-()-

" According to available records, the Forerunner civilization spanned the entire galaxy, encompassing millions of worlds. It would take an utter imbecile to believe that none of the Council species ever stumbled across their legacy before."

-(I)—

---

Hekate System

The boarding craft was coming closer, and still the quarry hadn't replied to their hails. It was a magnificent vessel, a perfect representation of asari design in its sleekness and size. Perhaps, once this entire mess was dealt with, they could take it and repurpose it as another cruiser for the Heavy Fleet.

Ancestors knew they desperately needed the ships after what the Covenant did to them.

"Boost our signal and try again," Kal'Reegar ordered, walking around in a half circle as he inspected his men.

Sani'Nosal, the unfortunate communications technician, sighed and started fiddling with the oversized and outdated equipment for what was now the third time. "Yes sir. Let's see…asari vessel, this is the emergency response team of the quarian Heavy Fleet, responding to your distress call. Come in, asari vessel…"

"A thousand asari onboard and they can't even bother to turn off their own signal or answer the radio," Reegar's second in command, Min'Vamas, spat. He angrily adjusted the sights on his rifle.

"Think they're too good to pick up our calls?" His corporal, an older quarian by the name of Hal'Naedor, asked.

"Not in a situation like this one," Sani replied. "Calls like those are universal among the Council species. If it gets sent, someone better be in trouble."

The situation didn't make much sense, but to Reegar, nothing had made much sense in the galaxy the past year. What was one more drifting ship in this mess? "We'll find out soon enough." He turned towards the cockpit and called out, "Seetar, nobody's answering. Bring us to the aft docking bay and start the procedure. We're going in!"

" Yes sir!" His pilot called, and the boarding craft accelerated towards the drifting ship. They'd come here expecting either a geth ambush or desperate asari, and they'd planned for both possibilities. Armed to the teeth and ready to rip apart some synthetics, Reegar's team wasn't going to waste time out there. Their orders were simple; go in, clear out the ship and ready it for a fleet-takeover if the asari were dead. If not, grateful allies in Council space could go a long way.

Just as Seetar guided their shuttle towards the docking bay, a garbled mess of a response finally came through. It was completely unintelligible, sounding like a mix between a jumbled yell and electronic interference.

"What was that?" Reegar asked. "That on our end?"

Sami glanced down at the communication device and shrugged. "Evidence for a busted comm system or relay. Someone's trying to send us something, but it's not working. Definitely on their side."

"All right, the mission's still a go," Reegar replied. "Now we know we've got civilians running around in there, so watch your fire! That means you Keem!"

"One time, sir. That happened one time."

His marines chuckled at that, if only for a second. Reegar knew that they didn't like this situation either. Every single action the damned geth had taken in this system seemed irrational and erratic. That suggested his men could expect surprises, even aboard a Council ship.

Surprises during boarding actions got people killed and Reegar would rather fry on Haelstrom than lose anyone else.

" This docking bay is sealed shut, Sarge," Seetar said. " I can bring us in, but we're going to have to either blast or hack our way in."

"And scratch the paint on our new ship?" Reegar replied. "Doubt the asari would like that. Get us docked and we'll hack our way in. Maale, ready to work your magic?"

"If these asari didn't upgrade their security in the meantime, I'll get us in without trouble," his point man replied, readying her omni-tool.

"How are we supposed to pull their blue asses out the fire if they won't even bother opening their door to us sir?" Keem asked. "Think maybe the geth have control of the system?"

"Did you fall asleep during the briefing, boy?" Hal snapped. "The asari are docked with a refugee ship, not a geth ship. Without signs of damage or intrusion, how'd they get in, huh?"

"Refugees don't tend to bust up comms equipment," Reegar pointed out. "Something's going on here, and since the Captain gave us guns instead of cookies, we'll act like we're expecting hostiles. Get squared away. Maale, on you."

The team formed up on the door as their pilot initiated the docking procedure. Maale hacked her way into the ship's systems, while Reegar directed his marines to cover her.

After perhaps half a minute of fiddling with her omni-tool, the marine gave a little cry of victory and pulled away. The massive docking bay slid open with a mechanical whirr that reverberated throughout the cruiser's hull and Reegar directed his team inside. His marines quickly fanned out in a loose formation, setting up a loose one-eighty degree of coverage in case the geth or any other hostiles were about to spring an ambush.

"This is Kal'Reegar of the Migrant Fleet Marines, responding to the distress call!" Reegar called out. His loud voice echoed through the bay, reaching every nook and cranny that could potentially hide a distressed civilian.

But only silence greeted him.

Looking around, it didn't take the marines long to realize that something was off. It wasn't so much the absence of the geth that puzzled them, as the total lack of anything. No cries for help or outraged screams, no doors suddenly opening for the cruiser's own security detachment to meet the boarding patty, nothing.

Slowly, a sick feeling of nervousness began overtaking Reegar's usual combat jitters.

"Clear left," Hal yelled.

"Clear right!" Keem joined in.

"Place's empty," Min told Reegar. "Looks like nobody's home."

To Reegar, that suggested at least something was going on. But what? "We're heading towards the bridge, and meet up with the asari captain. Hal, you're behind Maale."

"Sir!" The two marines yelled out, before forming up together at the far door. Hal covered the door with his rifle, while Maale began working her magic on the security mechanism. Within seconds, the holographic lock turned a faded green, and the door slid open.

"Keelah!" Maale cried out as Hal swept his rifle from the left to the right. "Is that-?"

"Sarge!" Hal yelled. "We got remains!"

The entire hallway ahead was slick with… purple. It covered the floor, the walls and even portions of the lamps up on the ceiling, casting warped and morbid shadows. Beyond that, visibility was limited. Reegar estimated it went on for about twenty meters until a corner cut sharply to the right.

"Are we…sure that's blood?" Min asked.

"That's one explosive nosebleed," Keem muttered to himself.

Reegar sighed to himself. He'd hoped it wouldn't have gotten this far. "We're in hostile territory now. Expect geth behind every corner, but maintain positive identification. Last thing we want is another diplomatic incident."

A chorus of "Sir!" followed as his team confirmed his order. Together, Maale and Hal began creeping forward one after another, never moving ahead more than a few meters as the other covered them. They made it to the corner, where Maale knelt down and began preparing a combat drone. She looked down again and stopped moving. "Hey. Those are footprints."

Reegar, who couldn't see what his two pointmen were talking about, froze.

"Yeah, they are," Hal said, taking his eyes off of his rifle's sights for a split second. He brought his visor back to his rifle, but stopped halfway through the motion and looked down at the bloody floor again. "Keelah, where'd they come from?"

"Up ahead, ventilation shaft," Keem called out, aiming his shotgun up at the ceiling. "Geth hunters must have dropped down from there."

"These aren't geth footprints, sir," Hal quietly replied.

"Survivors dropped down, then."

"That doesn't make sense either. Why come out of hiding at all with the geth prowling around? You'd expect them to stay put."

"Probably a security team, trying to circumvent the geth," Reegar said. He considered the possibility of hostile forces that weren't the geth. It couldn't have been the batarians, they wouldn't be able to overwhelm the planet's defenses; Besides; there weren't any pirate, mercenary or batarian ships in the whole system.

Covenant fringe groups, then? Those bloodthirsty monsters could have easily caused a massacre like this. But then…where was the plasma scoring? The stench of burning flesh and plastic, the obvious pockets of molten steel or other scorch marks?

Perhaps it was a team of those invisible stealth bastards armed with dedicated special forces weaponry. Like those glass…needle things.

But why? And how?

"Stay focused. Keem, move to our six and keep your eyes peeled. Don't want any surprises dropping down behind us. Seetar, update?"

"If I know my Republic layouts, central operations should be directly ahead," Seetar replied, staring at a convoluted blueprint of another cruiser model. "One door between us and there. Could be more depending on the manufacturer."

Reegar nodded, reminding himself to rotate another two marines to take point once they'd reached central command. "Stay sharp everyone. The geth will have fortified central operations. We might have to breach for more entry points."

They continued onwards, moving with deliberate slowness, constantly on the lookout for the telltale sign of a cloaked geth or other ambushes. The damn synthetics were excellent hunters, and often laid traps for any unsuspecting squad of marines to stumble into. Reegar wasn't going to be one of them, and neither would his men. Not if he could help it.

But as the marines crept on, they never encountered any hostiles. The ship, which should have been teeming with electronic signals, movements and noise, remained eerily quiet.

It didn't track. The asari had sounded so urgent in their distress call. Reegar would have expected to run into heavy geth opposition long ago. So where was everyone?

Finally they came across a large intersection, with a locked door straight ahead and hallways reaching left and right. Once his team had ensured all angles of approach were covered, Reegar waved Maale forwards.

She slowly approached the main door, her omni-tool extended. "Central operations is dead ahead," she murmured. "Only one way in."

"Keem, get those breaching charges set. There and there," Reegar ordered, pointing at two sections of the wall to the left and right. "Everyone stack up. Keem, on me. Breach on my mark."

His marines took their positions, one pair at each breaching location.

"Four…three…two…one…mark!"

Two flashes of light and blasts of rolling thunder later, the quarian breaching party swarmed into the cruiser's central operations –

- and wished they hadn't.

Reegar, his heart pounding and instinct screaming, swept his rifle across the interior and met a sight that made him step back in shock. Central operations looked like a war zone. Singe marks from mass accelerator fire and last-ditch biotic blasts pocketed the walls, the ceiling, the floor – everywhere he could see. The overhead lights, barely functioning, flickered occasionally every few seconds before going dark again. In those few seconds, they illuminated a grisly scene.

If there had been a crew here, someone had eviscerated them. Torn them apart and bathed the command room with their blood and innards.

And Reegar's mind went blank. What he saw, did not make sense on an instinctual level. His mind simply rejected the details there, if only for a few, fleeting moments. But slowly, mercilessly, his training and experience kicked in. They took control over his rational mind, forcing his senses to go over each detail with excruciating focus.

Lines of purple blood lashed out in every direction. Shards of broken armor and pulped flesh littered the floor. Some of them were identifiable. Others less so. Rotten. Decrepit. Wrong. Bundles of shredded entrails hung across the central console. A detached jawbone had been callously discarded, bits of flesh and ligament still attached at some spots.

The stench of ruptured bowels and rotting meat assaulted his senses even through his filter.

For several seconds, nobody said a word.

"What…what happened here?" Keem muttered weakly. Behind him, Seetar spun sideways and audibly vomited.

