MASS EFFECT DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. I TRIED TO BUILD KINETIC SHIELDS LAST WEEK. LET'S JUST SAY THAT I NOW NEED A NEW COUCH. AND TABLE.

It's a bug hunt! Game over, man, game over!

Mass Effect: Legacy

XIX

Liara allowed herself a soft chuckle as she watched footage of one of her agents' handiwork. The man had infiltrated a Cerberus base, installed a virus into their computers that would transmit critical data to the Shadow Broker, and then set off a series of explosions to cover his escape.

What had Liara laughing was the location her agent had chosen to bomb. She had never seen a barracks completely covered in detonated human waste, and she had certainly never expected to laugh at it. Was her agent's decision, not to mention taking the risk of placing a camera to record it, childish? Absolutely. Did it brighten her day? Definitely.

Her mirth faded after a few minutes as she went through her mountain of work. Cerberus was largely contained, and with the data she'd be selling to the Alliance, she'd be counting credits for a while—she didn't necessarily need the money, but it was better that the Shadow Broker be seen as impartial. However, there was still the larger threat of the Outsiders.

"Glyph, instruct all Outsider-related operations to submit daily reports," she said, not taking her eyes off her screen.

"Yes, Shadow Broker," Glyph replied. "Please be aware, you have received a message from Urdnot Wrex. It is marked as urgent."

Liara frowned; anything that Wrex considered urgent might as well be on the same level as the Reapers returning. She quickly opened her inbox and scanned the contents of Wrex's message; almost immediately, her heart dropped into her stomach. Part of her wanted to get to Earth immediately, but the cold, rational part of her that had dominated half of her life told her that she could do more good where she was.

"Set up a shadow on General Vega at the hospital," she snapped. "I don't care if the building is swarming with Alliance SpecForce, I want eyes on James at all times."

"Understood, Shadow Broker; sending necessary orders now." Glyph floated over to her. "Shadow Broker, I am finding difficulty in current threat-assessment protocols. Are the Reapers still considered Alpha-level, or have they been moved down in favor of the Outsiders?"

Liara sighed. "For now, let's move the Outsiders to the top of the list, but we'll maintain our current observer teams, just in case."

"You will not reassign them?"

"No, we'll just expand our operatives. We have more than enough credits to pay them." Liara paused. "Speaking of credits, when is our next payment from Serrice Council? I thought they were due by now."

"Correct, but they claim that they have suffered significant financial losses after the Athamean League split off from the Asari Republics."

Liara rolled her eyes. "I've seen their reports for this quarter. They've got more than enough to keep paying me to keep an eye on their competitors. If they don't want to do business with me, I'm sure those same competitors would love to learn some Serrice trade secrets."

"Understood, Shadow Broker."

…

Alanna leaned back as a screaming Rachni leaped at her face; her Extinction turned it into bloody chunks before it got too close.

"Weren't the Rachni supposed to be smart?" she asked. "They might have us outnumbered, but between us and the Protheans, we've got them outgunned."

Miranda frowned as she stepped around another dead Rachni. "They only react like this when their nest is threatened, but Javik told us that his people had a cordial relationship with the Rachni."

"Maybe 'cordial' means something else to Protheans," Haley said.

Miranda ignored her and went for her comms. "Samara, what's your status? We're under attack by the Rachni."

"As are we," Samara replied, her tone as serene as ever. "My sisters and I are defending the Outsider artifacts, but there is little cover. We require support."

Miranda glanced at Alanna, who nodded. "Samara, this is Alanna; I'm sending half my squad to reinforce you. Get those artifacts and the Prothean scientists somewhere safe."

"Thank you, Commander. What will you be doing?"

"She'll be with me," Miranda said. "We need to find out what's causing the Rachni to go berserk. If you can, try to convince the Protheans to get the artifacts back to the Sicily."

"Understood. Goddess watch over you."

Alanna turned to her squad. "Haley, take Tetros and Korim to back up Samara."

"Copy that, Commander." Haley gently elbowed Alanna as her half of the squad moved out. "Come back alive, okay?"

Alanna made a face behind her helmet. "I am not getting killed by a bunch of angry bugs. That's just insulting."

Once Haley's team was gone, Alanna headed for Javik's last known location. She and Nok led the way, while Mantle and Miranda watched the rear; swarms of Rachni workers poured out from the vents, but two expertly-handled Extinctions turned a danger into chore, while Miranda and Mantle picked off the few workers that survived.

"It's fortunate that these smaller Rachni don't do much beyond rush at us," Miranda observed. "The larger forms are much more dangerous."

A door burst inward as a much larger Rachni pulled itself into the hallway.

"Like that one?" Alanna asked, even as she ducked behind a pile of dead workers.

Miranda sighed. "Yes, like that. And now we have to kill it."

The Rachni screeched and charged at them, while the large gun mounted on its carapace opened fire. Nok took a few rounds on his barriers, but stopped the insect's charge with a blast of plasma; Alanna and Mantle finished it off with concentrated fire.

"You okay?" Alanna asked Nok when she saw a hazy look in his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm good." Nok looked down at the dead Rachni. "I can see why all the old-timers get so excited when they talk about fighting these guys during the Reaper War. This feels right, like it's in my blood."

