Chapter 38: The Aftermath

Titan Nebula, Cof System, Zeithea's Orbit, Normandy SR-2
April 1st, 2185. 5:54 am. EST

The rest of the crew was waiting in the Comm room patiently as Shepard the those involved with the mission filed in, minus Hialus. The new guest/ex-captive was taken down to Chakwas to be checked out, with Tela begrudgingly leaving her sister's side to be involved with the meeting. Uncharacteristically, the senior Spector remained silent and deep in thought after parting with her sister. Jordan figured she may be under some kind of emotional shock. As the four of them entered, they could see the worry on Ashley and Tali's faces, with confusion on the others. Miranda was the first to break the silence once everyone was inside.

"Commander, what is going on out there?" She asked impatiently, a perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised towards their leader.

Shepard, ignoring the question, looked up to the ceiling and spoke to the resident AI. "EDI, what're we looking at?"

"Our scans have revealed a dozen smaller vessels and five large vessels within the system, one of which being a Dreadnought. Their IFFs appear to be Citadel Council, but digging into it reveals this is not the case. It appears that whoever they are, are transmitting these in case of eavesdroppers, but not necessarily to fool us."

"So, who the fuck are they?" Jack colorfully interjected.

"Someone who obviously wants to get our attention." Jacob replied, before turning to Shepard, "What happened down there, Shepard?"

"We were played." Shepard replied, gaining everyone's attention, "The intel for the mission was fed to us for the sole purpose of helping them out… only, they weren't counting on our resourcefulness."

Jordan nodded, "It has come to our attention that another shadow organization exists, and they desperately want their secrets kept."

"So, why the hell are we making enemies with them, or getting involved in any of this?" Brian asked, his concern easily visible. "And, who exactly are they?"

Jordan replied for Shepard, "Because they acknowledge the Reapers, and know what type of threat they pose." He turned to lock eyes with Miranda, "Does the name "Benefactor" ring any bells, Miranda?"

She slowly nodded, and finally moved to answer after Shepard motioned for her to do so, "The Benefactor is a coded name given to a secretive organization with unknown motives, reaches, and power. For all of the Illusive Man's abilities, we know little more than that they are the primary funders for the Andromeda Initiative, and seem to have near-unlimited funding." She told them.

"And so, you've pissed off this secret organization that nobody knows about…" Brian said, eyeing Jordan at the end of that before continuing, "Because they know about the Reapers?"

"Among other reasons, yes." Shepard replied with a smile before turning serious, directing his attention to the ceiling again, "EDI, are they still reaching out to us?"

"Yes, Shepard."

"I'd like to have a chat. How long can we talk before they track us down?"

"Their fleet has spread out somewhat across the system, most circling close to the planet. I can bounce our transmission through the upper atmosphere, but I estimate five minutes before they can reasonably pinpoint our location."

"Perfect, let's talk." Shepard said, before looking down at his crew. "I'll take the lead. EDI, record this conversation."

"Of course, Shepard. Patching you through now."

"...Ahh, the Great Commander Shepard graces us with an answer…" A female voice spoke, a hologram of an Asari woman soon appearing in the center of the table. Her eyes locked onto Shepard, though her gaze not-so-subtly turned to Jordan for a moment before returning to Shepard.

"You have me at a disadvantage, miss…"

"Janiri, you may call me Janiri, Commander."

"Alright, Janiri… May I ask why I have the pleasure of speaking with you?"

"You can stop with the formalities, Commander. We both know they are simply a waste of time." She replied quickly, "I'm more interested in the data you've procured."

"I do not know what you're talking about. We simply raided a Shadow Broker base and took out a target."

"I'm going to be honest, Commander, most of my associates did not appreciate my gamble. However, I must say they are certainly eating their words now, as you humans say. They did not believe you'd be able to disable and storm the base that quickly. Then again, no one bets against the great Commander Shepard and comes out on top."

"I'm flattered, I think." Shepard replied, "So, why are you and your fleet out here, masquerading as Council ships?"