"This – was this the geth?" Sami demanded. "I've never…they don't do this, do they?"

"Hey, stay sharp!" Reegar bellowed, realizing that the shock and horror had to be even worse for the less-experienced marines. Now more than ever, they needed to be ready for a hostile counterattack. "Tighten those lines of fire! I want every entrance covered! Lay down drones, mines and turrets. The geth could be watching us right now! Hell, it could even be those Covenant bastards! Maale, find me something in this mess that works. I want the camera and security systems online ASAP!"

It took his marines the longest time to kick themselves into gear. Min was the first to snap out of it. He literally kicked Hal into action and began directing the individual members of the boarding team into position.

Meanwhile, Reegar began scanning the room, trying to make sense of what had happened here. At first glance, it was as if the asari bridge crew had fought the mother of all firefights. But too many details were just… off. Where were the bodies? Keelah, with this much carnage, where were the amputations? Small pieces of tissue were scattered everywhere, but no limbs or decapitated heads? Unless this had all taken place post-mortem, or even post-engagement…but why? The geth had never been known to engage in wanton cruelty or torture. Nothing on this level anyway. Covenant weaponry was right out; this was not the result of conventional weapons, let alone heat-based ones.

Upon closer inspection, it appeared that the fight had completely wrecked the bridge as well. It didn't take a brilliant engineer to note that the scorched, battered and slagged equipment had all been rendered nonfunctional.

After he'd given everyone their orders, Min approached Reegar, and very quietly said, "Sir, I think we should get out of here right now, call for reinforcements."

Reegar stared at his second. He'd never hear Min opt to back out of a fight. "You think it's that bad?"

The veteran marine pointed a trembling finger at the command seat. "Kal, if these were geth, they tore apart an entire asari security team and bridge crew like cattle. If it's the Covenant, we are vastly outgunned. We are fewer riflemen without biotics. I don't think we can handle this situation."

"We have our orders Han," Reegar answered in an equally quiet voice. "We're not sticking around to be slaughtered like the asari, but we can't leave without at least having figured out what in the name of Rannoch went down here!"

"We know what happened here," Min hissed. "Either the geth or those Covenant bastards infiltrated an evac shuttle, asari picked them up stupidly, and then got massacred!"

"We don't know that! I don't see any geth or Covenant remains! None of that white shit, no pulse weapon scoring or plasma burns, nothing. Or are you telling me that the geth or Covenant butchered this entire crew and ate all that fire without taking a single casualty? Without leaving any trace of weapon fire?

"Sir, I'm saying we don't know shit, and throwing our marines into that mess won't do a thing!"

"Damnit Min, we have our orders. We have to –"

A series of piercing wails echoed through the ship and everybody froze.

It was primal. Unhinged. Despair, hunger and rage, all of that yet none of that. Never before in his life had Reegar heard someone utter a noise like that. Never in his life did he want to hear something like that again. Nothing alive could have uttered those sounds.

"What was that?" Maale screeched. "What the hell was that?"

"Where's that coming from, Sarge?" Hal demanded, pointing his rifle in every direction except the door he was supposed to be covering. "What is that?"

"Movement!" Keem snapped, keeping his rifle trained down the hall. "I've got movement in my sector!"

"Mine too!" Sami joined in. "But the doors are damaged. They won't close!"

"Maale? Progress?" Reegar called out.

"Systems are a bust sir! One moment…yeah, I might be able to override them from engineering."

A rock formed within Reegar's gut. With all the movement around the bridge, the enemy was about to make a push - whoever the hell their enemy even was at this point. If they regained this room, their position would become untenable.

They'd have to split the team up.

"Min, I'm taking Keem and Maale and pushing through to engineering. We'll get the systems running again," Reegar said. "You and the rest of the team will dig in, hold this area."

Min hesitated, but only for a moment. "Got it sir, but be quick about it."

Reegar clasped his shoulder, gave him a reassuring shove, then gathered his two marines and moved out. Together, the trio of quarian marines made their way through the tight and gore-splattered corridors towards engineering. Because the cruiser's power situation was a mess, taking the elevator wasn't an option. So instead, they were forced to navigate through dark, tight corners and rooms. All of them were empty, but painted with asari blood.

At one point, Min contacted him again over their personal comms. " Sergeant Reegar? About those systems…"

"Yeah?" Reegar replied, his eyes drawn to a door that suddenly slid open in the distance. "Spit it out."

" Sir, this was no collateral damage. They…someone worked hard to wreck this bridge. On purpose."

The quarian marine halted. "Sabotage?"

A brief pause. " Uhm…not sure. Seems more like asset denial to me. It seems desperate, and a little sloppy. Like they wanted to prevent whatever attacked them from hacking into the ship's systems or something. Wouldn't surprise me if they slagged the engines too."

"Got it. I'll keep you posted."

Kal'Reegar had long ago learned to trust his instincts. They were screaming at him that this entire situation was screwed and that they should evacuate now, while they still could. But Admiral Gerrel's orders demanded speed of movement and aggression. He couldn't just pull out without achieving his mission objectives. Perhaps they –

"Stop! Identify yourself! Halt, halt-!"

Rifles discharged right behind him, followed by screams and more curses. Reegar whirled around, leveling his rifle just in time to see a figure throw itself at Keem. Years of training took over and Reegar took two large steps to the side, putting himself at a ninety degree angle to the…hostile…

Even as the training and the drills and the experience guided his hand, forcing him to put several shots into the thing that was attacking Keem, Reegar's mind screamed and his stomach recoiled at what he saw. Rotting, elongated fingers, dripping with purple ichor. A tattered hardsuit with clusters of red, twitching little roots protruding from where her left breast had been. Her entire upper right shoulder was a swollen mass, matted, rotting, cancerous bulging flesh reaching as high as her head. Her head…pallid and the color of rotting organs, her ravaged expression locked in an agonized scream. It had been shoved aside by her disfigured flesh to make room. Little tentacle-like protrusions had burst from her nostrils.

That rotten, agonized face opened and opened more. Her lower jaw tore free, revealing that the inner portion of her mouth had been reworked into something that resembled an industrial apparatus. Rows of barbed, irregular spines in lieu of teeth tingled with blue, Biotic energy as the thing that had once been an asari enveloped Keem's entire throat with its jaws.

Reegar heard himself scream as he fired his weapon on full auto. Round after round tore through the not-asari's body, to no avail.

Biotic energy ate through Keem's body like a Warp blast. The shifting fields of dark energy tore through his hardsuit, disintegrating his flesh. By the time Reegar stomped forwards and body-checked the creature off his comrade, it was far too late.

Keem slumped to the floor, his head only loosely connected to his torso. Biotic energy and necrotic teeth had torn away everything between his chin and his upper ribs.

The hostile pivoted towards him. One of its arms was relatively proportionate, but the other had been mutated into a thick, wriggling rotten mass easily twice as long and thick as it should have been. Clusters of thick tentacles protruded from ragged holes in the skin.

A roar of panic and anger wretched itself past Reegar's lips as he unloaded his rifle at the abomination in front of him. The disruptor rounds, meant to rip through kinetic shields like they were wet paper, did nothing to stop the creature in its tracks. With a wet, guttural choke, it lashed out. A whiplike tentacle cracked through the air. Reegar threw himself to the ground, but Maale caught the full brunt of the blow. The rotten appendages slammed into his side and his chest just caved in. Bones snapped, armored plates shattered and fresh blood sprayed across Reegar's visor.

With another wordless scream, Reegar hosed the creature with fire again. Hyper-accelerated slugs tore into the rotten asari's neck and blew chunks and pieces free. Lightning-fast, the sergeant drew his sidearm – a Carnifex loaded with shredder-rounds for dirty work – and poured it on.

He continued firing even as his rounds blew the asari's body to bits. It staggered towards him in jerking movements. Shredder rounds found their way into the gaping hole left by his previous fire and blew the corpse's head clean off. That seemed to do the trick, as the lurching body came to a sudden halt, its tentacled limbs twitching and spasming blindly in every direction.

"Fucking die already!" Reegar snarled as he slapped a fresh thermal clip into his pistol and blew both of the creature's kneecaps off.

Unable to sustain that amount of damage, the rotten abomination slammed to the ground, twitched once, then stopped moving altogether.

The quarian marine took a ragged breath, loaded a fresh thermal clip into his rifle, and was about to thumb his radio when something caught his eye.

The crest of the asari's head he'd blown off just… split apart. Its cartilage scalp burst open from within. Skin sloughed off as thin, segmented legs sprouted from each crest. Twin stalks burst from the ruined depths of the asari's eyeless face, each sporting fine, crimson feelers. Then, without a moment's warning, the asari's decapitated head began scurrying towards him.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding," Reegar breathed.

Years of training overcame millennia of animalistic instincts in a single heartbeat. Reegar shouldered his rifle and hosed the skittering little bastard. His fire blew its gross little legs off and it came to a dead stop.

Never seen that before, Reegar thought grimly as he raised his boot and brought it down, hard. The twitching head gave surprisingly little resistance as he stomped it into a smear on the deck. No skull to crack, anyway. Felt more like he was stomping all over a hanar instead.

More howls came down the hallway. The sergeant shouldered his rifle again. "Come on you bosh'tets!" He roared. "Come and get me!"

-(II)-

---

14:17 Hours, August 8 (Military Calendar) / Aboard SSV Normandy SR-2, maintaining location at unidentified pickup-point

"We're approaching the pickup-point Commander," Garrus reported. "We're only seeing one other ship in the system."

"Keep our weapons hot, just in case," Shepard replied. She glanced at the galaxy map, seeing the approximate location of the other vessel as the Normandy silently cruised closer. They moved towards the plane of the asteroid field where the other ship held its position. If this was a trap, it wasn't a very good one. They could blow the opposition out of the water and disappear in the span of seconds. Any reinforcements were either extremely well hidden, or absent altogether.

But it never hurt to be careful. "EDI? Finish that scan yet?"

EDI's holographic avatar appeared next to the galaxy map. "Yes Commander. We are dealing with an old merchant vessel. It does not appear to be armed. Judging by the visible hull damage, it seems to be in a particularly bad shape. I have calculated the odds of it carrying weaponry capable of damaging the Normandy through its barriers to be point zero five percent, rounded up."

"What do you think of their message?"

"Neither Cortana nor I detected any evidence to suggest it has been doctored or fabricated," EDI continued. "However, it is nonetheless possible to be an old audio recording, taken under duress."

