John looked around the comm room before taking his seat. His body ached after the firefight on Therum, but they needed an official debrief. He'd promised that planetside. He sighed as he lowered himself into his seat.
"Little bit of a close call, Commander. Just for future reference, the Normandy isn't equipped to land in lava. It tends to fry our sensors and melt our hull." Joker said over the comms.
"We almost died out there and your pilot is making jokes?" Liara asked, skeptically.
"We don't call him 'Joker' for nothing." Mia said, rolling her eyes.
"He got our asses off Therum, didn't he? I think he's earned the right to a few bad jokes." John countered with a small smile.
"I see." Liara said thoughtfully. "It must be a human thing. I don't have a lot of experience dealing with your species, Commander. But I am grateful to you. You saved my life back there. Those geth would have killed me- or dragged me off to Saren."
"What did Saren want with you?" Kaidan asked, leaning forward in his seat. "Do you know something about the Conduit?"
"Only that it was somehow connected to the Prothean extinction." Liara explained, frowning. "That's my real area of expertise. I have spent the last fifty years trying to figure out what happened to them." Fifty years? That was a surprising number, but John knew asari lived a long time.
"How old are you, exactly?" John asked curiously.
"I hate to admit it, but I am only a hundred and six." She said, looking down as though ashamed of her age.
"Damn, I hope I look that good when I'm your age." Mia chuckled.
"A century may seem like a long time to a short-lived species like yours. But among the asari, I am barely considered more than a child. That is why my research has not received the attention it deserves. Because of my youth, other asari scholars tend to dismiss my theories on what happened to the Protheans." Liara explained, frowning at the ground as she spoke.
"Did your research turn up anything interesting?" John asked, studying the asari carefully. It was clear she truly believed in the things she was studying.
"What is interesting is what I did not turn up." She frowned, meeting his eye. "There is remarkably little archaeological evidence of the Protheans. And even less that might explain why they disappeared. It's almost as if someone did not want the mystery solved. It's like someone came along after the Protheans were gone and cleansed the galaxy of clues. But here is the incredible part. According to my findings, the Protheans were not the first galactic civilization to mysteriously vanish. This cycle began long before them."
That sounded… familiar. John leaned forward as the researcher talked, wanting desperately to understand this race that he'd seen… murdered.
"Where did you come up with this theory? I thought there was no evidence?" John said, though his voice was more curious than challenging.
"I have been working on this for fifty years. I have tracked down every scrap and shred of evidence. Eventually, subtle patterns start to emerge. Patterns that hint at the truth. It is difficult to explain to someone else. I cannot point to one specific thing to prove my case. It is more a feeling derived from a half-century of dedicated research. I know I'm right. And eventually, I will be able to prove it. There were other civilizations before the Protehans. This cycle has repeated itself many times over."
"I understand why you've found it challenging to keep an audience with those claims." John said, sympathetically. He'd faced similar issues with the Council. "Can I ask about these cycles you're talking about? What are you referring to?"
"The Protheans rose up from a single world until their empire spanned the entire galaxy. Yet even they climbed to the top on the remains of those who came before. Their greatest achievements - the mass relays and the Citadel- are based on the technology of those who came before them. And then, like all the other forgotten civilizations throughout galactic history, the Protheans disappeared. I have dedicated my life to figuring out why." She explained. John nodded slowly, and a few puzzle pieces clicked into place for him.
"That makes a lot of sense." He said with a nod. "They were wiped out by a sentient race of machines. The Reapers." The confidence behind his words made even John a little uncomfortable. But he was sure that's what the visions meant, and that they were a warning.
"The-the Reapers? But I have never heard of- How do you know this? What evidence do you have?" Liara stuttered, searching John's face. He smiled at her, leaning back in his chair.
"There was a Prothean beacon on Eden Prime. Lieutenant Shepard and I were hit with a beam of light that burned a vision into our brains. We're still trying to sort it out." He met her eye then. "But mostly it's a feeling. That beacon was a warning." Liara paused, seeming to understand.
"Visions? Yes, that makes sense. The beacons were designed to transmit information directly to the mind of the user. Finding one that still works is extremely rare. No wonder the geth attacked Eden Prime. The chance to acquire a working beacon is worth almost any risk. But the beacons were only programmed to work with Prothean physiology. Whatever information you received would have been confused, unclear."
"Yeah, that pretty much sums up what I saw." Mia chimed in, rubbing her temple as though remembering. "Just images, flashes really. But John's right, it was a…feeling. Danger."
"I am amazed either of you were able to make sense of it at all. A lesser mind would have been utterly destroyed by the process. The two of you must be remarkably strong-willed." Liara commented.
"I'm pretty sure it's a family trait at this point," Kaidan commented.
"I suppose two users damaged the beacon? Their circuitry is particularly fragile, due to age." Liara asked.
"It exploded," Mia deadpanned. "I wasn't aware it was working at all. My fault," she admitted.