"I'm sure you know why… We're here for the data you've picked up, and right now your best course of action is to do so, Commander. We can be both an invaluable ally and a nightmarish enemy."

"So, what exactly is it that you're offering, Janiri?"

"We can fund your mission, Shepard. Far more than your current employers. Honestly, how can you stand working with such monsters like Cerberus. The name is quite apt, you know? The name of a terrifying mythical beast of human mythology, guarding the deepest, darkest, and most foul places and men from those who seek to better the world."

"At least Cerberus is honest with its intentions." Miranda couldn't help but cut in uncharacteristically. "We seek the betterment of Humanity and its future survival."

"Ah… Miranda Lawson, I was wondering how long it'd take the Illusive Man's right hand to speak out of turn." Janiri replied condescendingly, "You know, if it weren't for your misguided, blind loyalty to the Illusive Man, you would have been considered as a possible recruit to our organization. It's so sad to see such talent wasted for such mundane goals."

Miranda gritted her teeth but did not rise to respond. Rather, Shepard cut in, "You would fund my mission? Just like that?"

"Just like that… Your mission is admirable, Commander, and definitely something we can rally behind. We know the Collectors are working for the Reapers. We understand the threat they pose to both Humanity and the galaxy as a whole. We can triple the funding the Illusive Man is giving to you. We can supply additional support when you finally go through the Omega-4 Relay. Anything necessary to complete your mission."

"That sounds tempting… what's the catch?"

"Commander… there is no catch. All we ask is that you hand over all copies of the data…" Her image shifted as she eyed Jordan, "And you give us one of your Avatars…"

At that, Shepard's eyes hardened, becoming a menacing glare that would make most criminal wet themselves, "My crew is non-negotiable."

"Be reasonable, Shepard. You cannot even trust the majority of them. I mean, look at them…" She began looking around the room as she listed them off, "You have a psychotic war criminal with a history murder and death, a few-week old krogan from a testube, an ex-STG scientist who's committed far more war crimes than I can begin to list off, an assassin with an obsession with religion, a turian cop-gone-rouge, a by-the-books diehard Alliance marine, a dirty Spectre with a dark and shady past, a merc with quiet a mouth whose loyatlies lie with his paychecks, a quiet thief who thinks they're important enough to actually matter, a Cerberus fanatic with daddy issues, a discharged ex-alliance cerberus agent who follows his heart rather than his orders, a lawless vigilante turned Avatar with untold secrets, a quarian princess who's seen enough resentment toward her species to turn anyone bitter, an honored Justicar obsessed with her code, and of course…"

She says nothing about Jordan, only choosing to stare at him in silence. It makes him incredibly uncomfortable, as does the mix of emotions the other crew members are experiencing.

"What about me?" Jordan finally asked.

"Ahh, so he does speak. The infamous Avatar of Synthesis, the savior and figurehead of the Geth, and the most interesting of you all… along with the least trustworthy amongst your crew, Shepard."

"What is with everyone's fascination with me?!" Sower replied, annoyed.

"You are the most interesting unknown of our time, Jordan Sower. The most intriguing discovery since-"

Deciding enough was enough, Jordan cut her off, "Since the beacon on Thessia, right?"

At that, the entire room froze, with all eyes on him. He could feel three distinct glares directed at him from different directions. Brian looked at him with a combination of surprise and hate, probably because of him revealing such a large secret from the third game. Shepard starred in surprise and with some anger, at not being aware of what Jordan was talking about. However, it was 'Janiri's' glare that captivated him, radiating shock, before morphing into rage.

"You… you looked at…"

Deciding he had everyone's attention and she was relatively unbalanced now, he chose to push and go on the offensive, "I know all about it, Janiri. Why don't you tell us all about your honorable crusade against the Council of Matriarchs on Thessia? Tell us about the asari's deepest darkest secret." Her smoldering eyes showed how angry she was by his speech, but she was not the one to respond.

Samara spoke next, speaking neutrally and calmly, "Janiri, if that is truly your name, what do you have to say about this?"