Which loosely translated into a medium level of paranoia. "Right," Shepard muttered back. "Bring us as close as possible without revealing our location and keep monitoring the relay. Any sign of hostile activity, we blow that thing to smithereens and get out."

"Yes Commander."

In what probably had to be divine intervention, nobody started shooting when Joker hailed the old freighter. In fact, going by who answered their hail, it was the closest thing to good news the crew had gotten in a week.

" Joker. Fuck me it's good to hear your voice. Been too goddamn long. Hurry up and let us dock before this piece of shit falls apart on us."

Joker looked up from his console and met the Commander's eyes. "That settles it, right? No asari conspirator worth their salt would go that far to fake a little reunion."

"Because the Inner Circle has shown so much class," Jane said, not even bothering to keep the contempt out of her voice. "I'll believe it when Kasumi and Zaeed are chilling in the lounge and we're booking it to the quarians. Until then, you better believe we're keeping the ship at general quarters."

The aging freighter slowly approached the Normandy, firing micro thrusters to gently align their hangar bay with the Normandy's docking bay. Any sign of hostility was to be met with extreme violence. Desperation made suicidal attacks no less dangerous.

It took them a few minutes, but finally they managed to pull the procedure off. Magnetic clamps attached themselves to the ship, securing it in place.

"Scans indicate we are dealing with only two people, Shepard," EDI pointed out. " No radiation detected. Further countermeasures for biological and chemical weapons are ready."

Shepard slipped on her helmet and stepped towards the decontamination room. She was confident the GEN2 MJOLNIR's shields, combined with her own biotic barrier, could survive whatever weapons an opposing force could throw at her in the opening seconds. After that, EDI and Cortana would take over.

"Decontamination in progress."

Shepard readied her biotics and flicked her SMG's safety off. "Ready."

"Decontamination complete."

Shepard quickly stepped through the airlock as it opened, ready to unleash hell on any hapless mercs or soldiers the asari had recruited for this latest suicidal attempt on her life.

Except, that didn't happen. She came face to face with a scarred man pushing his late fifties, and a woman wearing very light, form-fitting armor adorned with a hood that cast a deep shadow across most of her face.

She felt the tension seep from her body, and the apprehension made way for relief. It was them! They were alive!"

"Kasumi, Zaeed," Shepard exclaimed, holstering her gun and stepping closer to greet the pair. "It's been too damn long."

"Shepard," Zaeed rumbled. "Goddamn good to see you. Been a pain in the ass getting here, that's for sure."

"Welcome back to the Normandy. I'll have you debriefed in no time. How've you been?"

"Jacob is dead," Kasumi said in an ice-cold tone the moment she stepped through the decontamination room. Zaeed hung back behind her, arms crossed as he leaned against the bulkhead.

Shepard was silent for a few seconds, struggling to process what she just heard. "…What?"

"They've been hunting us for months. Jacob contacted us first, warned us to lie low," Kasumi continued. Her voice was calm and steady, but the Commander could feel the anger radiating off her. "We tried to link up with him, but they got to him first."

Jacob is dead?

Slowly, Kasumi's words started to sink in, bringing with them an almost visceral sense of nausea and confusion. "…Who?"

"Hell if we know," Zaeed growled. "They used mercs most of the time. We saw Blue Suns on several occasions. Eclipse, most of the time. Some jackasses in blank hardsuits as well, last few jumps."

"It wasn't mercs that wanted Jacob dead, and you know it," Kasumi told him, her eyes all but smoldering underneath her hood.

White-hot anger erupted within her chest, rising up through her throat like bile. Neither the Blue Suns nor the Eclipse would have the intelligence or resources to track down people like Jacob, Zaeed and Kasumi across several different systems. " Who?" Shepard demanded.

Zaeed tore his gaze off the airlock's bulkhead and looked at her. "Yeah," he said. "That's right. Wasn't no mercs that did him in, at the end."

Darkness started to cloud the edges of her vision. It was the asari. The fucking asari Matriarchs that had been hounding her ever since she found John and Cortana aboard the wreckage of the Dawn. They'd done exactly what they'd told her they'd do. "You're sure?" Shepard asked. "You're sure he's gone?"

Wordlessly, Kasumi nodded in affirmation.

Shepard took a moment to let that sink in. With comprehension came clarity. They hadn't been able to get to her, so they came after her people. She didn't have the time to answer in kind. It wasn't the priority.

But she did have the resources.

Her head spun. Dozens of thoughts coalesced at once within her mind. She'd been ignoring this too long. Jacob might still be alive if she hadn't. She couldn't take that back.

The others. She had to find the others, before the enemy did.

"Two can play at that game," she said, her quiet voice a painful contrast to the roaring in her head. "Get settled somewhere. You'll be debriefed soon."

With nothing more to say, Shepard turned on her heels and marched back towards the CIC. "EDI?" She said, her voice coming out as a hoarse growl. "I want Spartan-003 in the conference room yesterday. Kabalim Laevicus as well."

"Understood, Commander," EDI's voice came across the nearest terminal not one second later.

Specialist Traynor stared at her for a moment, her expression one of concern. Shepard barely noticed her as she strode to the conference room adjacent to the War Room. There, she booted up her omni-tool and started putting things together.

It felt like mere seconds had passed by before she was shaken from her thoughts when the glass doors to the conference room slid open, allowing Three and Tatilia to enter. The Spartan was already suited up, which meant he stood several inches taller than the cabal –- and she was already quite tall for a turian.

"Commander," Tatilia said with a respectful nod. "The AI said it was urgent?"

"It is," Shepard replied. "I have a mission for your unit. I don't care what it takes, or how you do it, as long as you succeed."

Tatilia narrowed her eyes. "Is that so?"

"…What happened?" Three asked.

Shepard, completely out of patience for any social sparring or attitude from the turian, focused her attention on the Spartan instead. "One of our enemies crossed a line, and is now actively working against our war effort. They need to be addressed."

With the turian equivalent of a snort, Tatilia sat down opposite of the Commander. "And that's gotta be us…why?"

Wordlessly, Shepard typed in a few commands in her omni-tool and pulled out one of the files she had been working on. "Because a bunch of assholes keep setting fire to our planets, and the big guns are all occupied putting them out. This situation is more delicate, so it's exactly up your alley." She held Tatilia's gaze for a couple of seconds, then settled on Three's visor again. "Especially yours, Spartan."

Slowly, something seemed to change in the cabal's posture. Her expression changed from defiant to something more relaxed, but her body language grew tense and alert. She'd seen Garrus do that too, right before the shooting started.

"Details?" Tatilia asked.

Shepard held out her omni-tool and sent the relevant dossiers and information directly to Tatilia's omni-tool.

The turian took a few minutes to read them, with Three looking over her shoulder as she did. If what she saw intimidated her, she didn't show it. "This is a hit-list."

"I'm glad you agree with my analysis." Shepard rested her elbows on the table. "Don't act as if it's your first, Kabalim."

Without taking her eyes off the dossier, Tatilia fired back, "It might be my first unsanctioned one. Definitely my first vague one. Two-thirds of these are nicknames, Shepard."

"I've got people working on the specifics. Names, times, locations and assets, you'll get all of those. For now, this is going to be your mission, and your game, Tatilia."

She didn't look convinced. "We're four people. Maybe five when Kallen recovers enough. Even just o ne of these people would need weeks of preparation. If I'm going to take my team on a suicide mission and try this, we're going to need much more intel, Commander."

"Everything you need, you'll get," Shepard said, not mincing words. "Officially, the Normandy is tasked with getting the Migrant Fleet on our side. Logistics and intel support won't come from us. Three, I need you to get in contact with Minerva instead. Whatever it takes."

The Spartan seemed to contemplate her words for a moment. Then…"I understand. Kabalim, if necessary, with Minerva's help, I can do this alone."

Tatilia sighed with exasperation. "Spirits. I've seen what you call assets, Shepard. If we're going to do this, I'll need a plan. A really solid plan."

"If Minerva comes through, you'll get much more than that," Shepard said, satisfied that the first hurdle had been taken. "Like I said, anything you need, you'll get, but I shouldn't have to say that this mission remains classified. Nobody that isn't going to participate with you on the ground will know this is happening. Is that understood?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Of course Shepard."

"Good." A wave of raw, grim satisfaction worked its way down her spine. If she was going to prevent the Inner Circle from killing off more of her friends, she would have to act fast – and history had taught her that nothing did fast the way a Spartan-AI pair could. "I'll get in touch the moment I've got that plan. Dismissed."

Together, the Spartan and the Kabalim left without another word, and Shepard was left alone once more.

Jacob is dead.

Another one she couldn't save.

Tiredly, she buried her face in her hands. How couldn't she have seen this coming? They'd threatened and warned her plenty of times. She knew how the fuckers worked; if they couldn't get to you, they'd get to your family and your loved ones.

Goddamnit she had to get the others! Miranda, Samara, Thane – they were all still out there, alone, just waiting for some random punk in the street to whip out their gun for an organization that would see a billion of them die in agony if it meant they could retain their power for just a few more years. She couldn't afford to be stuck out here, playing politician. Not when her friends were being picked off one by one.

Yet…if she didn't convince the quarians and the geth to join the Coalition, the Reapers would burn everything she loved regardless.

If the quarians and geth could even make a difference.

Jane took a shuddering breath, wrestled down the boiling pit of rage and hate that was her stomach and shoved herself to her feet. The nodes in her arms tingled and itched, screaming for her to release everything she had pent up in the most violent way imaginable.

And she would. She would. Just…not now. Later. There'd be a reckoning later.

For now, she had a war three-hundred years in the making to stop.

"Yeah," Jane muttered. "No pressure."

It would be another day before the Normandy reached the Phoenix Massing nebula. From there, they'd rendezvous with the Migrant Fleet and start negotiations. Since the Reapers were all over the galaxy at this point, they'd have to be careful in picking their routes across the relays. The Reaper IFF would help, of course, but the Reapers had different ways of identifying their prey.

Without sunsets or sunrises, day and night didn't have much meaning unless the crew adhered to a set schedule. The constant fighting and traveling across the stars made it hard to keep track of the time. By the time Shepard finished her work, it was already "evening".

She found Zaeed in the starboard observation deck. He had stashed out his personal belongings across the floor – the majority of it being weapons, gear and other equipment – and was in the process of disassembling his rifle when the Commander entered.

"Shepard," he said, glancing up from his aging rifle. "Can't say I like what's happened to the ship. It was just fine the way it was, back when."

