartender stepped over to them and nodded her head. "Anything I can get you all?"

"Something strong and concentrated in a shot," said Shepard as she leaned back in her chair.

"I'll just have some Nightbell," said Liara in a demure tone.

Shepard immediately noticed the asari's muted personality as the woman stood over them. Looking between them, she waited until the older woman had left before leaning forward. "That's not… you know…?"

Liara stared at her for a long moment before shaking her head. "Oh, goddess no…" she said with a sigh before looking around. Tapping her omni-tool, she activated her shroud. "She's a spy from the Conclave of Serrice on Thessia."

Shepard's brow rose curiously. "She's here to spy on you?"

"Yes…" said Liara before she looked down at the table. "I'm also certain that she is my father."

The spectre's eyes widened as Jack and Zaeed began downing their beers. "You sure?" she asked as her eyes flicked over to the woman who was putting together a basket of fried vegetables at the bar for Jack. She had no face paint, but now that Liara said it the signs of her being a matriarch were there. Her skin was smooth beyond the youth of maidenhood and her eyes said she was beyond the matron phase as well.

"I'd say I'm around 99% sure. It'd be rather awkward for her to secretly reminisce over a photo of my younger self otherwise," said the doctor with a small grin.

"Wait… you're spying on the spy?" asked Shepard, almost amused.

Zaeed held up his beer and grinned himself. "Welcome to Illium, Shepard. Where the women are beautiful, the sunsets gorgeous, and nobody can mind their own goddamn business."

Shepard chuckled as he then slammed the rest of his beer then looked back at Liara. "Have you talked to her?"

"And what would I say, Jane? Hi, hello, my name is Liara, but I'm sure you knew that because I saw you cradling a picture of myself while spying on you," said the doctor in a very animated fashion. Jack snorted her beer and even Shepard had to plant her head on the table and laugh. "Honestly, I'm just trying to figure if the Conclave are using her to spy on me because she's my father, or if she chose to in order to get close to me."

"I'd say her keeping your picture around paints a pretty clear picture that she wants some kind of relationship. If she were here because she were ordered to be I doubt she'd bother with the picture once she found you," said the spectre as the asari bartender came over and placed Jack's food order on the table.

She then sat a shotglass of alcohol and an asari wineglass on theirs. "Hey, if one of you has a shroud on, can you turn it off? It's fucking with the cash register," she said with an almost annoyed tone in her voice.

"Oh…" said Liara, pretending to be surprised. "Apologies. I must have turned it on by accident." The bartender nodded then headed back to the bar. "Perhaps you're right…"

"Either way, the decision is yours to make. Not mine. You've already met my parents after all," said the spectre with a playful grin. Liara smirked at her, then turned the shroud off. As soon as she did, Shepard's omni-tool lit up with a call. Surprised by the urgent status, she activated it. "What's going on?"

"Spectre, Operative Lawson, Garrus Vakarian, and Tali'Zorah are asking for you to meet them at the police department! They said it's urgent!" said EDI, causing them all to stand up straight.

"What's the issue?" asked Shepard as she threw a credit chit she knew was much more than they all spent onto the table.

"It appears someone close to Operative Lawson has been kidnapped and they're tracking them down," said the AI, causing Shepard to stop for a moment. Then she looked over at Liara.

"You're coming with?" she asked the doctor.

"I don't get out much anymore. I'd like to help if I can," she said with a small smile.

Shepard smiled before nodding. "Alright EDI, fill me in on the way," she ordered as the entire group left the bar.


CODEX ENTRIES

Nightbell | Food | Thessia
A wine from Thessia created from the lissa fruit with small trace amounts of element zero dust inside that gives the liquid a dim glow.

Shroud | Technology | Security
Commonly used in the information sector, these devices produce a high energy field that scrambles any kind of listening device, blurs any recording devices, and prevents outsiders from listening in using electronic means. They commonly come in the form of watches, but can also be integrated into an omni-tool for convenience.

A/N: I added small snippets like the one at the beginning of the chapter throughout the story if you'd like to go back and read. If you want to specifically know where they are, they were added to the beginning of chapter 3 and 13.