The woman in the hologram frowned and seemed to seethe in anger, "My patience and generosity is running thin, Jordan…" She replied, ignoring the questions.

Shepard decided to cut back in, "I'm going to have to decline your request, Janiri." He says, interrupting the woman's train of thought, "I would like to work together with you, but I will not simply hand over a crewmember and valuable data."

"You are making a mistake, Commander… we do not have to be enemies."

"Then be my ally, if not for my sake but for the galaxy's." He replied evenly, "The Reapers are coming, you know this. Would you really let such an argument doom us to extinction? Would you turn your back on the galaxy simply because I will not give up a valuable member of my crew?" He asked, watching the anger fade from the asari's eyes. "If your answer is yes, then you truly are no better than Cerberus or the Shadow Broker. At least they will fight for our lives."

Jordan could feel himself moved by the Commander's words. He really was persuasive; no wonder he'd been able to talk TIM and Saren into killing themselves.

After long bated breath, 'Janiri' finally responded, "You are right, Commander, we will not let this disagreement turn us against the galaxy… however, you and the Broker's hesitance to work with us could spell disaster for the galaxy. Time is no longer on our side. There may no longer be a path to our survival… outside of fleeing."

"The Andromeda Initiative…" Miranda breathed out, easily connecting the dots.

Janiri nodded and answered her, "The last resort for our survival. If we cannot defeat the Reapers, like so many other civilizations failed to do, then our only hope for our civilization's survival is to flee, beyond where they can and would find us. Just look at the Protheans… they attempted to hide within this galaxy with cyro… and you see how many survived…"

Jordan smiled inwardly, 'Except for Javik…' he thought to himself.

Certainly unable to hear Jordan's thoughts, Janiri continued, "Commander, I must implore you to reconsider our offer. Unlike many of your enemies, we will not underestimate you. We can be very dangerous enemies. I may not wish to be against you, and I may be able to convince my associates to be lax with their judgement… but I can make no promises that we will leave you alone. There are certain things beyond even my control."

"This is war, Janiri." Commander Shepard replied easily, "The way I see it, there are two sides: The Milky Way Galaxy and the Reapers. If you are not with me, you may as well join the Reapers."

Janiri fell silent at that, frowning. "Goddess have mercy on my soul…" She muttered, barely audible over the comms, "You have until you are prepared to proceed through the Omega-4 Relay. We will be watching the Relay, Commander, you have until then to reconsider our offer. Jordan and the intel, and you receive a fleet rivaling the Asari Republic's to take down the Collectors. I cannot promise any more time beyond that."

Shepard nodded, "I may consider your offer, as long as you consider mine."

"Goodbye Commander, and may the Goddess be with you…" Janiri finished, preemptively cutting off the connection before any sort of tracing could finish.

The room fell into silence at that, before Shepard turned to Garrus, "Garrus, tell Joker to set a course for Illium, full speed." Garrus nodded, leaving the room immediately, before returning a moment later. Shepard paused, looking over his crew for a moment as he considered what to do next. They needed to get Liara on Illium, but…

He took a deep breath, before turning to fix a glare toward Jordan, making him flinch under his harsh gaze. His look spoke a thousand words, which Jordan easily interpreted it as: 'Tell us everything, now.'

Jordan sighed, before stepping forward and gaining everyone's attention. "I think it's time I share everything I've gathered from the data thus far." He told them, "What I'm about to tell you does not leave this room. I will make a single back-up copy of the data for Shepard to with what he wishes, but this must not get out." He made eye-contact with Shepard, who nodded, "I'll begin at the birth of the Asari race…"

The Asari were a very primitive species in the time of the Protheans. The Protheans studied them, considering them for possible, eventual uplifting and inclusion within the Prothean Empire. In order to assert more control over the primitive species, the Protheans crafted the guise of Athame, a benevolent goddess who would impart wisdom and gifts to the Asari. She was accompanied by her guides, Janiri and Lucen. Much of the mythologies and legends surrounding Athame and her guides are based on real events, such as the defense of Thessia from an asteroid strike.