Miranda raised an eyebrow. "Unsurprising, considering how every single Krogan has someone in their line that fought in the Rachni War."

Alanna crouched by the dead Rachni and ran her omni-tool over its weapon. "Guys, this tech isn't Rachni-based. Looks like they were cannibalizing Prothean stuff."

"Why would they need to repurpose Prothean technology into weapons?" Miranda asked. "If they're in an alliance with the Protheans, they could have just gotten weapons normally."

Alanna frowned. "Unless there's something else going on. Hang on, let me contact Javik."

When she tried to reach Javik on the comms, all she heard was static.

"Okay, that's a bust. I don't think we have time to talk to Javik, so we'll do this ourselves." Alanna sighed. "We need to find out where the Rachni are coming from and figure out what the hell caused this."

The distinct sound of particle rifles firing further down the hall caught their attention, and they raced to the source. When they rounded the corner, they found a pair of Protheans shooting at a small group of Rachni; one smashed a warrior apart with a biotics-enhanced fist, only to get impaled through the leg with a long claw before it died.

With Alanna's team as reinforcements, the remaining Rachni were quickly destroyed, and Alanna set to work applying medi-gel to the wounded Prothean.

"What happened down here?" she asked. "I thought you and the Rachni were cool."

"We are not certain," the wounded Prothean admitted. "Some of the Rachni told us that they were detecting strange emanations from deep within their hive, but then they said that it stopped yesterday. We had no reason to think they had deceived us."

Alanna raised an eyebrow. "I thought you guys didn't trust anyone."

"They helped us build a home."

"Point taken." Alanna raised her omni-tool. "Transfer a map of this place to me, and get me a waypoint for the nest."

The Prothean nodded and quickly did as he was asked; he then gestured to the other Prothean. "I will take him to safety. The Rachni nest is close; end this madness, before what is left of our empire is murdered."

Alanna studied the map of the facility for a moment, and then the others to an elevator that would take them into the Rachni nest.

"Guys, as soon as the doors open, we're going to use as many explosives as we can," Alanna said. "After we clear out the area, we need to find the queen and do whatever we have to end this."

The doors opened with an ominous hiss, and even Miranda felt a chill go down her spine at the chittering mass of Rachni filling the room beyond. The squad didn't hesitate; Miranda and Mantle hurled grenades, while Nok rained hell onto the Rachni with several rockets. Alanna deployed a sentry turret, which added a barrage of smaller rockets, while she filled the room with bullets. After what felt like an hour of continuous fire, the Rachni were all dead.

"Well, that was fun," Nok said after a moment.

"You and I have very different definitions of fun," Alanna said. "Honestly, I wasn't expecting that many of them."

"Hopefully, that means we're close to the queen," Miranda said. "According to the map, she should be just beyond this chamber."

The nest was dark and muggy; it was so oppressive that Alanna even felt it through her armor, though part of that might have been nerves. She gingerly stepped around a cluster of eggs, anchored to the ground with webbing, but stopped Nok when he aimed his shotgun at them.

"We're not going to murder them," she said sternly. "Not unless we have no other choice, and I'd like to think that there is a choice to make."

Nok sighed, but obeyed; he was clearly still grumpy about it, because when another Rachni skittered into the open, he blasted it apart with a great deal more force than was necessary.

"Shepard-Commander, I have detected Outsider frequencies," Mantle announced. "The source is only thirty-three-point-eight meters away from our destination."

"How the hell did the Outsiders get their tech on this planet?" Nok asked.

"They've been doing the same thing for a long time," Alanna reminded him. "Tuchanka, Rannoch, Earth—they've managed to land on three of the most secure planets in the Alliance. I'm starting to think that if the Outsiders know a planet exists, they can get an asset onto it."

With that worrying thought, the squad continued deeper into the nest. Rachni occasionally skittered across their path, but they were barely the size of a human forearm, and moved too quickly to shoot.

"Not any kind of warriors," Nok noted. "I read the records on all the Rachni forms. Those little ones are like the maintenance drones we have on the ship, just cleaning up around the nest."

"Do not assume they're harmless," Miranda said sternly. "If I learned anything about the Rachni during the Reaper War, they are always dangerous when augmented by alien tech."

"She's right," Alanna said. "If we see any little bugs with metal bits, I'll push 'em back with biotics."

Miranda nodded in approval. "I'll join you. I've seen your Singularity; that or a sustained biotic field will be your best option."

"Roger that, ma'am."

Despite their plan, there were no further surprises as they entered the queen's chamber—that was good, because Alanna doubted she could have handled more than what she saw. The queen was huge, even larger than the stories she'd heard about the queen during the Reaper War; her carapace was horribly scarred from the Reaper tech that had been implanted, and then ripped out of her. Hundreds of eggs were nestled around her, some of which were already beginning to hatch; a Prothean corpse rested nearby, but far enough away from the eggs that it was noticeable.

At first, Alanna wasn't sure what she was supposed to be looking for, but then she saw a small, diamond-shaped device hovering not too far from the queen. A complex pattern of green light flashed across its surface every few seconds; Alanna noticed that the queen's front talons twitched in time with the pattern.

