On the way back, Matt updated Neri on what they had found so far, urging her to get the shuttle off the planet. As they made their way out of the city's core, he studied the nearby buildings. It was clear that they were lived in once, but by who? Cricks people? Or did Cricks people evolve after the Reapers destroyed the city? Ked favoured the latter theory.
Surely the city would have been buried if the ruins were as old as they suspected.
After what felt like an hour or so, they finally approached a familiar area, where they had met Crick. There had been the occasional creature, easily chased off with blaster bolts. "So where are we headed?" Dahlie asked Crick. His answer was not translatable. Possibly a name of a city. One thing was clear though. It was underground. As they continued, they suddenly had to dodge a pack of creatures fleeing past them.
Crick was visibly nervous, his agitated chirping spurred them on. He raced for a building in the distance, as more creatures raced by. It was clear why. One of the horde packs was approaching. They were sitting ducks out in the open.
Matt and the others chased after the much faster Crick. As they did, A silvery cloud appeared from around the corner. The creatures looked like a wave of small moving bodies as they scurried around the ground. They were far too close for comfort.
The horde of creatures surged towards them, eager for blood. Thraak tried shooting them but Matt just yelled "Run!" Attempting to fight was futile.
Finally, they reached a large building, Once they all entered, Crick tapped a button, causing a force field to spring up. A few of the creatures made it through and were quickly dispatched. Thraak stopped to pick up a sample.
"Keep moving!" Crick urged. They entered deeper into the facility, the halls were dimly lit with a green light. "The magic, it will only hold temporarily!"
"Magic?" Dahlie asked but kept moving.
Finally, they reached a door. Crick slammed a panel, sliding the door open. They rushed into a tiny room, with lighted buttons. As the door closed, another of the creatures caught up to them, only to be stomped by Thraak.
It was soon clear that the room was an elevator. It moved down disconcertingly swiftly and finally stopped. "Horde no operate moving room," Crick explained.
"Fascinating," Ked observed, looking around. The room they found themselves in was, again, dimly lit. Its most striking features were two huge creatures. Same species as Crick but easily 9 feet tall, They held what looked like polearms, and blocked the way further into the facility.
The new beings brandished their weapons, suddenly crackling with electricity, plainly hostile to the newcomers. Crick moved to join them, clicking furiously and gesturing towards them.
"Well, this could end very well or very badly," Thraak observed.
Matt had a hunch. "Dahlie, show your face."
She did so, dropping her visor. "Greetings." She said, Eve translated.
There was complete silence. Then, both creatures performed what appeared to be bowing—a similar reaction to Crick's initial one.
Much chatter erupted; the translated word Goddess cropped up several times as Crick spoke to his elders.
"Curious, is it all of us that they appear to worship, or just Dahlie," Ked asked, deep in thought. "It's worth noting that our Crick is significantly smaller than these two."
"Crick is a kid." Thraak concluded, "We were dragging a kid into danger."
"Brave kid then," Dahlie replied.
"Best not to dwell on it," Matt said. "Look, it seems they've made a decision."
Several more aliens had appeared. After much chittering, they gestured Matt's group to follow. The four of them were surrounded by what Matt could only guess was an honour guard. "Where are we going?" he asked, or Eve asked, through the translator.
"To see the Goddess and the queen," one of the guards replied. "Move."
They were led further into the facility, taking a series of elevators as they progressed deeper and deeper underground. It became clear as they progressed that this was a massive underground city of the creatures. There were workers, looking quite different from Crick and the soldiers, smaller, different heads. They didn't appear capable of 'standing' upright on their four back legs like Crick.
A meandering alleyway eventually led them to an open central square. At the far end was a structure, more primitive than the rest of the city, made of wood and stone, but with fine craftsmanship. It had plainly been built by the locals, supporting Ked's theory that the bug creatures were interlopers who had found and moved into this underground city.
Two massive guards threw open the huge wooden doors to what was apparently a palace. The party marched in, stopping to venerate statues and images that dotted the wide hallways. At the end of the main hall, an image of an Asari, her expression fierce and determined, stared down at the visitors.
"By the Goddess" Dahlie murmured.
They were escorted through another set of doors, passing under the Asari mural, with no explanation. Bug soldiers lined the approach to what could only be a throne room. At the far end, massive murals and tapestries marked a ceremonial audience chamber, Two massive thrones, sized plainly for the bugs, took up the far end of the hall. Most curiously, there seemed to be an elevated throne, smaller than the other, built for someone the size of a human.
"A human throne?" Matt asked. "Why?"
"You assume Human. Curious," Ked responded. He seemed to have guessed what it was for.
Before Matt could question him, the bug creature began a chant. A massive bug creature entered on tiny legs, aided by attendants. It, or she, Matt surmised, settled into one of the huge thrones.
'She' surveyed the newcomers and chittered. "We are Queen Tasli," Eve translated, "Fourteenth in our line. What are you?"