"Ouch," Tali added, looking between John and Mia sympathetically.
"Could have happened to any of us," John said, smiling at his sister.
"As nice as that sentiment is, how is any of this getting us closer to finding Saren and the Conduit?" Garrus asked gently, speaking for the first time.
"I'm sorry, my scientific curiosity got the better of me. Unfortunately, I do not have any information that could help you find the Conduit. Or Saren." Liara sagged in her seat. John saw the opportunity to acquire an asset and dove in.
"It'd be irresponsible of me to not ask the foremost researcher in this field to join my team. You understand the Protheans better than anyone we've met, and I have a feeling we're going to need that intel."John said, hoping to keep her around.
"Thank you, Commander. Saren might come after me again. I cannot think of anywhere safer than here on your ship. And I think you're right, my knowledge of the Protheans might be useful later on." Liara said, with a smile.
"And her biotics will come in handy when the fighting starts." Wrex grinned.
"Good to have you on the team, Liara." John said, shaking her hand.
"Thank you, Commander. I am very gratef- whoa. I am afraid I am feeling a bit light-headed." She said, stumbling a little as she moved to shake John's hand.
"When was the last time you've eaten? Or slept? Dr. Chakwas should take a look at you." Kaidan said, frowning at the faint-looking woman.
"It is probably just mental exhaustion, coupled with the shock of discovering the Protheans' true fate. I need some time to process all this. Still, it couldn't hurt to be examined by a medical professional. It will give me the chance to think things over. Are we finished here, Commander?" Liara asked, looking at John.
"We can talk again after you've seen the doctor. The rest of you are dismissed." John said, looking around the room. As soon as they'd filed out, Joker's voice came over the comms.
" Mission reports are filed, Commander. You want me to patch you through to the Council? " Joker asked.
"Please," John said, running a hand down his face. "Thanks, Joker. Really. Mia had me worried. I'm thankful you risked frying our sensors."
"Don't mention it, sir. Just doing my job," Joker said, though John could hear his smile.
"Just the best damn pilot in the galaxy," John said casually. He heard Joker laugh.
"Setting up the link to the Council now, Commander." Joker informed him, and a holographic image of the Council appeared in the comm room.
"We received your report, Commander. I understand Dr. T'Soni is onboard the Normandy," The Asari Councilor opened.
"I assume you're taking the necessary security precautions?" The Turian Councilor asked.
"And what would those be, sir? Liara's on our side. The geth were trying to kill her." John informed them.
"Benezia would never allow Saren to kill her daughter." The Asari Councilor dismissed.
"Maybe she doesn't know." The Salarian Councilor interjected.
"Or maybe we don't know her. We never expected she could become a traitor." The Turian Councilor suggested.
"At least the mission was a success." The Salarian Councilor said.
"Thank you for attempting to preserve the ruins as much as possible. We got word that the mining drill in the facility destabilized the mines and caused a seismic event shortly after your departure. Fortunately, you made it out before that happened." The Asari Councilor informed John.
"Geth were crawling all over the place, could have been a lot hairier with an imminent explosion looming overhead. Glad we avoided it." John admitted, letting out a heavy sigh.
"Indeed. Good luck, Commander. Remember, we're all counting on you." The Asari Councilor said, then ended the transmission. John had a moment to collect his thoughts before Joker's voice filled the room once more.
" I've got a transmission for you, Commander. I think you'll want to take a listen to this ." Joker said.
"Play it for me, Joker." John said, turning his attention back to the screen.
" Shepard, this is Admiral Kahoku. I found out who set that trap for my men. The ones killed by the thresher maw. Damn, I hope you get this message. It was a group called Cerberus. An Alliance black ops organization. Top secret, highest-level security clearance. They vanished a few months ago. Dropped right off the grid. Nobody knew where they went or what they were up to. They've gone completely rogue, Shepard. They're conducting illegal genetic experiments, trying to create some kind of super soldier. I don't have any proof, but I found the coordinates for one of their research worlds. I'm uploading them with this message. They're completely out of control. Somebody needs to stop them. I've done my part. Now, it's up to you. This is…this is probably the last you'll hear from me. Cerberus is after me now. I need to disappear before they find me. "
He'd spoken to the Admiral on the Citadel before departure. Marines getting killed by Thresher Maws held a bit of a soft spot for him, unsurprisingly. But this? Fuck. Fuck. John's mind was racing. "Joker, save those coordinates for me, please. I've got something I have to do before that. " John said, shaking his head.
"Aye, sir." Joker confirmed. "That's all I have for now."
"Thanks," John told the pilot. He'd already determined they were going to head to Noveria next to check out reports of geth. But after that… he sighed as he headed out to the CIC. He had to figure out when he'd be able to fit in this mission.
He hated hiding things from his sister, but this was one thing he knew he needed to keep close to the chest.