"You have entered where you do not belong, new light," the dead Prothean said; Alanna knew from the stories that the queen was using the body as a puppet to communicate. However, the term 'new light' told her that it wasn't the Rachni that was really talking.

"What did you do to the queen?" she asked.

"We discovered a useful tool, and we put it to use." Even though he was dead, the Prothean's mouth twisted into a cruel smile. "The creature's experience with what you call 'Reapers' made it vulnerable to our manipulations."

Miranda's eyes went wide. "You reactivated her indoctrination!"

The Prothean and queen turned to stare at her at the same time. "Old light, stumbling in the dark, searching for answers to which you have no right to possess. Since reaching the stars, your species has relied on the greatness of what came before. We have no such weakness, and you have no defense against us. Our control of this creature is proof of our superiority."

"All you've done is enslaved someone who never did anything to you," Alanna snapped. "You've killed and manipulated people I care about, all out of fear."

"We control the stars that are rightfully ours." Now, the Outsider that spoke through the queen sounded agitated. "We have nothing to fear from you."

"Oh, really?" Alanna made a show of putting away her weapon and crossing her arms. "When the Reapers came during your cycle, you were crushed. You ran away and hid in some forgotten corner of space. You watched as billions of people were murdered every cycle afterwards, but you didn't raise a finger to help. You could have warned the galaxy about the Reapers, but you didn't; all you could think about was how you suffered. I'm guessing that you told yourselves that you would 'rise up and take revenge on the Reapers', and that's what kept you going all this time. But then, when this cycle stopped the Reapers, you realized that someone else was stronger than you, and you didn't like it. Now, you're just throwing a tantrum because the one thing you thought you could have was taken away, and you didn't even get to fire a shot."

The queen screamed in channeled rage, but before she could lunge at the team, Alanna made a quick gesture, and Nok blew apart the Outsider machine with a well-placed rocket. Almost immediately, the queen froze, as did the other Rachni that had started to pour into the egg chamber.

"The hateful notes have ceased," the dead Prothean said, and Alanna knew that the queen was speaking, not the Outsiders. "The true song sings once more."

"Then tell your people to stop attacking the Protheans," Alanna ordered. "Neither of you can afford to kill each other right now."

The queen bowed her head, and then let out a hum. "It is done. Our allies are no longer threatened. We offer contrition, and will repair what we have damaged."

"If the Protheans know that you were manipulated, they might be more understanding." Miranda frowned. "Of course, this is the third time you've been a threat. Commander Shepard might have been understanding for the first two times, but you've clearly shown that you're vulnerable to outside control."

"Wait a second." Alanna knelt by the fragments of the Outsider device. "How did this thing even get here? It's not like the Outsiders can just send this to you in the mail."

The Prothean corpse pointed to itself. "This one delivered the technology to us. It claimed to not understand a discovery, and asked for our analysis. Then came the hateful notes, and my children went to war."

"That is not surprising," Mantle said. "The Rachni are known to be extremely skilled at understanding technology. If the Outsider device was unknown to the Protheans, then they would take it to the Rachni for initial study."

"And it wouldn't surprise me if the Outsiders planned on that," Miranda mused. "They seem to know everything, and usually know exactly what to do to get their technology where they want."

"Did you kill him?" Alanna asked, gesturing to the dead Prothean.

"Yes. He did not understand what he had done until it was too late." The queen bowed her head. "We regret the harm we have caused."

"You're going to have to tell the Protheans that, not us." Miranda glared up at the massive Rachni. "Like I said before, you've been controlled by outside forces twice now. You have two choices: either you agree to a termination protocol with the Protheans, or I kill you right now."

Alanna was shocked. "Whoa, Miranda! You're talking about genocide!"

"Commander, stand down," Miranda ordered coldly, and Alanna rocked back like she'd been slapped; Miranda ignored her, and maintained her glare on the Rachni queen. "She's right about one thing. You're the last queen, so if I kill you, the only Rachni that will ever be born are those eggs you've already laid. If you truly want to preserve your species, then the Protheans will be your wardens—and when they finally die out, I'll make sure that someone else takes your place to make sure that you never threaten the galaxy again."

The queen lowered her head until she was level with Miranda. "Your song is cold and cruel. You would do these things, if it meant protecting what is yours. We will yield to your demands—our freedom for our lives."

"Someday, you might earn that freedom back," Miranda said, her voice softening by the tiniest amount. "But so long as the Outsiders can control you, the only way to completely eliminate that risk is to eliminate you. Believe me, I wouldn't have hesitated to pull the trigger a hundred years ago."

The queen didn't say anything else; instead, she just curled around her eggs and went very still.

Miranda didn't turn around to face Alanna; she didn't want to see the horrified look on her face.

"We're done here."

…

"Once again, I owe a great debt to your bloodline," Javik said wearily. "I have seen the kind of devastation that might have been unleashed, and I have no wish to see it again."

"I'm just glad we could help," Alanna said with an easy smile; if she was still upset by what Miranda had done, she didn't let it show. Miranda didn't know if she was impressed, or sad. "Are the Rachni going to give you any trouble with the new arrangements?"