The Protheans worked with and upon the early asari, genetically altering the species for biotic-capabilities, rather than a natural evolution through their element zero-rich world. Eventually, as the invasion of the Reapers came closer and closer, a Prothean by the name of Pashek Vran received a 'premonition', predicting the imminent invasion. He, along with 'Janiri', 'Athame', and 'Lucen' crafted a Beacon containing a VI and untold amounts of Prothean secrets.

Hiding it on Thessia for the still-primitive race, they left the planet and destroyed all records of their influences on the Asari, hoping to spare them from the Reaper invasion, which was forseen by Pashek Vran via 'mystical and unknown ways'. He had the self-designated title of "Avatar of Cunning".

Fast-forward thousands of years, and the Asari advance to the point of being able to finally access a large portion of the Beacon, advancing their civilization by centuries in a matter of years. Several Asari had attempted to 'meld' with the Beacon, as they knew that the Protheans had been able to do similar feats. However, all who tried to meld with the Beacon to unlock the rest of its secrets died in the attempt, or were left braindead.

Until Mijari C'Nosta. The, at the time, sixth-highest Matriarch on the Asari Council. She was born with a rare disorder, which caused her to kill those she bonded with. One of the very first recorded Ardat Yakshi.

She attempted to meld with the Beacon, which sent her into a coma for three weeks. Her brain attempting to process what she'd received from the Beacon. At the end of the third week, she awakened, and was brought immediately before the rest of the council, seeing as she was the only survivor of the Beacon. She then relayed what she'd learned.

The Protheans had left them shortly before the Reaper invasion. The one in charge of this project and beacon was known as an Avatar. The Avatar of Cunning. The Reapers are artificial intelligences hell-bent on exterminating life every 50-thousand years. They killed off the Protheans, and would do so again to them unless they did something. The creator of the Beacon claimed plans for a device to defeat them were contained elsewhere. They needed to act. To do something…

The Council was, of course, astounded by what she'd shared, but demanded proof of what she'd learned. Otherwise, she could be simply making everything up as a power play. They motioned for her to meld with the head Matriarch of the Council. They all agreed.

Upon the death of the lead Matriarch, it was ruled that Mijari C'Nosta was severely damaged by the beacon, and the deep secrets of the Prothean device were truly impossible to know. She was exiled from the Council and stripped of her position, despite the fact that it'd been proved that the killing was unintentional. Her 'illness' was documented, and she was soon forced to leave.

Fast-forward another fifty years, and Mijari C'Nosta has undergone huge changes. To hide her original identity, she went by the pseudonym, Janiri. Her biotics, after the influence of the Prothean Beacon took root, became an unnatural green color, just as her 'memories' claimed the Protheans biotics appeared.

Returning to civilization, after recording everything she knew and allowing all of the information to settle, she approached the Council of Matriarchs again, intent on getting them to listen. The Reapers were real, and every single asari was going to die if she did nothing. The meeting went badly, as she was nearly sentenced to death for returning to them, but something happened that day that changed everything.

Some of the other Matriarchs believed her.

Teaming up, and utilizing the information and knowledge she'd accessed from the beacon, technological advances began to occur at faster rates. The "Guardians of Athame" were born.

Titan Nebula, In-Cluster Transit, Normandy SR-2
April 1st, 2185. 7:20 pm. EST

After the informative meeting, the squad members broke apart to their respective tasks, all while trying to digest the information they'd just learned.

Shepard, after Jordan finished his briefing, informed them that they'd be meeting in a remote region of the Terminus systems to pick up Liara, who'd fled Illium shortly after they'd left. Jordan returned to the AI Core to try to figure out what happens next, though he'd had a quick staredown with Brian before he'd escaped. Tela, shocked by the revelations, returned to check on her sister in the Med Bay.

