In the silence of Zhoru's ready room, Hannah Shepard held her breath, as she waited for the comm-link to connect. Her pulse climbed, and she dreaded what she was going to have to say to Governor Goto's family.
But first, she had to find out what ship they were on.
Finally, the connection went through, and a small hologram of Anderson's face appeared just above her wrist.
"Hannah," Anderson began. "Something wrong?"
She gulped, hardly able to string together a single sentence, then exhaled. Here goes nothing. "Anderson? Can you do me a favor?"
"Sure," Anderson said. "No problem. But tell me, what's wrong? You look...troubled."
Her mind flashed back to when she had rushed beside Governor Goto, as he lay dying, choking on his own blood. And an icy, crushing sensation gnawed at her heart and lungs. She broke eye contact with Anderson. Goodness, what was happening to her? Get it together. She cleared her throat. "It...It's about Governor Goto."
Anderson's eyes went wide. From them, she could immediately tell that he was expecting bad news. Anderson looked away. "Oh..." He looked back at her. "Did something happen?"
A painfully long and awkward silence ensued. And she had to practically force the next few words from her mouth. "I...I watched him die."
"Kas...Kasumi. Tell...Tell her I'm sorry..."
Goto's last words echoed in her head, again and again. Her eyes watered, and her breathing was growing faster and faster.
"I watched him choke on his own blood and..." she said, her voice cracking. She burst into tears and could hardly look at Anderson in the eye. "And I promised that I would deliver his last words to his family."
"Hannah..." Anderson said softly.
She began to sob. Goodness, that incident had been the first time she had ever witnessed death so up close and personal, not from behind a holo screen, nor as a statistic on a computer. And why? Why was it her that survived? She-
"Hannah!" Anderson snapped.
Once more, she met his gaze. In his eyes, she found only compassion and understanding. And instantly, she felt more at ease.
"I know this isn't easy," Anderson said. "The first time I ever saw a man die I had nightmares for weeks. But I'm telling you...everything is going to be okay. We're all going to need you at your best whenever it's time to negotiate with the Alliance."
She took a deep breath, then nodded. "You're right." She straightened up, and then wiped away her tears. "I need you to help me find out what ship his family was on. All I know is that it was one of the first to leave the system."
"Hhhmmm," Anderson said. "If that's the case, they might already be in the Alpha Centauri system by now. And these omni-tools only have so much range. So I guess you'll have to wait."
She huffed through her nose, then pursed her lips. The prospect of delaying this message any longer gnawed at her mind. Nonetheless, Anderson was right.
If she had to wait until they arrived in the Alpha Centauri system, then so be it.
"There's no easy way to deliver this kind of news," Anderson said. "Just keep that in mind, when the time comes." For a moment, Anderson broke eye contact, looking as though he was reliving some painful memory. "And..."
"And?"
"And just make sure you're prepared," Anderson said. He cleared his throat. "But in any case, you can do this, Hannah. I have no doubt you'll handle it just fine."
"Thanks..." she said. A hollow sensation filled her. Perhaps she just had to accept that no matter how she handled the coming conversation it would not be easy.
Anderson cleared his throat. "Anyways...I'll ask around and get back to you as soon as possible about what ship Goto's family is on. In the meantime, though, get some rest. We've all been through so much lately."
She let out a joyless laugh. "You can say that again."
Momentarily, Anderson smiled. "Take care, Hannah."
"Take care."
She cut the link. In the ensuing silence, she closed her eyes and took a moment to steady herself. Keep it together. For Mark. For the boys.
On the MFV Endaara, Captain Rael'Zorah sat in silence within his quarters, pouring over the recently released casualty and damage reports on his omni-tool. The longer he read them, the more a sinking feeling settled in his chest. Closing his eyes, he clenched his jaw and huffed through his nose.
Anscestors, help us...
Across the campaign, thousands of quarians had perished, along with five Malukors and dozens of ships. Many of those ships were irreplaceable relics dating back to before the Long Exile. And now they were gone forever, little more than debris drifting through the void.
He let out a long, slow breath, then leaned back into his grav-chair, staring at the ceiling. So much loss, so much destruction.
Was it all worth the cost?
His thoughts drifted to Maeru and Tali, to how they would suffer should he fail, and a cold, biting sensation gnawed at his heart and lungs. Keelah, it had been too long since he had held his daughter, since he had felt his saera's skin against his own.
Every day, he longed more and more for their presence. And he did not doubt that he would do anything for them. So by the Ancestors, if thousands more would die in securing the new homeworld...
Then so be it.
Just then, he received an alert on his omni-tool from his chief communications officer. He opened it, and apparently, they would arrive in the Alfa Centaari system in just over twelve hours. Indeed, now was the perfect time to inform the Admirals of his progress, and then finally check up on lifemate.
No more putting it off. He closed his omni-tool, then left his quarters and headed toward the quantum communications center. On the way, he passed by several of his crew, going about their tasks. Many of them nodded or saluted, and he returned the gesture, out of respect.