"The queen allowed us to place an explosive on her head, with so many failsafes in place that she would die before threatening a single Prothean life." Javik sighed. "I only wish that it hadn't become necessary."

"I think we can all agree on that." Alanna glanced at her omni-tool. "Well, we've got that data we came for; it isn't much, but it's better than nothing."

"The secrecy of our new home is still paramount," Javik said. "What will you say if someone asks how you came upon this information?"

Alanna grinned. "Oh, we'll just say the Shadow Broker helped us out. In some ways, it's even true."

Even Miranda had to bite back a laugh, if only because there were more than a few people present who didn't know the true identity of the Shadow Broker.

Javik smiled, and put his hands on Alanna's shoulders. "I wish you good fortune in your next war. Your father would be proud of how strong you have become."

"Thanks." Alanna hesitated. "Are you sure there's nothing else we can do before we leave?"

Javik's smile became almost teasing—something, Miranda noted, he only did with Alanna. "I believe that we can take care of ourselves, little one."

Alanna nodded, and turned to her squad; they were all battered and bruised, but they were alive, and that was all that mattered. "Okay, people, let's go home."

The ride back to the Sicily was quiet, which gave Miranda time to gather her thoughts. Could there have been a better alternative? Perhaps, but there was no John Shepard here to make that call—and she refused to let Alanna take that responsibility. One of the reasons Miranda had even become Director of Intelligence was to keep these kinds of decisions from darkening the souls of the next generation. Still, it brought up bad memories of her time in Cerberus; that, and the horror on Alanna's face was making her second-guess herself.

The little peace Miranda had was shattered the instant she stepped onto the ship. EDI had been ordered to maintain radio silence for the mission, but from the way her body was nervously waiting, something had happened.

"Miranda, we must return to Earth as soon as possible," she said. "There was an assassination attempt on General Vega."

Miranda felt a jolt of terror. Not again…

…

Alanna nervously paced in her quarters as the Sicily made best speed to Earth. It had been one thing to save Wrex from the Outsiders, but it was another thing entirely to hear that someone else in her family was barely clinging to life, while there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.

At least Wrex had been durable enough to survive, but James was human; he was old, and sick, and the thought of him dying reminded Alanna that she would outlive every human she cared about.

As if the universe heard her, Haley walked into her quarters. They stared at each other for a moment, and then Haley broke the silence.

"When was the last time you sat down?"

"When I took off my armor," Alanna said.

"That was three hours ago, and that really doesn't count." Haley pointed to the couch. "Sit."

Alanna raised an eyebrow. "What am I, your dog?"

"Want a treat? Do you want a treat?" Haley's voice was so sugary-sweet that it was surprising that syrup wasn't coming out of her mouth. "If you sit down, you'll get a treat!"

The ridiculousness of it all made Alanna laugh, and she finally sat down. Haley grinned and patted her head.

"Good girl."

Alanna rolled her eyes. "Okay, I sat down. Where's my treat?"

Haley sat next to her and gave her a long kiss. "Does that work?"

"Yeah, okay." Alanna sighed and rested her head on Haley's shoulder. "Thanks. I needed that."

"You need a lot more than that." Haley grabbed her shoulder and frowned. "You are way too tense. I get that you're upset, but you're only going to stress yourself out, and then you'll be no good to anyone."

"I know that, but… argh!" Alanna jumped to her feet and started pacing again. "This entire day has been nothing but stress and lies! I found out that my mom has been keeping even more secrets from me than I thought, and everyone told me how different Miranda is from her Cerberus days, but then she goes and threatens to wipe out an entire species! And, yeah, she didn't do it, but the Rachni might as well be slaves to the Protheans now! And that was before I found out that a man who's basically my uncle was almost killed a few hours ago, just like so many other people I love!"

"Not a good day, I get it." Haley shrugged when Alanna glared at her. "Hey, you can be mad all you want, but there was nothing you could have done. Director Lawson made her choices, and she outranks you so much that it makes my head spin, and there was no way you could have crossed half the galaxy in time to help General Vega."

Alanna grumbled, but sat back down. "I hate this. Why do you have to be right?"

"Because if you were right about everything, then you'd be a very boring person." Haley gently stroked Alanna's crests. "Besides, you're right most of the time, which only makes you insufferable."

Alanna blinked. "You think I'm insufferable?"

"Only when it comes to nerd stuff, but it's cute." Haley took the sting out of her words with a quick kiss. "Seriously, Alanna, you need some rest. Take a nap, clear your head, and then go check on everyone else before we get back to Earth."

"Okay, fine." Alanna put her arms around Haley and rested her head on her shoulder once more.

"I figured you'd take a nap on your bed. You know, where people are supposed to sleep."

"Don't wanna move," Alanna said, eyes firmly closed.

"Are you a child?"

"No, I'm a hundred-and-one." Alanna then stuck her tongue out.

"I can't believe you outrank me," Haley sighed, but leaned into Alanna's embrace; a moment later, they were both asleep.

…

Despite a restful few hours, Alanna's stress returned not long after waking up. There were reports to write—even if Miranda would be the only one to read them—equipment to maintain, and people to talk to.

The reports and maintenance didn't take her long, though between the Rachni and thresher maws, she was getting skilled at repairing damage caused by acid.