The one most affected though, was Samara. She hadn't spoken a word since Janiri ended the call, but everyone could've sworn she'd gone a shade or two paler during the briefing. Without warning, she left at the end of the meeting to return to her room, likely to reflect on what she'd learned and of the Code. Her loyalties were to Shepard and the Code, but she needed time to reflect on how these revelations will affect things.

Following Jordan, the Avatar of Synthesis just finished sending an encrypted data package to the Geth containing all known information about the Guardians of Athame and his suspicions. Deciding to take a break from work, he stood up from his chair and walked out the door as it slid open for him.

The Med Bay only had two occupants, currently: Hialus and Tela, though the latter of the two was currently unconscious in a secondary bed. The younger Asari's gaze jumped from her sister to Jordan as she heard the door slide open.

"Jordan… right?" She asked, her head tilting lightly to the left as she verified his identity.

He smiled and nodded, "Hialus Vasir?" He asked in turn, approaching and standing beside her, now.

"Yep." She said with a smile, bobbing her head up and down.

"Sorry about… you know, threatening you, and stuff back there…"

She shrugged, "I've experienced worse down there." She admitted, "But all's forgiven, seeing as you've brought my sister back to life."

Jordan chuckled, "More like I've brought you back to life." He shook his head, gesturing to the unconscious asari beside her. "What happened to sleeping beauty?"

The reference blowing over the alien's head, Hialus giggled, "I'll admit, she is rather beautiful… but, well, she's been freaking out, and she refuses to leave my side, so I'd convinced her to take a nap." She turned back to Jordan, "So, is there a thing going on between you and Tela?"

Jordan sputtered for a reply, his cheeks growing warm at the accusation as his brain came to a startling halt, "Wh-what?!"

At that, Hialus burst into light laughter, "You humans and your red faces, it's hilarious!"

"I… well, it's… it's not funny, ok?" Jordan replied, "At least I don't go purple." He muttered.

"Sorry, sorry… It's just, well, I wanna make sure my sister's ok with you." She said honestly, staring deep into Jordan's green eyes, looking for something. "Whoa… your eyes are glowing… are you biotic?"

Jordan shook his head slowly as he flinched, "No… It's more complicated than that… I'm sorta half-machine…"

"Like a Cyborg? How does that work? Are your organs intact, or were they replaced with machines, too? Or, were they integrated with nano-technology to increase their functional capacities? Were you dying, and an experimental procedure happened?" She starting rattling off questions, before stopping herself. Purple blood soon flooded to her cheeks. "S-sorry, my medical mind just went crazy."

Jordan chuckled, shaking his unease away from his internal feelings about himself, "It's fine, I'm sure this is normal for you, huh?"

"Well, sorta. I used to get like that all the time in school. But back at that base, the most that would happen is someone would break a leg or sprain a mandible during their training." She admitted, "Ela would always tell me my mouth could out-speed her Charge any day."

At that, Jordan let out a laugh, "You really care about your sister, huh?"

"Well, duh. She took care of me for most of her life. She's always put me above everything else, making sure that I'm fine, before worrying about herself. It's nice, but sometimes I wish she'd take better care of herself without me…" She paused for a moment, "You know, before everything happened a while back…"

Jordan nodded, letting the room slip into silence for a moment, before it was shortly broken a few moments later.

"You know…" She began, getting Jordan's attention as a smirk formed on her lips, "When we were catching up, Tela wouldn't stop talking about you." Jordan's blush reappeared at that, "There you go again, turning red again! Anyway, she admitted that she'd worked for the Broker before you came along and changed a bunch of stuff."

"Yeah, how much did she tell you?"

"She said she almost killed you."

"Hey, I'll have you know that she wasn't anywhere near killing me." Jordan responded indignantly, "Was she annoying back then, yes. But she was just wasting my time and distracting me."

"Mhmm." Hialus hummed, "Well anyway, she told me about how she went from enemies to friends without. Apparently, her only real friend since I was taken."

Jordan smiled lightly at the thought, "Yeah, we're pretty close."