Eventually, he reached the quantum communications center, then opened up his omni-tool, and input the necessary commands to set up a fresh channel with the Admirals. Keelah, how he had much to tell them.
The holoprojector sprung to life with a sharp crack-schwoom and before him stood holograms of the entire Admiralty board.
He saluted. "Admirals. Thank you for joining me here today. We have much to discuss."
"Captain, Rael'Zorah..." the Prime Admiral began. "I see the evacuation was a success. All but one of the evacuation ships have arrived in the Alfa Centaari system."
"The Silent Ones are also giving chase," Ulaya said, "and are falling for the trail of false signals and readings my fleet had left for them."
"So it seems we were wise to entrust you to such a task," Koron said.
He nodded, and a part of him couldn't help but feel flattered at Admiral Koron's words. But Keelah, he could not allow such words to go to his head and make him arrogant. He cleared his throat. "Yes, Admirals. The evacuation went as well as we could have hoped, given the circumstances." Briefly, he looked away. "Although..." He exhaled, then met their gaze once again. "Although we did suffer great losses."
A solemn silence filled the room. In each of the Admirals eyes, he knew they understood the burden of command all too well.
"Currently," he continued. "My fleet and the last evacuation ship are en route to the Alfa Centaari system, where we will regroup, and apparently...meet with our allies in the Remnants and the Terminus Systems?"
His pulse climbed at the thought of finally meeting Justicars in person. Keelah, throughout the galaxy, their existence was often the subject of only rumors. Few believed that any of them even remained after the Ascendant's purge.
"Indeed," the Prime Admiral said. "I contacted the Grandmaster of the Order and asked for his assistance. I believe Khanah'Shepard will find him to be a fantastic source of guidance and support." The Prime Admiral burst into a fit of coughs, then cleared his throat. "There is also the matter of The Armory."
"The Armory?" he asked.
Admiral Jhago began inputting a slew of commands into his omni-tool. "We will spare you the nuances." A hologram of Mahrs appeared before him, and Jhago zoomed in on the First One archive on its surface. "Just know that apparently, the humans have a very special archive on the surface of their planet Mahrs - the very existence of which could shake the galaxy for eons to come."
His eyes went wide. He gasped and his jaw dropped. For eons to come? "How so?"
"According to the most ancient Asari records," Jhago said, "it is the greatest of all the archives in the galaxy, the one that contains perhaps the full breadth of the First Ones' knowledge, and apparently...schematics for the most terrible weapons of mass destruction."
"Ones capable of reshaping the stars themselves," the Prime Admiral added.
A long silence filled the room. The weight of this revelation bore down on him like the gravity of a neutron star. And his mind spiraled, unable to imagine the consequences to come.
Undoubtedly, the very existence of this archive would plunge this region of space into a bloody, miserable war, as every interstellar power scrambled to seize the archive for themselves. But perhaps, they could use to their advantage and use the knowledge within to hold back the coming tide of foes.
"Now is a critical time," the Prime Admiral said. "We can not allow this archive to fall into the wrong hands."
"And we must work with the humans and the Remnants to ensure that the knowledge within is used for the benefit of us all," Naala said. "Alone, we can not hope to do that. We do not have the numbers, nor the resources to leverage the power of the archive to our utmost benefit."
"So we will need the humans," Jhago said. "And they will need us."
"Keelah..." he muttered under his breath, as he broke eye contact with the Admirals. The magnitude of the coming negotiations gnawed at his mind, but regardless, now was the time to act, not speculate. He looked back at the Admirals. "So what is our plan? What will we need to do?"
"I am very pleased you asked," the Prime Admiral said. The Prime Admiral input a series of commands into his omni-tool, and then a galaxy map sprang to life before him with a sharp shwoom. Already, the galaxy map was teeming with strategic markers and routes.
"As we speak," the Prime Admiral continued, highlighting markers of his fleet en route to the Alfa Centaari system. "The Silent Ones are following Admiral Ulaya's trail of false signals and readings, and are chasing you toward the Alfa Centaari system. In the meantime, however, as my fleet and Admiral Koron's stand ready to ambush the enemy in the Sol system, we will lay the pieces for our counterattack."
Admiral Koron began inputting a series of commands into his omni-tool, and the fleets scattered about human space glowed a bright red.
"As soon as the Silent Ones are overextended," Koron said. "Fleets Vhas, Chai, and Naar will cut off their line of retreat." The markers of those fleets moved into position, ensuring the Silent One armada had no escape once it fell into Khairun and Koron's trap. "Whilst the rest - lead by Captain Asura'Gerrel - will rally at this system." An uninhabited system about five lightyears away from Mindoir glowed red. "And then lay waste to the enemy's bridgehead close to Mindoir."
As soon as Koron said that, Captain Asura's fleet moved toward the Mindoir system.