"Back when it was a Cerberus tenure," Shepard replied. She glanced over his shoulder and saw Kasumi sprawled on the floor in the corner. Kasumi had laid down a sleeping bag in the corner amidst their other supplies and seemed busy with her omni-tool.

"The Alliance impounded the Normandy, gave it the makeover they thought it needed," Shepard absentmindedly replied. What was Kasumi doing?

"Yeah yeah," the old merc muttered. He turned away from his rifle and turned his gaze towards her, sizing her up as if he were expecting a fight. "Good to see you, Shepard. Saved our bacon just in time." His weathered eyes narrowed. "Where've you been, all these months?"

"I could ask the same of you," Shepard replied, leaning against the wall as she calmly met Zaeed's gaze. "I didn't expect you to drop off the grid like that."

"After the shit that went down on the Citadel, we all figured it was just a matter of time before someone came knocking on our door. We split up at first, since the Alliance wouldn't be very big on the company you kept." Zaeed grimaced. "Kept in contact with the others though, just in case. The UEG suddenly waltzing on the galactic stage confused everyone long enough for us to quietly disappear. After the message we got we figured – "

"Hang on, message?" Shepard interrupted. "Who messaged you?"

Zaeed shrugged. "Hell if I know. Some anonymous warning that the same bastards who set you and the Chief up, were after our asses as well. Fucking weird, I know, since we weren't exactly easy to reach without the ship."

A dozen questions popped up in the Commander's head, but she kept them to herself for the moment. "The others got the message too?"

"Yeah," Zaeed said with a sharp nod. "But we guessed it was EDI. Shit got real suspicious, so we banded together just in case."

"You, Kasumi and Jacob?"

"Hmm. We wanted to get the others as well, but they dropped off the grid so thoroughly we couldn't find them. Guess some places are just too dangerous to fuck with, right? Anyway, we started running a tight crew, just the three of us. We tried to find a way to lie low, maybe earn some credits, but the bastards always found us."

"Who were they?" Shepard asked. "You said they were mercs and blank suits, but how did you figure who they really were?"

"Goto ain't no killer like you and me Shepard, but she's one hell of an infiltrator," Zaeed said with something like pride in his voice. "Wasn't all running and gunning you know? We tried to hit them back, find out who the hell was hunting us across the galaxy. 'Cause these bastards really showed up everywhere. Across the Traverse and through the Terminus! Sometimes we'd hit them back, you know, that black operations shit Cerberus and the STG are so fond of. Taylor would point us the way, Goto would get what we needed and I covered them all the way in, and all the way out." Zaeed affectionately patted his rifle. "Was no mercs who paid them, Shepard. Sure, their handlers were NGO, but their handlers? Once we started digging, we saw asari gear, asari systems and asari money. You know what I told you, right? You wanna know who someone works for…"

"You follow the money," the Commander quietly said. There it was. She exhaled a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. "And then they killed Jacob."

Zaeed worked his jaw as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he settled for a silent nod.

"How'd it happen?" Shepard softly asked.

"They boxed us in somewhere between UEG space and the Terminus systems. Can't even remember what planet. We'd prepped a ship to get the hell out of dodge, but we needed intel, something to make it all worthwhile." He took a deep breath. "It was a goddamned trap. Goto and I got out, Taylor didn't. We tried to get him. Didn't make it."

In the corner, Kasumi went very still.

Zaeed suddenly reached out and grabbed Shepard by her shoulder. He stared at her intently with his one good eye and said, "Shepard, what they did, was intentional. They tied him to a chair and cut his goddamned head off with a sword, to get a rise out of Goto and me. They filmed it, 'cause they want to get a rise out of you. They made it personal Shepard, but don't you let it get personal. They want you to go after them, sloppily, making mistakes."

Mistakes. They wanted her to make mistakes. And they cut Jacob's head off with a fucking sword to make it personal enough.

Jane blinked. She opened her mouth to speak, found no words to convey what she wanted to say, and closed it again. Frothing, seething rage would not help her. She further repressed the anger, and allowed the calm to replace it. She forced the calm to replace it. "Okay." She took a breath. Her chest shuddered. It wasn't an affirmation to him. More a promise to be kept. "Okay. The intel you got. Do you still have it?"

"Yeah I do," Zaeed growled.

"Good. We're going to use it."

A look of grim satisfaction crossed Zaeed's features. "You're goddamned right we are. We're gonna find them, Shep'. We're gonna make them pay."

Behind him, Kasumi lowered her head.

"Send whatever you got to my personal terminal. I've got people scoping things out. I'll make sure they'll get it."

"You got people for that now," Zaeed said. He made it sound like a joke, but Shepard detected some underlying curiosity in his voice. He crossed his arms over his chest and leant against the nearest bulkhead, sustaining his weight on one leg. "Gotta say, I kept wondering where you went. Heard all sorts of crazy rumors, even out in the shit. EDI sent me a couple of reports to read, but I haven't gotten to them yet. Got a short, simple version for us?"

Shepard sighed. "Short? Maybe. Simple? I wish. After you guys escorted Johnson to the Embassies, Anderson recognized him as the UEG's official envoy. So that emergency plan worked out. After Cortana and the Chief got out of the system, the Alliance put me on house arrest back on Earth. I think the official accusation was "working with" Cerberus, but the asari forced their hand. Maybe it was the best they could do to avoid a political incident."

"Chief and Cortana, they got out alright?" Zaeed asked in a low voice. "With uh…you know, Cortana's…condition?"

Shepard blinked at the old mercenary's choice of words. "They made it, yes. That's another long story, but Tali found them. We… he found a way. Cortana's doing better now. Matter of fact, they're both here, onboard the Normandy."

For the first time, Kasumi glanced over her shoulder and looked at the Commander. "Chief's here?"

"He is," Shepard replied. "Crew quarters."

Kasumi said nothing, but her cold expression turned to one of thoughtfulness, and she lowered her gaze again.

"Hell, that's some good fucking news," Zaeed exclaimed. "Should've known they couldn't keep that crazy killing machine down for the count!"

"Yeah," Shepard quietly agreed. "That's one silver lining in this mess. After that, it's been…" she shook her head. She couldn't get Ashley's dying face out of her mind. "Earth's fallen. I was there when they hit it. Reapers then set fire to Palaven. We were there for that, too. Our mission hasn't changed; unite the races of the galaxy and build a fleet capable of beating the Reapers back. That's exactly what we've been doing the past months."

"Covenant? Forerunners? Rogue Spartans and a cure for the Genophage?" Zaeed asked.

"All true. All things that are now part of our daily life," Shepard replied. "All of those are on our side, or at least opposing the Reapers. Like I said, long story."

Zaeed looked like his birthday had come early. "You hear that Goto? I told you we weren't on our own."

Hearing that, Shepard couldn't help but scoff. "You thought I'd abandoned you?" She asked incredulously, more directed at the woman in the corner than Zaeed.

Kasumi looked up sharply. "I didn't know what to think! After that mess on the Citadel, you were suddenly gone, and we were on our own. You always had our backs, Shep'. But when we really needed it, you weren't there."

Anger and outrage had something ugly on her tongue. She held it back. Kasumi was right. "I wanted to be out there," she said, forcing her words to be even and calm. "But the Alliance had different plans. By the time they pulled their heads out of their asses, the Reapers were already on our doorstep. We made it out on the Normandy. A lot of people didn't. After that, it's been one fight after another."

"What's done is done. Makes no sense to blame anyone but those sons of bitches who were after us," Zaeed spoke up. "Figured something else kept you occupied, Shepard. What matters is that we're here now."

"…Yeah," Kasumi quietly said. She didn't meet Jane's eyes again. "I know that's right, rationally. I don't blame you, Shep. I really don't. I just…"

"You lost someone, and you're angry. I know the feeling," Shepard replied.

"Let's look at the bright fucking side, shall we?" Zaeed snapped. "We've got the Chief back and Cortana – hello Cortana, you listening? – and now we're gonna get them. We're gonna fucking get them, Goto. No place in the galaxy where the bastards can run."

Jane and Kasumi exchanged a look. "Zaeed, when's the last time you slept?"

Zaeed literally waved away her concern. "Not important. We got this shit cleared up, that's what counts. I should let you go. Got some reading to do, and some planning to pin down."

"A while ago," Kasumi explained. "We'll talk later, Shep. Thanks for dropping by. And…it's good to be back."

"It's good to have you back," the Commander said. "Grab some rest, you two. You're gonna need it."

It didn't take long for news of Jacob's death to spread. Any joy the crew had felt upon the recruitment of two former squadmates was dashed against the rocks. It worsened the feelings of grief and defeat that the crew already felt over their sudden withdrawal from Palaven and Ashley's death. Worse, the news brought with it something more insidious than a sense of loss.

Paranoia.

The Alliance crewmembers who had only been serving on the ship since its chaotic escape from Earth didn't seem concerned. As far as they knew, one of Shepard's associates had been killed in the line of duty.

Others knew better. Before, they'd been able to keep their focus on the enemy in front of them, dedicating themselves in mind and body to the fight against the Reapers. Now, fear took ahold of normally brave men and women. Were they going to be targeted next? Their families, friends? Who would be the next of their loved ones to turn up dead – or worse, appear in a brutal execution video on the extranet?

Don't get mad, Garrus had told her. Get even.

They made it personal. She couldn't let it be personal. Zaeed was right. This wasn't a war she could fight right now. They had to fight the Reapers. Keep fighting them. They couldn't do that without the geth and the quarians. The Shipmaster was right, too.

But that wasn't going to stop her from killing them all.

She spoke to Cortana and consulted EDI, and worked. Compiled. Gathered. When the people she contacted spoke, she listened.

John gave his council. She took that into account, too. He understood. John always understood.

" All hands, prepare for mass relay jump," EDI suddenly announced, shaking the Commander from her work. " We are transitioning to the Argus Rho cluster."

Shepard looked up from her datapad and glanced at her mission clock. She'd lost track of time. Time to shift gears.

The diplomatic mission to the Migrant Fleet required no specific mission briefing. Everybody knew what was expected of them, and since there would be no combat involved, her ground team could sit this one out.

She pinged John and Garrus and told them to suit up and get ready. Then, she made her way to the cockpit.

"We've made it through, no problems there," Joker was quick to inform her when he heard her approach. "Ships are incoming already, hailing us."

"Put them through," Shepard said.

A moment later, the modulated voice of a quarian male came through the nearest speaker. " Approaching vessel, you are approaching the Migrant Fleet. Please identify and state your business."

"Cheerful bunch, aren't they?" Joker remarked.