First on her list of visits was to Samara, if only because the only person Alanna saw less frequently was Javik. Samara was with the other Justicars, guarding the Outsider artifacts with a serenity Alanna envied.

"Greetings, Alanna," Samara said with a smile that did nothing to hide the wisdom that came from her long life. "It warms my heart to see that you were unharmed during our mission."

"Unharmed, maybe, but I'm definitely not doing well." Alanna sat across from her, though not before nodding at the other Justicars, who had moved a respectful distance away.

"You are worried about James," Samara noted. "You should not be. He is strong, despite his age, and he will be tended by the finest doctors in the Alliance. You will see him again."

"It's nice to know one of us is so sure," Alanna muttered to herself, and then changed the subject. "So, how have you been? Working for Miranda is new, so something must have changed."

Samara was silent, but Alanna could see that she was thinking about how to answer. "My allegiance has always been to the Code. After my fellow Justicars and I were attacked by the Athamean League, we realized that the best way to continue our mission was to join the Alliance. Miranda helped facilitate our integration."

"And I'll bet Miranda was happy to have a former teammate on her side again."

"Miranda earned my trust when we fought the Collectors, and it is always good to fight alongside old friends, especially during our twilight years."

Alanna frowned. "Come on, you and Miranda both have at least a hundred years left."

Samara chuckled. "Perhaps, but we are no longer at our peak. Miranda requires a more advanced hardsuit to fight, and I must put in far more effort than I used to. We are all getting older, Alanna, and even Asari and Krogan are not immune to the ravages of time." When she saw Alanna's disappointment, she offered a kind smile. "If you came here seeking comfort, I am afraid all I can offer is wisdom."

"Yeah, and it's what I need, not what I want." Alanna sighed, and then changed the subject. "Did you have any problems during the Rachni attack?"

"Not after you sent half of your squad to assist us. It was good to see Tetros again; I have not spoken with him in almost twenty years."

"I know, right? He really needs to be more social."

"And Sergeant Cole was quite impressive," Samara said with a knowing smile. "She proved herself as both a warrior and a leader in her own right. I can see why you are so taken with her."

Alanna ducked her head in embarrassment, but Samara then tilted her chin to look her in the eye.

"I must ask, Alanna—if you haven't melded with her, have you been tested?"

Alanna knew what Samara was asking; had Alanna been a regular Asari, she would have been horribly offended, but she knew why Samara would bring it up. She had more reason to fear it than most Asari.

"Mom had me tested as soon as I entered my Maiden phase," she said, completely serious. "I'm not an Ardat-Yakshi."

Samara sighed. "I was sure you weren't, but I had to ask."

"What would you have done if I was?" Alanna asked.

Samara's flinch was barely noticeable, but it was there. "There would have likely been a very violent conversation with your mother, and then I would have brought you to the monastery."

"Even if I never hurt anyone?"

"That is irrelevant," Samara said with the voice of someone repeating something she knew by heart. "An Ardat-Yakshi is too dangerous to allow to roam free. Her fate is always isolation or death."

Alanna sighed, and stood up. "Then I'm glad neither of us have to find out what I'd do. I'll see you later, Samara."

"Alanna." Samara rose to her feet. "Do not hold Miranda's actions against her. You were all faced with an impossible choice. She made the one that would not result in genocide."

"She still basically enslaved an entire species," Alanna growled.

Samara just shrugged. "The Rachni are alive, and where there is life, there is hope."

…

"Shepard-Commander," Mantle greeted as Alanna entered his quarters, sparse as they were. "Is there anything you require?"

"Not really," Alanna said, and leaned against the wall. "I'm just checking in on everyone. How are you doing?"

"I am operating optimally." Mantle's plates shifted as he hesitated for the briefest of moments. "However, I am uncertain regarding a decision made at the beginning of this mission."

"A lot of that going around," Alanna muttered to herself, then turned her attention back to Mantle. "What's the problem?"

"Director Lawson ordered that all information pertaining to this mission be withheld from the Consensus. I have adhered to that directive, but I… I feel that I should have informed someone."

"We saw some bad stuff during that mission," Alanna said, "and we found out things that nobody else in the galaxy knows. Keeping secrets can gnaw at you, especially when you keep those secrets from the people you care about; it might not be the same as finding out about the Protheans and the Rachni, but I felt so guilty about not telling my friends who I really was."

Mantle paused again. "That might be why some of my memories are missing. I may have done something that I could not keep to myself—something so important that I was required to remove those memories, instead of risking their discovery."

Alanna blinked; she had almost forgotten about that. "Do you still want to find out what you forgot?"

"Affirmative. Those memories are a part of me. If I deleted them voluntarily, then I will do so again, with more effective safeguards, but if they were taken from me, I wish to know why, and by whom."

"Then let me know when you get a lead," Alanna said. "I'll have your back."

"Acknowledged, Shepard-Commander… and thank you."

…

Alanna knew something was wrong as soon as she entered the armory. Nok was pacing and growling, and there were still patches of dried Rachni blood on his armor; his eyes had a glazed look to them, as if he was on the verge of losing control of himself.

"Nok? You doing okay, big guy?"

"Yeah… no… I don't know," Nok grumbled. "I'm just so pissed off about what went down back there."