"I'll say that again. I think sis' got a little crush on you." Jordan's mind came to a screeching halt, but managed to control his blush to a certain extent. Seemingly ignoring Jordan's baffled expression, Hialus continued, "Yeah, she's not very vocal about her emotions or feelings, but call it a sister's intuition. It's actually kinda funny, though. I remember back when we were younger, she said she'd grow up and meet a big, strong Krogan and bond with them."

Jordan could almost imagine it, but didn't reply to that. Instead, "Listen, Hialus, you've only been back with her for a few hours, so I don't think that…"

"How do you feel about Tela?" She cut him off.

"I… well, I'd say we were pretty close…" Jordan managed to say after a moment.

"You're friends, right?"

"Yeah."

"Close friends?"

"Yes."

"Best friends?"

"I guess…"

"What if she asked you out on a date?"

"Hialus!"

"What? It's a valid question. And one you're dodging."

"I don't have to answer you. I barely know you."

"Listen, Jordan." She said seriously, "I lost my sister for decades, ok? Now, many Asari like to stand on their pedestal and preach that time is different for them, and decades are nearly meaningless to them. But I know how it was for those long, long years. Tela is my sister, and I love her more than anyone else in this entire galaxy. I spent the first week crying in a room after I was told she was dead." She told him.

Jordan had no response, and knew better to interrupt her when she had more to say.

"And now, now that I'm back and reunited with her, I hear all about a human who's done more for her than anyone else in this entire galaxy. A human who freed her from a dark fate, who got past her icy exterior, who saved her life, and who reunited her with her one and only sister." She told him, "More than half the time she was telling me what happened to her after I'd left was spent talking about you; a human who has only existed in her life for a couple years."

Jordan's eyes widened at that, not quite realizing how huge of an impact he'd had on her despite everything. He knew he'd done a lot for her, but to take up so much of her mind that she'd talk more about him than about everything else… it was mindboggling.

Hialus resumed, locking eyes with the avatar, "I need you to tell me, Jordan. I know how important you are to my sister, but I need to know how important she is to you."

Jordan slowly nodded at her serious expression, "Honestly… I don't know… I… I don't know how much she told you about me and my past, but my life had never been anything like this until less than three years ago. I only had a handful of people I could rely on back then, and everything is so different now." He took a deep breath, "I… I need to figure things out first, I don't know how to feel about her. I really, really care about Tela. She's done a lot for me, and I for her, but…"

"It's hard to put into words?" Hialus asked softly, her expression softening ever-so-slightly.

"Yeah…" Jordan admitted.

Hialus finally smiled at that, "I think you've answered my question, despite your confusion." She told him, "And for what it's worth, I'm happy she's found such a good friend in you…"

"Thanks, Hialus…" His gaze slowly shifted over to Tela's sleeping form, her back facing them as her side rose and fell in a slow, methodical fashion. "What about…"

Hialus brought a hand to her mouth as she covered a giggle, "Don't worry, I won't say anything. You two will have to figure things out, yourselves…"

Jordan nodded, "Alright… I'm gonna get going, maybe grab some dinner."

"Alright, have fun." She replied, leading Jordan to stand back up straight, and walk towards the exit.

He quickly left towards the mess hall, never noticing the light smile on Tela's face as one of her eyelids slid open, watching his form leave the room.

Terminus Systems, Normandy SR-2
April 2nd, 2185. 3:46 am. EST

The majority of the crew were sleeping by this time, with the exception of the Cerberus night crew, Joker (since he'd wanted to be awake for Liara's arrival… and he'd slept earlier), EDI, and Commander Shepard. In fact, it was only a few moments ago that a Geth ship had finally met up, docked momentarily, and left without another word, leaving Liara behind on the Normandy.

Rather than meet her down there, Shepard finished tidying up his personal deck of the ship, making it presentable for the visiting yet hopefully staying Asari researcher. Less than five minutes after the small Geth craft left the Normandy, Shepard heard a knock at his cabin's door. He couldn't help the smile on his face as he turned toward his door, not saying a word as he approached from within.