Matt stepped forward. "I am Matt Shepard. A Human visitor, seeing knowledge." He continued, identifying each of their small group.
"We understand you aided one of our aspirants." She responded. "Our child warrior will step forward."
Crick stepped forward and prostrated himself on the floor, "Our queen, these creatures aided me, and I helped them escape the horde. They have a goddess amongst them."
"So We see. Goddess, step forward."
Dahlie stepped forward and bowed slightly at the waist. "I am no Goddess. I am Asari." she explained.
"Your words are strange to us. They mean the same thing, " she replied. The Queen then ordered another of her functionaries to summon… someone whose name was not translatable.
As they watched, Matt noted a hooded figure, human-sized, appeared from behind the throne. Attendants parted the tapestries, allowing the figure to approach the raised throne, and sit. It regarded them for a few seconds before pulling back its hood.
It was a wizened old Asari. She leaned forward as if to get a better look. "So, the Reapers didn't destroy you lot after all." She began, then coughed, "You'll have to excuse me, I have not spoken Galactic Common in hundreds of years."
There was a stunned silence as Matt and the others gawked at this new development. Finally, Matt stood forward. "I'm Captain Matt Shepard, of the ship Prodigal Son. To whom do I have the honour of addressing? What are you doing here? Why? How did you get here?"
The woman chuckled. "So many questions. Bold. As a Shepard should be. Answers you seek, and answers you shall have. But first, introduce your companions."
Matt did so, introducing each one.
The matriarch regarded Dahlie curiously. "I do not recognize your family name. No matter." She sat up straight. "My name is Antonia D'Terrise. How I got here is a long, long story, as I'm sure yours is. I find all this pomp and ceremony stifling. Come, join me in my private suite, and let's regale each other with stories of the Galaxy. I'm about a thousand years out of date."
With that, the matriarch stood, with the aid of one of the attendants, and hobbled off behind the dais.
Another bug creature approached them and began speaking in its curious language. Eve translated, "You have been granted a rare honour. Should you abuse it, you will not survive."
Matt bowed, "We will not abuse it, I assure you."
The creature seemed satisfied. It led them through a side exit, towards the back of the throne room. They soon found themselves in an opulent room set up with padded seats, suited for their size. Matriarch Antonia sat on one chair. her bright eyes betraying an inquisitive mind behind the wizened face.
Matt sat on another seat facing the matriarch, leaning forward, his elbows on his knees. "Where shall we start?"
"Where indeed?" she asked. "Get directly to the point, or exchange pleasantries?" she looked at him curiously. "Forgive my caution. Ghosts appear from a galaxy I had assumed long dead. I'd first know who you are, how you found this place, and why."
Matt nodded, "Very well. We're explorers." He glanced at the others, and took a deep breath. This woman was alone here, long cut off from the rest of the galaxy, or so she claimed. He decided to come clean. "our ancestors were part of an expedition that left the Milky Way for Andromeda before the Reaper wars began in earnest. This galaxy is foreign to us, as mysterious as you perhaps find it." He paused to see her reaction.
She laughed. "That is too insane to be invented. Andromeda? Seriously?" She regarded them for a moment, "Very well. That doesn't tell me why you are here, on this planet."
"We seek an artifact. Ked here, a native of the Milky Way, is searching for an artifact that may hold the key to what happened in the rest of the galaxy."
"So you seek to study history." She nodded approvingly. "A noble pursuit, one that brought me here as well, so long ago." She wheezed alarmingly. "Forgive me, I'm very old." She fixed her gaze on Ked. "Tell me, Salarian, since you're not one of these intergalactic fancy pants, what happened to the Reapers? Regale me with a tale of the crushing victory Commander Shepard must have inflicted on the fearsome eaters of civilizations."
"Well, ah, I'm afraid it's not that simple." Ked began. He attempted to tell the history of the galaxy, mainly the Reaper wars and their aftermath, the 'Gifted', and the current state of the various civilizations.
Matriarch Antonia sat in stunned silence. "Well. I can't imagine what led Shepard to do what she did. Or how she did it, but it's quite a story." She sighed, "Well, it's better than all life being wiped out, as Liara feared would happen."
"Liara?" Dahlie say forward, "Liara T'soni? You knew her?"
"Not well, no. But I did. Even worked for her for a time. We studied archaeology together. We both studied ancient civilizations, in our own ways. She wanted to know what happened to them, I wanted to discover who they were, what drove them" She waved her hand. "This world was my greatest discovery. Known only to me, however. And now you."
"What is this world?" Ked asked, "Why is it important?"
"I studied a curious world, years ago. Eingana. There was a war over it, between two ancient civilizations. Its orbital ring still held remnants of the fierce battles fought above it. The Insuannon and the Thoi'han. The Insuannon technology enabled the Protheans to get their start thousands of years later. Liara was fascinated with them. Fascinated that civilization after civilization grew, expanded throughout the galaxy and were brought low. I was more interested in who those people were." She coughed again.