"You're gonna have to be a little more specific," Alanna said, and readied her biotics, in case she needed to restrain the big Krogan.

"I was the first Krogan to fight the Rachni since the Reaper War," Nok explained. "We faced down the only known queen in the galaxy! Just being there was enough to make me a legend, and I can't even tell anyone!"

Alanna blinked. "That's what's bugging you?"

"You don't get it," Nok said, his voice tense. "I've studied every war, and every important battle in those wars, that my people have ever fought in. I know every song and every poem, I've seen every piece of art; I know the names of every champion of my people, and this was my chance to be counted among them!"

I didn't realize glory was so important to him, Alanna thought.

"What about the Outsiders? You've already made a name for yourself as the first Krogan to fight them."

Nok shook his head. "The elders are still debating how strong they really are, especially if they use a bunch of assassins, instead of fighting in the open. If they're weak, then it doesn't matter as much that I was the first to kill one."

"But the Rachni are different," Alanna guessed.

"They were the first enemy to truly push us," Nok said. "When we fought the Council during the Krogan Rebellions, the only thing that could stop us was the genophage. When the Reapers attacked, the galaxy needed us to pull them back from the brink. Now, we have a new enemy—yeah, they're dangerous, but fighting them isn't like fighting the Rachni!"

Alanna sighed. "Look, Nok, this isn't about personal glory. Who's to say that all those Krogan heroes didn't get their clout years after they did what they did? History is always viewed in hindsight; there are people who still debate every action my dad took, and that includes undoing the genophage."

Nok loomed over her. "What are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying that you shouldn't worry about trying to write your own legend. Let the historians figure that out. At the end of the day, all you should be concerned with is living with your own actions."

Nok was quiet for a long moment, and then let out a sigh. "Got it, Commander. Sorry about the outburst; I guess I needed to hear that."

"We all need an ego-check at some point," Alanna said; now that Nok was calmer, she started to relax. "Just remember that we're making a difference out here, and that's more important than what people might say later."

Nok nodded. "I'll try to keep that in mind."

"Glad I could help." Alanna turned to leave, but stopped. "By the way, Nok?"

"Yeah?"

"You might want to get cleaned up. You're getting Rachni blood all over the deck."

Nok looked down at his filthy armor. "Right… I'll get right on that, Commander."

…

At first, Alanna thought Korim was asleep when she found him in the hangar. He was reclining on top of several crates, his hands folded in his lap, and his breathing was even. However, as soon as Alanna entered the hangar, Korim's head turned to look at her.

"Hey, Alanna." Korim grunted as he sat up. "Everything okay?"

"I was going to ask you that." Alanna sat down on another crate. "If you're so tired, you could have gone to your quarters. We've got a while before we get back to Earth."

"Nah, I'll do that later; my quarters are too quiet, and I like the hum from the shuttles." Korim deactivated the tint on his visor, giving Alanna a good view of his face. "I had a lot going through my head after that mission, so I came here to process it all."

"Yeah, it was… pretty intense," Alanna said, trying to be polite and not insult Miranda.

"I asked for a copy of those reports on the Outsider tech we got, but Director Lawson said it would take a while," Korim said. "She wants the top Alliance scientists to take a look at 'em first. I think you were right about some of the stuff we could reverse-engineer from the Outsider technology; we could be looking at the start of a scientific golden age."

"Assuming we actually get it working," Alanna reminded him. "Still, I'd love to spend the next few decades in a lab, building all the new toys."

"What, and give up being an N7?"

"Hey, I've got at least nine centuries left in me; I can't be a soldier the entire time." Alanna grinned. "Lots of Asari change careers every couple of centuries, and it wouldn't be too big of a shift from an N7 Engineer. Just, you know, fewer explosions."

"Sounds nice, but if I stop being N7, I'm gonna try to get a captaincy in the Navy."

"Really?"

Korim nodded. "Oh, yeah, it's in my blood; the only member of my family who didn't captain their own ship at some point was my dad. One of my ancestors was even a ship's captain during the Morning War."

"Is that something to be proud of these days?" Alanna asked.

"It's not exactly something we celebrate, it's more of a 'oh, that's neat' kind of thing," Korim admitted. "Still, if I hadn't been born a biotic, naval officer training would have been at the top of my list."

"I never asked, but was there much of a push for you to join the military when you found out you were a biotic?" Alanna allowed biotic energy to swirl around her hand for a moment; it was an old exercise her mother had taught her when she was a child. "Humans don't really care either way, but Krogan biotics are expected to be top warriors."

Korim hummed thoughtfully. "I mean, during the Migrant Era, Quarian biotics were so valuable to the Marines that it was a pretty sure thing. After we went back to Rannoch, we had a lot more choice in the matter, but my dad said it was a good idea."

"What about your mom?"

"She died during childbirth," Korim said. "Our immune systems are better these days, but the exposure to eezo messed her up, and she couldn't handle giving birth."

Alanna winced. "Shit, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be, it's a well-healed wound. Dad really stepped up to raise me by himself, and I think he did a good job."

"What does he do now?"