Not a moment later, Shepard arrived at his door, taking one final calming deep breath before pressing the button. Permission given, the door slid open to reveal a single asari standing before him, wearing her ever-alluring blue and white researcher's outfit. His heart melted seeing her face despite it only being a few days. Unable to stop himself from speaking, he uttered a single word of welcome…

"Liara…" Shepard breathed out, opening his arms as she stepped forward into the embrace. They held one another and closed their eyes, enjoying the feeling of being with one another once more. "I'm glad you're alright…"

"Same for you, John." She replied, pulling back a bit as they looked into each other's eyes.

The door slid closed behind her as they remained standing in Shepard's loft on the top deck, "So, come in, and tell me about what's been going on." She sighed internally, wishing they'd have time to simply be with one another without work being involved… but she wasn't naïve or dumb enough to fail to recognize that they needed to do this. Work now, play later.

She nodded, walking down the steps before turning and sitting down on the oversized couch. She set her personal device onto the table in front of her, which blinked to life with a holographic project floating over it. Shepard sat down next to her.

"Shortly after I'd sent you on your way, they made a move on my office. They were expecting me to be accompanied by the cloaked Geth Hunters, but they hadn't realized I'd ordered them to triple their numbers. They didn't stand a chance, and quickly fell back, but the message was clear: They were coming for me, and the Broker." She told him.

"You got off of Illium after that?"

"Yes. I'd sent an encrypted call to Feron and the Geth at the Broker's main base. The Geth were exceptionally resourceful, and thought ahead, so all I had to do was tell them what was going on. You see Shepard, the Broker's base was built into a non-spaceworthy ship within the atmosphere of Hagalaz. The Geth, however, anticipated the discovery of the base, and prepped it for space."

"So, the Shadow Broker base is…"

"Currently on its way to a more secure and secret location. I'll share the details once it arrives, but let's just say the GoA will never find it now… and I'd give anything to see the looks on the Guardians' faces when they go to secure Hagalaz and find it empty." She said with a smirk, "Reports show that hours after your mission, they'd actually traveled to Hagalaz, probably in an attempt to bargain with-…"

"Incoming Communication Request." Her personal VI announced, cutting off Liara's train of thought. She turned her gaze toward the blinking icon on the projection.

"By who?" She asked.

"Incoming Communication from Doctor Treeya Nuwani." The Computer immediately responded. Liara's eyes widened only a second after the name was spoken, quickly remembering who this was and what was about to happen.

"Oh shit…" Jordan muttered, before turning to Liara with wide eyes as they sat in the Shadow Broker's office "I forgot to tell you, I'm going to need your help!"

"What, what is it?" The new Shadow Broker asked.

"After Shepard is revived, before he storms the Omega-4 Relay, there's an attack on Fehl Prime, but you'll get a message from an old colleague of yours."

"Wait, what?"

"Tree… va… Treeva, I think that was her name."

"Treeva Nuwani? What about her?'

"She'll call you with a Collector Artifact, or Reaper, or both… I can't remember, exactly, which is weird, but she'll ask you about it. You talk about the Reapers, and then they're cut off mid-conversation." He told her, "It's a Collector attack on Fehl Prime. You're going to need to have something set up to help. That's an important colony, and it's one of the few named ones that we may be able to prevent." Jordan explained.

"I can keep an eye out, possibly prepare to intervene should that conversation occurs…"

"Thanks, Liara." Jordan said, letting out a sigh of relief, "We could save thousands of lives…"

"I accept." She said, making sure the Vid-Comm would only capture her and her presence, rather than include Shepard.

Only a second later, the display showed an unknown asari, surrounded by several Alliance Marines. Liara immediately spoke first, a smile on her face as she took in the appearance of her old friend she once worked with.

"Doctor Nuwani, it's good to see you." Liara said.

Likewise, the other asari smiled, "You as well, Doctor T'Soni." She continued, "I found an unknown object in the ruins on Fehl Prime and wanted to get your input."

In the background, they could hear one of the marines mutter, "Is it my imagination, or do they all look alike?" Shepard shook his heads at the comment but didn't respond, letting Liara take lead.