Shepard frowned. As far as she was aware, this system wasn't restricted or claimed by anyone. "This is Commander Shepard of the Normandy SR-2. We are here as representatives of the agreed-upon diplomatic meeting between the Coalition and the quarian Admiralty. "

A moment of silence. Shepard took the time to glance at the sensory data EDI had gathered, noticing the location of the Migrant Fleet itself. Almost instantly, she noticed something was different from the last time. She just couldn't put her finger on it.

" Authorization confirmed. I will patch you through to our flight control. Good luck, Captain Shepard."

Behind her, Garrus and John marched up towards the airlock. Neither of them was armed. "We're ready Shepard," Garrus informed her, his voice slightly muffled behind his sealed helmet. "Put on our nicest suits, too."

" Flight control to Normandy. You may proceed to the following coordinates."

Joker's hands were a blur as he plotted a course. "Let's play spot the difference, Commander. See what's off yet?"

Shepard frowned, then looked at the quarian fleet again. Suddenly it hit her. "Where is the rest of the Migrant Fleet?"

-(III)-

---

15:18 Hours, August 7, 2553 (UEG Military Calendar) / Argus Rho cluster, Migrant Fleet, aboard quarian vessel Rayya

Fittingly for one of the three liveships left in the Migrant Fleet, the airlock leading into the Rayya was long and elaborate, with several lengthy decontamination procedures. When the Normandy's boarding party made it to the end of the airlock, a large team of well-armed, but friendly marines greeted them, with the Rayya's captain himself heading them.

"Captain Shepard," he said pleasantly, after which the marines around him lowered their weapons and visibly relaxed. "I am glad to see you are well."

"Good to see the quarians remember us so fondly," Cortana said over a private channel. "Even after what happened the last time."

"It was Tali who found us," the Chief replied. "When the enemy came for us, after the Citadel. I killed them all. Legion found us. Tali came for us."

"Thus guaranteeing friendly relations between our people for decades to come, when she united you with the UNSC," Cortana continued. "I read about that. Which begs the question…"

"Where is she?" The Chief finished her sentence.

"Captain Kar'Danna," Jane replied while Cortana and the Chief conversed in private. "It's been a while. Thank you for agreeing to host us on your ship. We are honored."

The quarian inclined his head towards her. "Given the importance of your mission, our admirals have agreed to meet you here within the hour. They are about to fly in. I have taken the liberty of preparing a private conference room."

Shepard leant towards him, and eyed him with large, curious eyes, visible through the visor of her Alliance military helmet. "If you do not mind me asking, Captain, I thought the Migrant Fleet was composed of some fifty thousand ships? Where is the rest?"

"Yes, that is correct," Kar'Danna darkly said. "I…shall refrain from letting my political beliefs tarnish the truth. Better for the Admirals themselves to tell you what…took place."

As Captain Kar'Danna led them deeper into the Rayya, it became clear that the arrival of Coalition delegates was a big deal to the quarian people. Groups of quarians mulled about everywhere the Chief looked, speaking in hushed tones that were obviously not meant to be heard.

"Can you believe it? After three centuries the Council comes begging to us for help?"

"Yeah. Chased us off so many times and now we're supposed to save their lives? Like the krogan all over again…"

"You idiots! This isn't the Council business, but Coalition."

A snort. "Yeah? Same difference."

"You stupid bosh'tet! The Council screwed us over. The Coalition is what's going to save us from the Reapers and the geth! Or did you forget the UNSC's a big player in the Coalition as well?"

"Yeah? Well, we'll see…"

They followed the Captain into the garden plaza. The Chief, who had seen many kinds of ships during his life, would never take hydroponics for granted. The Rayya was a sight to behold in that regard, especially considering the state of the ship half a year ago. The massive liveship had to grow enough food to sustain millions of quarians.

Last time, he had been too busy fending off an entire Covenant invasion on the Rayya. The circumstances were even worse this time around, but it did allow the Spartan to take in the sights the quarians had to offer.

"I…was shortsighted, the last time we met," Captain Kar'Danna suddenly spoke up. "When the fleet was in danger, you were there, fighting in the halls of my ship, saving the lives of my crew. And when you came to me, bringing with you evidence that the geth don't want to fight and peace was an option, I threatened you."

"That's understandable, given the circumstances," Shepard replied. "You'd lost people you cared about. You were emotional."

"That's not an excuse. Captains within the Fleet are held to a higher standard – I hold myself to a higher standard."

"I appreciate your candor, Captain. I just hope your colleagues will come around to the same views."

"Heh," the Captain chuckled darkly. "Well, some of them. This way, please."

More quarians gathered to see the Captain lead them through the gardens. The buzz of their conversations grew louder.

"I can't believe it. It's him."

"Him?"

"The Master Chief!"

"No way."

"Look! That armored human, tall as a krogan? That's him!"

"My brother saw him fight during the Covenant raid. He saved all of us."

"That's not what Xen's people say."

"Xen's people are full of it. The man is a hero."

"You just can't help but be famous no matter where you go, don't you?" Cortana hummed.

"It wasn't my choice."

Gradually the amount of gawking civilians decreased, and soon the three of them found themselves surrounded by quarian marines once again.

"This room, up ahead," Kar'Danna said, gesturing at an open door at the end of the hallway. "The Admirals are flying in as we speak. Shouldn't be more than a few minutes."

"Thanks for the escort, Captain," Garrus said.

"You're welcome." Kar'danna looked over his shoulder, then leant closer towards Shepard. "Captain Shepard, I don't know if half the rumors I've heard surrounding you are true, but…the galaxy is a mess, and if you're going to be the one to pull us out of it, you have my full support."

Shepard's brow furrowed. "I appreciate that, Captain. But what's going on?"

The quarian hesitated. "I can't tell you directly. The Rayya is a big ship, and I hear everything that happens on it. Once the Admirals have brought you up to speed, I might be able to fill in the gaps, so to speak. It might just help you in your mission."

"He says as if he can simply do my job for me," Cortana said derisively. "I already know everything that's going on here."

"Are you bragging, or are you going to share?" The Chief asked.

"Hmmm…bragging, mostly. Let's first see what the Admirals have to say. If it in any way, shape or form deviates from what I've gathered, I'll let you know."

The Chief wasn't sure he liked that. If he interpreted her comments as simply trusting the Admiralty to come clean themselves, he didn't mind that much. "Just don't let anyone catch you snooping."

"Hah. Good one."

They didn't have to wait long inside the conference room. After just a few minutes, the Chief heard the footfall of several quarians approaching them, and he notified Garrus and Jane about it.

Half a minute later, three Admirals and their personal escort entered the room. The Master Chief, having read the mission report about Tali's treason case, recognized them as Admirals Shala'Raan, Zaal'Koris and Daro'Xen.

Curiously enough, their marine escorts stayed behind, and Raan closed the door behind her. "Commander Shepard, it is a pleasure to see you again," she said warmly. "Although I wish it were under better circumstances."

"Master Chief," Admiral Koris politely said.

The Spartan returned his greeting with a silent nod.

"I imagine," Shepard replied. "Thank you for welcoming me onto the Migrant Fleet once more, Admirals. I wish the situation wasn't so urgent, but it is."

"Our condolences for Earth, and for Palaven," Admiral Koris spoke up, his voice gentle and almost sorrowful. "The quarian people know all too well what it feels like to lose their home."

"And the desire to retake it," Admiral Xen sourly added.

Admiral Raan shot her a reproving look.

"Palaven isn't lost yet, Admiral," Garrus politely refuted. "And neither is Earth."

"We have not remained ignorant of the war with the Reapers, Commander. In fact, it is this Admiralty's opinion that our situation has been caused by the Reapers in the first place. In light of the urgency, I will not mince words," Admiral Shaan said. "As you might already have noticed, the Migrant Fleet has been split in our beliefs, and those wishing to act upon them."

Xen crossed her arms. "It should never have been this way. Our future was quite clear. This pacifism will be the end of us."

"Are you mad?" Admiral Koris hissed at her. "We are weaker and more vulnerable than ever before! If they fail, we will be left defenseless. If something happens to us, they will be cut off from all support!"

"Which is precisely why we should have gone along with them!"

"And risk our entire civilian population?"

"Admirals," Shepard said, stressing the word, "I can't help but notice that Admiral Gerrel is missing."

For a moment, the three quarians were silent. Raan and Koris exchanged a look. "Admiral Gerrel has decided to take immediate action along the lines of his own beliefs for the quarian future," Admiral Raan said carefully, as if contemplating every word.

Admiral Koris noticed that almost instantly. "Don't bother sugarcoating it for the Commander. Shepard, Admiral Han'Gerrel has decided to interpret the recent geth movements and actions as another crusade against organic life, and taken it upon himself to stand in their way."

Scoffing, Xen said, "It's almost as if he wishes to earn the Council's graces by acting in what should obviously be their interests, protecting their people and colonies."

"By tearing his own people apart?" Koris exclaimed. "He took almost the entire Heavy Fleet and a good portion of the Patrol Fleet in all-out suicide assault in the geth, leaving us defenseless!"

"He's throwing himself at the geth again?" Shepard exclaimed, aghast. "Admirals, I came here to ask for your help in the fight against the Reapers. All life is suffering under their siege, and it'll only be a matter of time before they find your people too!"

"Peace, Shepard," Admiral Raan said, raising her hands in a calming gesture. "This was far from a unanimous decision. Our interactions with the geth you refer to as "Legion", as well as our various treaties and partnerships with the UEG, has aggravated the quarian views on the subject of AI in general, and the geth in particular. With many thousands of our people now interacting with AI on a daily basis, and millions more now knowing that the geth are essentially embroiled in a civil war, the geth problem has reached a fever pitch."

"It tore us apart," Koris quietly added. "What once united the quarian people has now divided them. Those who believed we should strike while the geth themselves were vulnerable, all armed themselves and went with Gerrel."

"Not all of us," Xen snapped.

"Those of us who believed peace was possible stayed behind," Admiral Shaan continued, placing her hand on Xen's shoulder. "While those who were convinced they could eventually retake our homeworld through violence went with them." Raan bowed her head. "It…was not a peaceful departure."

Shepard's eyes were wide. "A quarian civil war?" she muttered.

That…could prove to be an issue.