"He works at a shipyard orbiting Rannoch, mostly overseer stuff these days." Korim laughed. "When I told him I'd be working on a Normandy-class ship, he almost started to cry; he said it was one of the most beautiful ships he'd ever seen, and it was the first time he'd ever been jealous of his own son."

Alanna grinned. "Sounds hilarious, but tell me more later; I've gotta check in with the rest of the crew."

Korim lazily saluted. "Remind me to tell you about the time I accidentally stuck my dad to the ceiling with a Stasis."

Alanna laughed as she got up. "Deal."

…

Tetros practically grabbed Alanna as she stepped into his quarters. "I need your help."

Alanna blinked. "Er, what kind of help? I'm-stuck-on-a-math-problem kind of help, or I-just-killed-someone-and-need-to-hide-the-body kind of help?"

"Somewhere in the middle, I think? Why did you go between those extremes?" Tetros shook his head. "Never mind, doesn't matter. I need relationship advice."

Alanna blinked again. "I'm pretty sure you've had more relationships than me."

"No, I've had dates, and usually only one per person." Tetros sat down on his chair and buried his face in his talons. "One of them left me a message, asking if I wanted to go on another date."

"Is this one of the ones you told me about?" Of all the things her cousin could have come to her in a panic about, this was pretty near the bottom of the list.

"Her name is Eola; she's a fighter pilot in the Tenth Recon Fleet."

Alanna thought about it. "The one from five years ago? Wait, isn't she the one who got written up for punching out an officer?"

"She didn't get anything worse because he turned out to be selling intel to a Batarian pirate," Tetros reminded her. "But, yeah, that's the one."

"And why do you need my advice?"

"Because she's crazy, and I don't know how to handle it."

"Again, why do you need my advice?"

Tetros shrugged. "I mean, you're dating Haley…"

"The hell does that supposed to mean?"

"Your idea of a first date was hunting thresher maws, and she said yes. She's either completely in love with you, at least a little insane, or both."

"I kinda like the first option," Alanna mumbled through a heavy blush.

"Hey, we're talking about me right now," Tetros said. "So, what are my options? Ignore the message? Change my identity and hide in the Terminus?"

Alanna gave him a flat stare. "Or, and this is a truly groundbreaking idea, you grow a pair and arrange another date with her. Clearly, she likes you enough to give things another try."

"But what if she, I don't know, tries to kill me for some reason?"

Alanna crossed her arms. "You went on one date with her. I doubt you made such a bad impression that she held a five-year grudge and is now planning to kill you." She raised an eyebrow. "Maybe there's a five-year-old kid you don't know about."

Turians didn't have the biology to turn pale, but Tetros made an admirable attempt. "Don't even joke about that!"

"Ah, but now my curiosity is piqued." Alanna pointed to Tetros' omni-tool. "Man up and set up a date. Seriously, you've done much scarier things than this."

"I was kind of hoping you'd help me with the changing-identity plan," Tetros muttered as he typed a response.

"That's Plan B." Alanna rolled her eyes at his antics. "Besides, who knows when your schedules will line up? She might decide to cancel on you."

"That actually makes me feel worse."

"Any time, cousin." Alanna turned to leave, but had one last thing to say. "By the way, I'm telling Haley you called her crazy."

Tetros' jaw dropped. "Oh, come on!"

…

Alanna's good mood faded as she arrived at the bridge. She'd had more than one opportunity to speak to Miranda since the mission ended, but she had procrastinated, visiting other members of the crew. She simply hadn't known what to say then, and she still didn't, but it was immature and irresponsible to avoid her commanding officer, family or not.

Miranda's enhanced hearing caught her approach, and looked up from her conversation with EDI. "Commander, did you need something?"

Alanna floundered for a second; she hadn't actually thought about what she wanted to say. "Has… has there been any update on General Vega?"

Miranda sighed. "None, but with my clearance, I'll be the first to know."

"Actually, I will be the first to know," EDI said. "Director Lawson will know as soon as I do."

Miranda gave her a look. "Thank you for the clarification, EDI."

"You are welcome, Miranda."

Alanna grinned at the byplay, but she knew it could only last for so long. "Miranda, can we talk about what happened during the mission?"

Miranda sighed; beside her, EDI looked straight ahead, showing that she was doing her best to give them privacy.

"What do you want me to say, Alanna? The Rachni have proven again and again that they are susceptible to outside control. This was the best possible outcome."

Alanna grimaced. "But… would you have actually wiped them all out?"

"If it meant the security of the Alliance, or preventing another Rachni War? I would absolutely do that, and more." Miranda saw the look of horror on Alanna's face, and sighed again. "Alanna, I love you like you were my own daughter, but you know that I am the Director of Alliance Intelligence. I must do terrible things every day to ensure the survival of everything your father created. You were raised better than to believe that someone like me won't dirty their hands to keep the Alliance clean."

Alanna winced. "I guess I always knew that, but I never associated what Intelligence does with… you."

Miranda smiled, but it was sad. "Alanna, I built Intelligence from the ground up after the Reaper War. Every tactic, every protocol, all came from me; everything Intelligence does is an extension of my hand. I'm sorry that it has to be this way, but I would rather bloody my ledger for the right reasons, rather than… than fight for people like Cerberus."