Attendants immediately jumped up and handed her a cup of what was apparently tea. Matt and the others were also offered drinks.
"Drink up," she encouraged. "I've trained them well in what is palatable to our kinds."
Matt took a sip, the drink was warm and flavourful. Quite pleasant. "This history lesson is fascinating, but…" he hinted for her to continue, and hopefully get to the point.
She chuckled. "Ah, the impatience of youth, or perhaps its human youth."
"Krogan youth too," Thraak added, not unpleasantly.
"Fine," she took another sip. "I kept in contact with Liara and worked for her for a time. She was an information broker, before the troubles. She's the one who suggested I check this planet out. It's amazing what information a good broker can gather. Now, here's where it gets juicy. She sent me here with a parcel. Asked me to plant it here, if appropriate."
"Why here?" Ked asked, "What's so special about it?"
"And what parcel?" Matt added. Could it be what they sought?
"What indeed." The matriarch continued, "I mentioned the Insuannon and Thoi'han earlier. My goal was to discover the home worlds of one or both of these ancient civilizations. I found one," she paused for dramatic effect, "You stand on the home world of the Thoi'han. The once proud beings that stood up to the conquering Insuannon are laid low, all but destroyed by the Reapers!"
Matt glanced at the bug guards, the Thoi'han it seemed. "These? How? How are they still alive?" he wondered. "The reapers have been remarkably thorough in the past, I understood."
"Oh, they were, for the most part," she responded. "The Thoi were bombed back to the stone age. As far as I can tell, the Reapers were unable to get all of them. They had massive underground facilities running deep into the crust of this planet. Short of blowing up the planet, there was little they could do. The battles were fierce. The Mass Relay was destroyed, cutting them off from the rest of the galaxy. What few Reapers that made it here were destroyed, but not before they released a poison pill. A horde of creatures that attacked anyone and anything, especially anything using advanced technology. A way of ensuring the Thoi'han would never be a threat again."
"These bug creatures, you mean." Thraak held up his squished specimen.
"The very same." She nodded. "I'm not thrilled you brought that in here, but so be it."
"You haven't told us your role in all this yet," Ked observed.
"I was getting to that," she shook her head. "It's been a long time. I'd forgotten how hasty the other species were. Very well. When the reapers first started invading, Liara contacted me. I had done work for her in the past, in her information broker years. She gave me a parcel that she asked me to deliver to a world that she suggested the reapers would leave alone. One that had a population of primitive sentients that would one day rise up and challenge the reapers. The device she gave me was akin to a time capsule. Information about the reapers, a supposed weapon that could defeat them. Fascinating stuff."
"A weapon?" Dahlie was immediately interested, as was Thraak. "What sort of weapon?"
"it was called a crucible, or at least that's what the Humans called it. You humans have odd names for weapons. In any case, the device has all that and more."
"This is what we're looking for!" Ked broke in, his voice excitable, "Can we see it?"
"No." the matriarch shook her head. Her response was uncharacteristically succinct.
"Why not?" Matt asked.
"We don't have it. In fact, it's currently in the central building, the temple, I call it. The one you dragged our would-be young warrior to." She shrugged. If you want to see it, you'll have to get through billions of those things, each one badly wishing to rip the flesh from your bones for the mere crimes of existing and carrying advanced weaponry.
"How did it get there?" Matt asked.
"I put it there." She sighed, "Let me explain. These creatures, this pestilence, roam the surface of this world, devouring anything in its way. It's engineered to find advanced tech, but will eat anything at all when it needs to. It goes into hibernation every so often, then springs forth again, looking for victims. The Reapers do love their cycles. I arrived during one such hibernation. My ship was attacked by orbital platforms that still operate, surprisingly. Badly damaged, I crashed not far from here."
"We ran into those. They aren't operational anymore."
The matriarch laughed. "Good to hear. Anyway, the Thoi took me in. I spent many years with them, learning their language, and studying their society. It wasn't long though that the hibernation ended and we were forced underground once again. I had portable barriers with me, luckily. I could block off defensive points to enable them to survive during the active cycles. They began to revere me. As you can imagine, a long-lived species was completely foreign to them. To them, I'm eternal. As you can see, that's not actually the case." She coughed again. "Anyway, I found that my device attracted them when they were active. I set it up in the temple, surrounded by force fields. The horde swarmed the temple, leaving our base mostly alone. It took that device to be the bigger target. If not for that and our base, it's likely that you'd have arrived on a barren world, devoid of sentient life."
Matt and the others were silent for a moment., pondering this information. "So it's bait? That's what you're using this device for?"
"Yes." She confirmed, "It's not all bad. Wait for the cycle to complete and for the pests to go back into hibernation, and you can borrow it."
"When will that be?" Ked asked.
"In about 40 years."