"It will not get that far," Xen protested hotly. "Commander Shepard, you must understand that the geth have been raiding human colonies in the Attican Traverse! No doubt you have been experiencing communication blackouts with your colonies. The geth have ventured beyond the Perseus Veil and cast their lot with the Reapers, just like they did two years ago. The Sovereign incident was just a prelude." She planted both hands on the table. "Admiral Gerrel saw what nobody was willing to see, and took action! If we regroup now and join them, we can put an end to their incursions, cripple their fleet and stage – "

"A suicidal front attack on Rannoch, getting us all killed," Admiral Koris said dismissively.

"You lack imagination. Always have."

"Enough," Admiral Shaan exclaimed. "This is no place for discontent. As you can see Commander, division erodes our strengths. These are troubling times."

The Chief saw Shepard mimic Xen's gesture, leaning on the conference table in quiet contemplation. "You said the geth have been attacking our colonies. That's a lot of distance to cross from the Perseus Veil. Admiral Xen, you said they cast their lot with the Reapers? Do you have evidence?"

"We have detected Reaper movements throughout the Perseus Veil and the Far Rim," Xen replied. "They were heading into systems known to be occupied by the geth. Shortly thereafter, the geth began sending out fleets into the Attican Traverse. Adding to that your own testimony, the rift in the geth and the ones your "Legion" referred to as heretics following the Reapers?"

"This isn't good Chief," Cortana whispered. "If this is true, Legion's geth are now stuck fighting the heretic geth, the quarians and now also the Reapers."

"They can't win that fight," the Chief replied quietly.

"But they'll fight it to the death – we need to interfere if we want to have any hope of getting geth aid against the Reapers. The chances of the geth leaving their own territory for the first time in three-hundred years and going straight for attacking Alliance colonies are exceedingly low. Add to that the deliberate communication blackouts that kept even Alliance intelligence from figuring out they were under attack? Something else is going on here."

Shepard sighed. "What if Admiral Gerrel succeeds in destroying these geth fleets while they're vulnerable?"

"Then he'll do what he does best. Press the advantage, keep the momentum…and seize the initiative," Admiral Koris answered solemnly.

"Even if he wipes out the wrong faction of geth?"

"It's not these 'true geth' that stand between us and Rannoch, Commander," Xen said. "It's not them that nearly destroyed us when they chased us off our homeworld."

"And what if Admiral Gerrel loses, or gets himself caught in a Reaper ambush?" Garrus asked, speaking up for the first time.

Admiral Raan took a deep breath. "Then we cast our lot with the UEG, pledge ourselves to them, and pray to whatever ancestors still watch over us that they do not turn us away as has…historically tended to occur."

Everybody was silent after that. Nobody needed to state the obvious; if the UEG turned the quarian people away without protection, they as a species wouldn't survive the year.

"It won't come to that," Shepard said. She drew herself upright and met the eyes of all three Admirals. "Admirals, with all due respect, the galaxy is more dangerous than you know. It's more than just the Reapers that threaten sentient life – all life. Without the Heavy and Patrol Fleets, you won't survive this war. Without you, Admiral Gerrel's ships won't last long either. For the good of the Migrant Fleet and the future of the quarian people, we need to prevent that from happening."

"How?" Admiral Raan whispered.

"It's these geth incursions into Alliance space that started this all, right? There has to be a reason behind their attacks. If it's the heretic geth, we aid Admiral Gerrel in wiping them out, and work our way up from there. If it's not…" she shrugged. "Then we find out what's truly going on, because – and I cannot overstate this enough – the Reapers have been trying to spark civil unrest in every race out there, and so far, Legion's geth have been opposing them every step of the way."

"There can be no denying those facts, indeed," Admiral Koris said emphatically.

Xen shook her head in anger, but did not speak.

"If you are willing to help us in this crisis, Commander Shepard, the quarian people will do everything in their power to aid you," Admiral Raan said. "If you can convince Admiral Gerrel to stop this madness, we can unite the Fleet again and take action against the Reapers however we can."

"We'll need to know precisely where he went, and where the geth fleets went," Shepard said. "Navigational data, star charts, whatever you've got. We'll investigate the geth…and try to make the Admiral see reason."

"It is agreed, then," Admiral Shaan said. "We do not have much to spare, but we are willing to grant you whatever resources you require in your mission. Please, keep us up to date with whatever you learn."

With that, Shepard turned towards the Chief. "Master Chief?"

The Spartan considered what he had heard. The four-front war the true geth now found themselves could end in their total destruction. That, in turn, would mean the Reapers possessed full control over the rest of the geth, with the galaxy none the wiser. There would never again be a chance for peace between the geth and the quarians, or any of the organic races. Not to mention the strategic assets the geth could offer if they became allies – or threaten them with if they stood with the Reapers; their industrial base, technology and combat prowess were all far greater than that of the other races. The Coalition struggled enough against the Reapers as it was. If the full might of the geth were to turn itself against the Coalition, it might become impossible to win.

Adding to all this was the sheer strangeness of the situation. He could not find one line of thinking he could follow to justify the geth's decision to attack Alliance space without making it a full-fledged siege. That only made sense if they were the heretic geth. Several of the Alliance's colonies were already under attack by the Reapers, after all. Then again, nothing in the Reapers' numbers, doctrine or attitude reflected a need or even desire to use the geth at this point. It made no sense to use them as an auxiliary force to assault the Alliance.

The only way the geth's actions made sense to him, was if it were Legion's geth, and they had targeted these specific planets with a purpose. Discovering said purpose was crucial.

After a second of silence, the Chief asked, "Where is Tali'Zorah?"

Shala'Raan and Koris exchanged a curious look. "Tali'Zorah joined Admiral Gerrel in his crusade," Raan said after a moment's hesitation. The Chief saw her eyes dart towards Xen for a split-second. "As far as we are aware, she volunteered to be one of his field operatives for the strikes, citing her extensive knowledge and experience in combating the geth."

"Ah, she's hiding something," Cortana said. "And Xen's the reason she's hiding it."

Of course. Tali had been working together with Legion in the aftermath of Shepard's arrest. There was no way she would go along with the genocide of the geth. Legion would have the answers, and Tali knew that. If they found Tali, they'd find the answers they needed.

But if Admiral Raan had a reason for withholding that information, he would not question her judgment. "I think recon on the Alliance worlds should be our top priority."

"Then we are agreed," Koris said. "Rest assured Master Chief, this Admiralty Board as well as the Conclave has had extensive contact with the UEG and debated endlessly about the ethics, morality and practicality of sentient artificial intelligence. We understand that peace is an option, and we will fight for that."

"Keelah se'lai," Admiral Raan quietly said. "It is agreed, then. This meeting is adjourned. Commander Shepard, good luck."

-(IV)-

---

17:26 Hours, August 7, 2553 (UEG Military Calendar) / Aboard SSV Normandy SR-2, en-route to Shadow Sea Cluster

" A quarian civil war?" Admiral Hackett said, equal parts confused and equal parts outraged. " The Reapers are on our doorstep and the largest fleet in the galaxy decided to fall apart?"

Shepard couldn't keep a little smirk from playing over her lips. She hadn't beard anyone phrase it like that, yet. "Whatever it's worth, it wasn't a hot conflict. If we can get through to Admiral Han'Gerrel, reunification is possible."

" Which entails pursuing a geth fleet without knowing its allegiance, investigating besieged Alliance colonies without knowing the enemy's concentration of forces, and putting an end to a conflict three centuries in the making," the Admiral all but growled. He looked exactly how Shepard felt. " That's…a tall order, Commander, even for you."

The Commander shrugged. She couldn't disagree, and she was too tired to argue. "We might have a way in. My former colleague, Tali'Zorah, holds considerable sway in the Migrant Fleet. She went with the war-faction to try to locate Legion, our contact with the geth. If she was successful, that's our foothold for negotiations."

" If she's even still alive. If Legion is even still alive," Hackett mused. He thought it over for a minute. " I'll provide a list of colonies we've lost contact with. I take it you're already underway to pursue the leads on your end?"

"Yes sir. We're on our way to Hades Nexus now. There's a large human and asari presence there."

To her surprise, Hackett sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. " That checks out then. We've had hundreds of reports coming from Asteria – an asari colony with a sizeable human population - before all communication suddenly ceased. Same story with Elysium. Extreme civil unrest, thousands of bizarre and disturbing videos and images on social media, then total silence."

Shepard cursed under her breath. "Population?"

" About 188 million," Hackett grimly said. " We don't know much about the Republics' current naval movements. If they're at all interested in protecting themselves, they'll take action. Asteria is a breadbasket colony. If its export gets damaged, other colonies will suffer the consequences."

"It just gets weirder and weirder," Shepard muttered. "Why would the geth target an asari colony? The pattern doesn't add up."

" Maybe the pattern is wrong. Maybe the quarians have it right, and these are the geth serving the Reapers."

"We'll check it out either way," Shepard decided.

" Very well. It's not as if we have anything to lose on that front." The aging Admiral studied her for a moment. " I've read your report, Shepard. My condolences for mister Taylor."

"Sir?" She asked expectedly.

Hackett sighed. " It's a tall order. The assets you asked for are sorely needed elsewhere…everywhere. We can't provide such resources for what are, with all respect to their abilities, relatively minor assets. That's not even getting into the political implications."

"Some of these assets risked everything they had to make sure we could get the UEG involved, sir, after we blew up the Collector base," Shepard quietly said.

" I know Shepard, and they don't deserve to be hunted down like varren. Nevertheless, we are talking about perhaps half a dozen lives weighed off against the entire war effort. Even if every other factor were nonexistent, it's still a numbers game."

"The enemy made it clear they won't stop with them. They'll come for the Normandy eventually," Shepard quickly pointed out. "Hell, one of their agents got within sabotaging distance of our life support systems. Not to mention, the more assets we have on the Normandy, the easier we will be able to tackle future missions. The people we're talking about could prove invaluable against the Reapers, be it special operations or intel gathering. Even Cerberus thought they were the best of the best."

" I know the effect one person can have on a war effort, Shepard," Hackett said. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking it through for a few moments. " Very well. I'll see if I can allocate some of these resources to you. I make no promises – we have mobilized and deployed almost everything we've got against the Reapers already."

"Thank you sir," Shepard said. "How are things on your end?"

Admiral Hackett closed his eyes for a moment. " Best I can describe is a nonstop series of victories followed by defeats. Palaven holds, another colony we weren't able to get to falls. We make a breakthrough in a certain R development, but then the logistics hub providing the resources in another system gets hit. The Reapers aren't letting up, and there is no reprieve."

"That's rough."