Alanna could almost feel a part of her innocence die in that moment. Miranda was practically a second mother to her, and though she knew Miranda worked in the shadows, she hadn't known that shade was formed by so many bodies.

On the other hand, she was a soldier, and the daughter of the Shadow Broker. It hurt to admit, but she knew she had painted Miranda in a naïve light. She still saw Miranda as family, but she had always thought that her father had pulled Miranda away from Cerberus' shadow; apparently, it hadn't completely stuck.

"I understand," was all she said, and left.

…

Miranda was almost amused by the level of security surrounding the hospital; even with her clearance, it took almost twenty minutes for her, EDI, and Alanna's team to get through to James' room. Fortunately, their patience was rewarded, because James was awake when they got to him; Alanna had her team wait outside, while she, Miranda and EDI actually went in.

"About time you guys showed up," James joked, his voice muffled by the respirator over his mouth. "I know I'm old, but don't you have to wait until I'm in a retirement home before you forget I exist?"

"Even if you did go there, you make too much noise for us to forget about you," Miranda said dryly, though her smile betrayed her relief at seeing James alive.

"How are you feeling?" Alanna asked.

James chuckled. "Well, having a hole punched through my chest isn't fun, but I'll live. Hell, I should thank the Outsiders; I'm getting new lungs flash-cloned for me, so I'll breathe like a man thirty years younger."

"That still makes you pretty old," a familiar voice joked.

For three seconds, Miranda froze when she heard that voice; for her, that was an eternity. She slowly turned to what she thought was an empty chair, where Kasumi Goto decloaked and waved.

Alanna blinked once, then twice. "What."

Kasumi grinned. "Hey, kiddo. You look good in N7 gear; your dad would be proud."

"And you look good in general," Miranda said, her eyes narrowed in suspicion, "considering I was certain that you've been dead for years."

As impossible as it seemed, Kasumi had aged almost as gracefully as Miranda; there were lines on her face, and her hair was grey, but she only looked a few decades older, not a century. The only other difference the thief had since the last time Miranda had seen her was the gleaming bionic left leg, which was clearly top-of-the-line quality.

"That is definitely a story," Kasumi said cheerily. "I'll give you the details later, but the short version is that I tried stealing from the wrong people, had to go on the run, and then went into hiding… and by 'hiding' I mean cryogenic suspension for a few decades."

"Decades!?" Alanna reached out, and Miranda wasn't sure if she was about to hug Kasumi, or strangle her. "We got that 'in case of death' message from you twelve years ago!"

Kasumi winced. "Yeah, sorry about that. I needed to sell the story that I was dead. If it helps, I figured out how to stop the people who want me dead. That's why I came back to Earth; I wanted to talk to someone I could trust, and I happened to show up at James' place when he was getting attacked. I, uh, think I missed a few things."

Miranda could feel a migraine coming on, though that was nothing new with Kasumi; only Jack and Commander Shepard had ever given her more stress.

"I expect to have the details by tomorrow," Miranda all but ordered. "Commander Shepard will bring you up to speed about current events."

Now it was Kasumi's turn to look surprised. "What, did Shep somehow come back to life again?"

"She's talking about me," Alanna said; she was now glaring at Kasumi, and despite their recent problems, her glare was scarily reminiscent of Miranda's.

At this point, James was watching the entire exchange with wide eyes. "This is so much better than I could have imagined."

"Shut up, Vega," Miranda hissed through clenched teeth.

"Yes, ma'am."

So, that's where we'll end it for this chapter. The Rachni are no longer an issue, but I have to say, even though most of my Mass Effect runs are Paragon, the Rachni frustrate me. Seriously, killing them off really should just make my job easier in the long run, and I think I channeled that here.

Also, Alanna got to give a Reason You Suck speech to the Outsiders, which I always enjoy. Games need more opportunities to tell the bad guy how petty and annoying they can be. Especially Bioware villains, now that I think about it.

And Kasumi is back, though why she isn't as old as she should be, and missing a leg, will be revealed next chapter. She was always one of my favorite characters, which is why I was so disappointed that she barely did anything in the third game. Also, I'm sad that she was never a romance option, but that's neither here nor there.

As always, please consider buying my book, Alpha Sanction, by Josh Gottlieb. You can find it on my website (link in my profile) in PDF format, or on Amazon as both eBook and physical format. Sales help my self-esteem, which has been pretty low as of late.

Another way you can support me is through my P-atreon page (link in my profile). I've taken every hour I can possibly get out of my jobs to pay for my apartment, and I'm still barely able to pay for anything. This also means that I can't write nearly as much as I used to, so any help would be appreciated.

Speaking of help, I'd like to thank the following people for helping me as much as they have:

Serious Muffins: Nimrod009, Aaron Meek, Matthias Matanovic, Red Bard, Lokthar, Hakuryuken, Anders Lyngbye, Kristen Tyler, Zachary Hall

Incredible Muffins: RaptorusMaximus, Crazyman844, CherryGoesBoom, michaelb958

Ultra Muffins: RangersRoll

Next Chapter: Kasumi reveals who she shouldn't have messed with, while a new discovery has Alanna going to an old battlefield.

I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favorite Muffin on the Citadel.