"My fleet will not be far behind," Jhago said, and new markers popped up just behind Captain Asura's fleet. "My team and I have been hard at work, and finally, we believe we know just the way to destroy the relay through which the enemy came, although..." Jhago let out a long sigh, as though accepting some uncomfortable truth. "Although the risks are great. As far as we know, this has never been attempted before, and it will demand great resources."
"What do you have in mind?" he asked.
Jhago input a few commands into his omni-tool, and then the galaxy map zoomed in on the relay through which the Silent Ones had arrived. "Once the system is secure, our plan is to remotely inject a small amount of Anti-Eezo into the relay's core."
"Anti-Eezo?" he asked, his eyes wide. As far as he knew, Anti-Eezo was an extremely rare substance that could only be produced within labs, with a particle accelerator like the one on the Tonbay, and only in very small quantities. And in Council Space, it was a forbidden area of research, punishable by death.
Indeed, theoretically, it nullified nearby mass effect fields, and if it ever came into contact with Eezo, then well...
He gulped.
Jhago nodded gravely. "Even a minute amount of the substance will set off a catastrophic reaction, one that should destroy the relay entirely."
He paused. With that relay gone, they could finally deny the Silent Ones access to this region of space. Indeed, it was a bold plan. But the implications...
Were they being short-sighed about this?
Was there truly no other way?
He sighed. "I understand the necessity. But are we absolutely certain that this will succeed? Is there no other way to at least temporarily disable the relay?"
Jhago shook his head. "None that we've found. The relay's internal systems are too sophisticated even for us to be damaged or tampered with by conventional means. No, triggering an anti-eezo reaction is our only sure option."
He paused. Indeed, this plan was...drastic. They could not leave this region of space exposed to invasions from the Attican Traverse, or whatever regions of the galaxy the relay connected to.
But Keelah, this felt wrong.
The destruction of a mass relay was almost unthinkable, yet the circumstances were giving them little choice.
Briefly, he recalled his pilgrimage in the Terminus Systems, and how he had learned that the Citadel was the nexus of the relay network. Every other relay was connected to it, with one or more relays in between.
So if one were to be destroyed, what consequences could follow?
"I understand that during times of war we must often make...difficult decisions," he said, "that we can not risk allowing that relay to expose our people to further invasions, either from the Council or the Silent Ones. But I believe we are about to make a short-sighted decision."
"How so?" the Prime Admiral asked.
He cleared his throat. "It is well known that the Citadel is the nexus of the relay network. But it has been centuries since any of our kind stepped foot on it, and we do not understand it anywhere close to how well the Asari or the Salarians do. So what if destroying the relay only draws the Council's attention to us? What if it only triggers a ripple effect across the network with consequences we can not begin to fathom - ones the Ascendant, the Primarch, and the Architect will undoubtedly blame us for."
A long, tense silence ensued.
During it, Jhago gripped his vocalizer, and then let out a heavy sigh. "You make a fair point. We do not understand the relay network as well as the asari or the salarians do."
"I have a solution," Koron said, typing away at his omni-tool. "If destroying the relay is not a risk we are willing to take, then for now we can fortify the system with a sizeable fleet, until we have the time and resources to construct a network of star fortresses and orbital platforms."
"Our alliance with the humans should do just that," Naala said.
"And perhaps the Armory might have the tools to make that system truly unassailable," Jhago added. "Though we can not ignore the need for a failsafe, a contingency in case the system is lost to invaders."
"Then we will use Anti-Eezo for exactly such a scenario," the Prime Admiral said. "As a last resort."
"Hhhmmm," Jhago said. "Perhaps the Armory will also offer us answers as to how we can truly disable a mass relay, rather than how to destroy it."
The Prime Admiral nodded. "Very well then. We all have our assignments and the path ahead for our people is finally clear. For now, we will fortify the system until Admiral Jhago and his scientists discover an alternative solution. If none are found, then we all agree that our only remaining option is Dismissed."
He saluted, and the burden on his shoulders felt much lighter. "Keelah Sel'ai."
The Admirals returned the salute. "Keelah Sel'ai."
And then they cut the link. Their holograms vanished with a sharp crack shwoom, leaving him alone amidst the ensuing silence.
He let out a deep breath. A part of him relished the relief that for now they would explore alternative solutions to destroying the relay, and potentially exposing the quarian people to the Council before they were ready for the war to come.
But still, he could not shake the feeling that eventually they would have no choice but to use the Anti-Eezo. Indeed, the Silent Ones were an unyielding enemy willing to cross any line to achieve their goals.
So eventually, would they find a way to smash through whatever fortifications they erected?
He sighed. Only time would tell.
For now, all they could do was hope that the Armory would provide viable alternatives.
Once more, his thoughts drifted to Maeru and Tali.
"You want us to stay in touch?"
"Yes. While you're away, we will. Stay. In. Touch."
And he smiled. The comm buoys must be ready by now. His heart surged with joy at just the thought of hearing his lifemate's voice. Indeed, during a time like this, that was just what he needed right now.
And he knew just who to reach out to for assistance with that.
Smiling, he opened up his omni-tool and typed in the necessary commands to contact him.