" At the very least, the good news doesn't stop when the bad news comes. With the recent aid packages from their association with the Council species, the UNSC's further ramping up their war economy. Since the war hasn't reached their borders, they can afford to step up their game. Their flagship – the Infinity – has now been appointed as their mobile command and control structure. It's a five-kilometer behemoth of a Dreadnought, Commander. On par with any Covenant warship. That opened up a hell of a lot of strategic options."

"I've uh, I've seen the Infinity before, sir," Shepard said.

Hackett cocked an eyebrow. " I don't think I want to know half the things you've done without our approval, Commander. Better if it stays that way."

"I'll see to that, sir," Shepard said, unable to keep from smiling. "I'll let you know the second we've figured out what the geth are doing. Good luck, sir."

Hackett nodded. " Likewise, Commander."

With that, Shepard stepped away from the QEC, her mind racing. Hades Nexus was home to several large colonies, some of them with a heavy asari presence. The Alliance couldn't afford to fight the Reapers on every colony they had, but the asari hadn't joined the Coalition yet. There could be a sizeable Republics presence right where the geth and quarians were waging a war. This had the potential to get very ugly, very fast.

"So," Garrus said, resting his forearms at the railing of the upper level. "Are we heading after Tali or Legion?"

"Would you believe me if I said I had no idea whatsoever?" Shepard replied, sitting down on the holotable. "We're kinda running blind, here. With luck, we'll find both of them at the same place."

"Yeah, and with that same luck, they'll have already brokered peace forever," Garrus remarked.

Jane winced. "Too much to ask for?"

With a chuckle, Garrus replied, "A bit. So…what's the plan?"

"The plan for rescuing our remaining friends before they're killed? Or the plan to stop the quarians and geth from wiping each other out and strengthening the Reapers?"

Garrus inclined his head. "Either one means we won't be embarking on the other."

"Yeah," Shepard sighed. "But that's something I'm working at. For now, we're going to focus on the mission."

Garrus pushed himself back to his feet. "No black operations to kick the asari conspiracy's teeth in?"

Black operations. In a way, that wasn't far from the truth. "Oh, the Inner Circle's going to get what's coming to them, Garrus. I said, we are going to focus on the mission."

Garrus clicked his mandibles together. "I've seen enough human action vids to know how we should handle this. Either we send the Chief to single-handedly kill them all, or we ask Cortana to steal their money and send it to a charity."

"I've seen that movie. They sent the money to a struggling porn business."

His mandibles flared as he chuckled. "I've heard Fornax has fallen on some bad times. At least we've got the cyberwarfare advantage against the geth, this time around. Let's just hope we won't have to evacuate another world, if things go bad."

Speaking of evacuations…"Hey Garrus?"

"Hmm?"

"You said your father and sister are doing well. How's…how's your mother doing, these days?"

For a moment, his expression became unreadable. Then, something in his features softened. "Helos Medical Institute is still safe. Last message I got said that the newest trials were promising. They entered a partnership with a civilian thinking lab in UEG territory. A research treaty; one of their AIs is going to assist in the Corpalis research."

"Just like Cortana helping out with Kepral's Syndrome."

"Yeah. That was a week before we went to Palaven, though." He shook his head. "Haven't heard much else, though. Then again, who has?"

"Yeah," Shepard agreed. "I guess. Anyway, we've got a few hours before we reach Hades Nexus. I'll start planning…"

"And I'll continue my calibrations," Garrus quipped.

"Got it in one."

"Right. I'll leave you to it, Shepard. Just give me a call if you need me."

Despite the official warnings issued by the UEG about Forerunner relics, plenty of organizations and governments had gone on the record saying that they reserved the right to research and excavate whatever anomalies they found in their own territory. Now that they knew about the existence of the UEG, the Covenant and the mysteriously-disappeared Forerunner empire, hundreds of organizations had renewed their efforts to unearth previously unidentified alien ruins. Even with less than one percent of the entire galaxy explored in the thousands of years the Council species had existed, it was almost a miracle that they had yet to come across any salvageable Forerunner ruins.

The Hades Nexus cluster was one of those locations in the galaxy where several ruins and signs of extinct alien species, long believed to have been Prothean in design, were now being reevaluated with the recent revelations of the existence of the Forerunners in mind. This cluster, by virtue of bordering on geth territory in the outer reaches of the Attican Traverse, was a desolate and dangerous place to be. The Alliance had staked numerous mining and colonial interests, but the asari contested many of these claims. Their presence was much larger than that of humanity, and humanity had yet to win a single case against the Republic. When it came to diplomacy, they always lost.

According to quarian intelligence, Admiral Han'Gerrel had split up his breakaway fleet into a myriad of battlegroups. Several battlegroups had ventured into the Hades Nexus Cluster, no doubt to pursue the geth to Asteria.

An hour before they'd make the jump into the Hekate System, Shepard ordered her ground team to gear up. Thirty minutes before the jump, she made her way to the cockpit to convene with Joker.

"We're running silent Commander, but the geth will still be able to notice our approach if they're keeping tabs on the relay," Joker told her.

"EDI, bring us up to battle stations. I want to know what's going on inside that system the second we're through the relay."

"Understood Commander." Her voice echoed through the ship. "General quarters, general quarters. All hands, man their battle stations. Ground teams, report to the War Room."

Loud thumping noises could be heard as every crewmember not already on station rushed to man their positions.

Jane placed a hand on Joker's shoulder. "We don't know what to expect. Could be a quarian surprise party. Could be a geth ambush."

"Could be a grumpy asari fleet, having annihilated both parties already?"

She shrugged. "As long as they're replacing it and we still get a party. Keep your distance until we know what we're dealing with."

"Aye aye Commander, I'll pull up my party hat…"

The Normandy lurched as it made its jump from one relay to the other. Joker glanced at the display as the ship's sensor suit began feeding them data. "Ah shit."

Shepard leant against the bulkhead as she surveyed the destruction. The system was littered with the debris and the shattered hulls of dozens of ships, growing denser and more sizeable as they got closer to Asteria. Dead hulls of geth and quarian ships alike drifted lazily in the vacuum. The cloud of debris would make for a navigational hazard for decades to come.

EDI pinged, identified and classified the wreckages as the Normandy drifted towards the colony. The tactical view grew larger and more detailed as the Normandy came within visual confirmation. It was marginally worse closer to the planet; it looked like swarms of fighters and drones had engaged each other in orbit, low orbit and even in-atmosphere, judging by the sheer amount of shuttle-sized craft that had been destroyed.

"EDI, any thoughts?" Shepard asked.

"Yes. Judging from the placement, momentum and specifications of the debris and wreckages, it appears that the quarians caught the geth in the midst of a planetary blockade on Asteria, The geth were unwilling or unable to vacate the colony, and engaged on the defensive. I cannot tell how or when the asari vessels were destroyed, nor by whom."

Strange. It took some time to get from the relay to the colony. A species of AI like the geth would have had plenty of reaction time to steer their vessels to a better location. Why had they decided to let themselves get boxed in against Asteria?

"Great, the quarian uprising has begun," Joker muttered, though his expression was one of concentration as he navigated the ship through the debris field.

After half a minute of silent cruising, EDI suddenly spoke up. "I have detected several surviving quarian vessels. No geth or asari ships in the vicinity. Not intact, anyway. It appears as if they are holding position above Asteria."

"Keep us hidden for now. No need to give away our location," Shepard said, peering intently at the scanners. Not every ship had been eliminated. A variety of vessels appeared adrift, dead in space and bereft of power. Several Republics vessels, but also a few quarian ships. These ships didn't give off any signals.

Several of the dead vessels had what looked like boarding craft attached to their sides. Others had shuttle craft drifting in close proximity, or landed at locations without any apparent hardpoints.

"Yeah, I don't like this one bit," Joker said, glancing over his shoulder to meet her eyes. "Why would the quarians just stick around like this? You'd think that Admiral "seize the initiative" Gerrel would regroup, count his losses and push for the next colony?"

Shepard looked at the holographic display of Asteria. It was almost as if the quarian ships stayed in geosynchronous orbit above the colony, just like the geth had been before. It seemed like, on occasion, they were providing their teams with fire support. Mass accelerator shots flashed through the atmosphere to unseen targets. Too low an intensity to be planetary bombardment, but too many shots to be local fire support.

What was going on?

"Maybe he's sent his forces groundside and the ships are acting as support."

"What, just like Haelstrom?" Joker winced. "If we're gonna have to pull Tali out of another hot spot with geth, we might want to bring some explosives. Just saying."

"Which means there is something down there worth investigating," Shepard replied. Trying to get in contact with the planetary administration required them dropping out of stealth. Not ideal. Communication was key here, and she would rather confirm that the quarians didn't get the wrong idea. Any decently competent commander would monitor the relay. They'd know someone was there. Better for them not to start thinking the geth had sent reinforcements.

The Commander took a breath. "Alright, which ship is the most likely to be their flagship?"

A holographic image of an ancient cruiser appeared on one of the consoles. "This vessel appears to be the best suited to command and control functions," reported EDI.

Shepard looked the ship over – a heavy cruiser from the looks of it, heavily armed and quite sturdy looking – and agreed with EDI's assessment. "Alright, send it a message, then hail it."

Joker shot her an uneasy glance. There was no hailing someone without betraying your cover. The Normandy was going to drop out of stealth and he didn't like it.

"We're not going to be spending weeks combing over every detail of this colony," Shepard said. "They're the ones in the know, so we're going to make them talk."

"And if they don't want to talk?" Joker asked, arcing a skeptical eyebrow.

"Then we'll ask Cortana if she's in the mood to steal some secrets."

Joker exhaled sharply, making it sound somewhere between a snort and a gasp.

"Of course Commander," EDI said. "The message?"

Jane cited what she wanted the quarian captain to hear, then waited with baited breath for the quarians to respond. She saw a third of the vessels reorient themselves to face their relative direction.

"Receiving video feed," EDI said.

The image of a quarian male flickered on the forward screen. " Who is this? You are interfering in a sanctioned military operation! The system is under quarantine!"

Quarantine?

"This is Commander Shepard of the SSV Normandy," Jane answered patiently. "We would like to offer our assistance to resolve this crisis."

It was easy to imagine the quarian eying her with open suspicion from behind his visor. " This is Captain Maem'Lemm vas Oreena. Captain Shepard, how did you find us? Our sensors indicate Asteria's long-range communications have been offline before we arrived here."

After a moment's hesitation, Jane decided that honesty was the best course of action here. "I'm here to gather allies for the war against the Reapers, Captain Lemm. The Reapers have killed billions already. On Earth, on Palaven, and dozens of other worlds. We're hitting them hard on every front, but they're advancing…everywhere. Everybody willing to fight has united under one banner, the UEG and Council species included. The Coalition of Species. Perhaps you've read the reports?"

Captain Lemm slowly nodded. " We have heard of this Coalition, yes."

"I've been appointed as their diplomatic envoy, and tasked with contacting the Migrant Fleet with an invitation. Join us, and we can help protect you against the Reapers."

The quarian considered her words. " Then you're aware of what happened to the Migrant Fleet. You've spoken with the pacifists," he spat, emphasizing that last word as if it were a slur.

"We've spoken to what remains of the Admiralty, yes," Shepard carefully replied. "We're not taking sides. We're just interested in what the geth are doing to our colonies. This is important to both of us, wouldn't you agree, Captain?"

The quarian glanced at someone off-screen for a moment. Then, he leant closer to the viewscreen and said, " Proceed with extreme caution, Captain Shepard. This planet…something's very wrong with it and its people. It's absolute anarchy down there. We've lost contact with our ground teams and – " He suddenly cut himself off, as if he had said too much.

As if he had just realized something.

"Ground teams?" Shepard inquired.

Lemm nodded, the motion wary. " If you can assist us in extracting our people, maybe then we can talk."

Shepard tapped her foot impatiently. "Don't you think it's a better idea if we meet face to face? We can dock the Normandy and talk about this in-depth – "

" No!" The Captain exclaimed. " No, no docking! That's how we got – listen, I can't tell you more. What's going on here, it's much larger than us. Help us find our people, get them out. If you do that, you will have proven you are what you say you are, and we can talk more."

Her mouth was just a little bit faster than her brain. Without thinking, she fired back, "I don't think there's anyone else in the galaxy claiming to be Commander Shepard, Captain."

Technically a lie, but…

He brought his hands to his face. They trembled. " I cannot explain. You will understand. Help us, and we will tell you what we can."

Cold fingers of ice grasped at Jane's stomach when she realized the severity of the captain's distress, but she kept her expression calm. This entire situation felt off to her. Wrong, in a way she couldn't put into words. "We'll help you find your people, but before then, we're also looking for Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. She is vas Normandy now, and it is of vital importance we speak to her ."

"Tali'Zorah?" Suspicion bled into his voice. " Why are you after her?"

After her? "We're not "after" anyone, Captain. We're looking for her. The why is no business of yours."

Another long, suspicious silence followed. Then…" That's not something I can tell you."

Shepard fought down the urge to roll her eyes. "So what can you tell me?"

-(V)-

---

22:39 Hours, August 7, 2553 (UEG Military Calendar) / Aboard SSV Normandy SR-2, in orbit around Asari Republics colony Asteria

Garrus looked up from his rifle as Shepard entered the War Room with long, purposeful strides. She made eye contact with every member of her team upon entry, confirmed that everyone was physically present, then took her position at the holotable.

"We should have guessed it wasn't as simple as asking the quarians to fight with us," she started the mission debrief. "The geth have been acting weird, and the resulting anxiety split the Migrant Fleet right down the middle. Admiral Han'Gerrel has taken nearly all their military ships to strike the geth while they're vulnerable. In this situation, vulnerable means doing suspicious things at Alliance colonies. We've tracked their activities down to this planet, an asari colony called Asteria. EDI, bring it up and tell us about its most important features."

A rough diagram of the world appeared at the center of the table. Everybody crowded around the center of the room to get a closer look, with shorter people like Liara and Kasumi at the front and the taller Spartans and turians at the back.

"Asteria is a habitable planet colonized in 2044," EDI began explaining. "It is primarily known for its arid deserts and large concentration of carbon dioxide. The Asari Republics managed to turn it into a thriving agricultural center, serving as a breadbasket for various other colonies."

"Think maybe the geth want to cause a hunger crisis?" Vega suggested. "Induce a famine, make it easier to break us?"

"Why wouldn't the Reapers try the same thing then?" Liara replied. She looked at the tactical map. "I don't see any real defenses."

"Maybe this is the Reapers trying exactly that," Garrus said. "Only they're getting the geth to do their dirty work for them. More guns aimed at the Coalition."

"Population?" The Chief asked.

"Asteria has a population of 188 million. It is considered a vital stepping stone into the Hades Nexus cluster," EDI answered.

Zaeed whispered. "Gonna be difficult for the geth to wipe them all out with the small amount of shit they brought."

"The scarred human is right," Javik said. "The synthetics would have been wise to blitz this colony with overwhelming numbers. Trying to destroy it with such a small fleet would invite asari reinforcements before they could finish."

"If the geth wanted to destroy the colony, they'd have brought the weapons to do so," Shepard said. "Just like Eden Prime."

Garrus recalled the stories she had told. How Saren had planted several high-yield explosives around the colony, hoping to erase every trace of evidence. Stopping him there had arguably been the Normandy's first major win against the Reapers in this long series of horrors.

But Eden Prime had been a fletchling colony. This was a world with nearly two-hundred-million people. It would take a lot of WMD's to wipe them all out. More than the geth could bring with them on a small flotilla like this.

"Maybe that's why the quarians stuck around? To send technicians planetside to disarm them?" Pollux suggested.

Shepard shook her head. "According to the quarians, it's been days since this went down. Any explosives the geth planted would have detonated already."

"Which suggests the geth weren't here to destroy the colony at all. And that begs the question…why were they here?" Garrus said.

"That's what we're here to find out," Shepard replied, looking at her team. "What's the status of the colony, EDI?"

"Complete disarray. Long-range communications are out, as are the planetary defenses. From what Cortana and I pulled from the extranet before all communications ceased, all major cities report extreme civil unrest and chaos. The capital, Blackdamp, has officially been placed under martial law. We estimate a severe societal disruption, if not total collapse."

Vega whistled. "Two hundred million people in anarchy. Something tells me that wasn't the geth."

Javik crossed his arms in defiance. "The synthetics could have unleashed a biological weapon, inducing madness in the populace. It happened often in my cycle."

That…was a particularly horrifying possibility that Garrus hadn't even considered.

"Here's what the quarians were willing to divulge," Shepard said. "The people down on Asteria went mad. And that madness spread. Those afflicted eventually went after major communication hubs across the planet, doing everything they could to take them down. The planetary administration is composed of a decentralized government, standard asari procedures, but they've lost all control. It's chaos down there and we're the only ones able to help."

"And they're not willing to tell us more, even though we're gonna be pulling their people out of the fire?" Johnson asked, a skeptical look in his coal-black eyes.

"I usually like a little more intel with my intel," Cortana said.

Shepard inclined her head, acknowledging their comments. "I don't think they know what's going on either. However, this situation is too dangerous to just wait out. We're going in." The holographic image changed to what looked like an administrative visiting center, or perhaps a colonial control station. It was a large building with multiple large, glass domes coming together to form a bulbous ceiling. "This is the capital's largest communication relay. Our first objective will be to try and restore the colony's long-range communications in the capital, where the quarian team went down in the first place. If at all possible, we can aid the administration in regaining control of the situation. In turn, they can help us find the quarians if we didn't already link up with them in the process."

When she finished, the display of the building zoomed out, showing satellite imaging of a large, agrarian city. Blackdamp. EDI lit up the outskirts of the city.

"The quarian ground team had several locations marked where they would fall back if the geth resistance proved to be too much," Shepard continued. "According to the captain, there are three likely locations where they could have regrouped in the scenario of a total communications failure. With or without colonial assistance, we'll be searching these places regardless. That means we're going to break up into three squads after we finish things at the relay. I'll take the first squad. Master Chief, Tatilia, you're leading second and third respectfully."

She paused long enough for the squads to form up behind their leaders. Garrus as her second-in-command, Kasumi, Zaeed and Javik right behind him. On the Chief's side, Johnson as his second, with James and Liara to back him up. That left Tatilia with the other two cabals and Three.

After that, Shepard continued. "Our objectives here are, in order of priority, get the long-range communications back online, find the missing quarian teams and then, if possible, find out what caused this entire mess in the first place. After that, Asteria won't be our problem anymore."

They went through the tactical situation for another few minutes, tackling matters like objective locations, maintaining communications with the quarian fleet and possible what-ifs regarding their objectives. That was when Garrus asked a question that brought the entire mission brief to a halt.

"I don't think knocking out the local opposition non-lethally is going to work out this time, Shepard," Garrus pointed out. "Not with so many of them. What's our ROE?"

"Two scenarios," Shepard said after the briefest moment of hesitation. "First one is Reaper indoctrination. Signs will be a mob of deranged psychopaths trying to kill us with farm implements. Shoot in self defense, shoot to kill. Second scenario is…an unknown could be a geth WMD, or it could be some sort of drug craze, we don't know. If they try to interfere, we'll scale our response appropriately, but non-lethally if at all possible. Concussive shots, biotics, the like. We kill only in self-defense."

Nobody pointed out that self-defense against a mob of insane civilians would be a bloody and violent affair regardless. Instead, they went over the factors like it was any normal mission. Survivors, friendly units in the vicinity, possible support from orbiting vessels, the list went on. But no matter how many details they discussed, nothing could make this situation feel "normal". A contagious insanity affecting an entire colony? Even with all the crazy, unbelievable things this galaxy had to offer, something like that just didn't happen.

Garrus' gut told him that getting involved with this thing was a mistake. But what the hell else could they do? The Migrant Fleet was the largest collection of ships in the galaxy. The Coalition needed their help, badly.

Eventually, with the biggest questions asked, the ground team went over the tactical situation one final time, then synced their mission clocks.

"Grab your gear and get ready," Shepard then said. "We leave in thirty minutes."

-(VI)—

---

AN: I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm back, considering that I had about 12,000 words written for this chapter already by the time I posted Chapter 50 before. I had this chapter semi-finished for so long, just sitting there, that I had to get up and do something about it. I don't like unfinished business, and it only seemed fair to me to get around to wrapping it up to let you guys know that I'm still alive.

Now the fanfiction alert system has been broken for me for quite a while; I simply don't get any updates or mails from the site anymore. Even with the recent work done to the site, notifications aren't very reliable. Nevertheless, to the people reading this, I'm very grateful that you're still sticking around and waiting for me to get things back together. I appreciate you all, and I hope to get back to more regular updates, including my other crossovers as well. I'll living under a rock the coming 2 weeks starting Monday, so my response to any reviews and PM's will have to wait until the 17th of September. Until next time!