Liara, however, was focused on the device shown in the vid directly in front of Nuwani. "Hmmm…" Liara said to herself, "Well it's not Prothean, I can tell you that." She told her, "In fact, it doesn't match anything I've ever seen…" She remarked, trying to figure out what it may be.

"Based on the cursory inspection I've given it so far, these are some very advanced biomechanics…" Treeya Nuwani remarked.

Liara's expression hardened, "This could be Reaper tech…" She said, catching Shepard's expression of shock. Continuing upon seeing some confusion on the other side of the comm, "They're an ancient race of sentient starships who've marked all other intelligent life for destruction, hence their attack on the Citadel."

"Yeah, hold up." A marine cut in, "That ship went for the Alliance's jugular because it… wanted to?" He asked in both confusion and skepticism, all while Liara showed a visual of Sovereign and the Citadel on the screen.

"Don't tell me you believe that." A Hispanic-sounding marine commented.

"With all due respect, Doctor T'Soni…" She cut in, "That ship was nothing more than a Dreadnought, piloted by a rogue Spectre agent."

Liara immediately began shaking her head, "I saw it, Treeya. I heard it speak." She told her in complete honesty, "What's more, I am sure that the Reapers are responsible for the Prothean disappearance fifty-thousand years ago." She tried convincing her, before suddenly the signal with the call began to give way, "And now that we know the truth, the Reapers…" She tried to continue, before the signal completely gave out, ending the call. She expected this, yet dreaded it all the same.

'Collector Attack on Fehl Prime.' Jordan's voice helpfully supplied in her head thanks to his warning a year prior. Liara's eyes widened in alarm. She quickly turned toward Shepard.

"Shepard, that device on the vid… did that look like Collector tech to you?"

John closed his eyes and thought for a moment before nodding, "It did…"

Liara spoke now, "Shepard, I believe the colony of Fehl Prime is about to be attacked by the Collectors." She told him. Shepard's eyes opened as he came to the very same realization. Collector tech, loss of signal, alliance colony in the Terminus Systems…

Shepard activated his omni-tool, calling the Normandy, "Joker, set a course of Fehl Prime. No shortcuts, the Collectors are on the attack!"

"Right away, Shepard. ETA three hours. We're actually not too far out."

Shepard turned back toward Liara, frowning, "I wish we had more time to figure everything out…"

Liara nodded understandingly and smiled warmly at the Commander, "Go, Commander, assemble your crew. There will be time when you return."

And with that, Shepard immediately began contacting the rest of his squadmates, demanding their presence in the comm room for an emergency meeting/briefing. Liara frowned, looking down for a moment, deep in thought...

'I guess that'll finally give them the chance to get the Collector intel from a ship…' She thought, realizing that said 'event' had not occurred like it should have, according to Jordan's recollection of events.

A/N:

Sorry for the long delay, but here you go. I wonder what the next chapter will be about?!

Yeah, we're going right back into action, but that's because I didn't want to push the call to Liara into the next chapter, forcing everything to be pushed back even further. I have plans for this story despite the delays between updates. I have the entirety of this story planned out in some sort of fashion. I know where and how things will be going almost completely until the end of ME2. ME3 will be a very unique and final arc of this story, as the consistency of the timeline staying on course compared to the games is obviously deteriorating with all of the changes. The ME2 arc with remain 'mostly consistent' overall, but ME3 will be of my own design, for reasons not yet known to you readers. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as you learned more about the Guardians of Athame, and are prepared for "Mass Effect: Paragon Lost" next time. If you have not seen it, do not worry, it should be fine as I'll try to explain everything well enough.

Feel free to leave a review or send a PM about the story, preferably in a nice way, or with constructive criticism. I've received my fair share of flames already (mostly privately), and I'll admit it smothers my drive to write when I'm told my story is crap. I don't mind constructive criticism, or someone telling me they personally lost interest or do not like something that I've done, but... whatever, I'm just doing this for fun, anyway.

Spoiler: Next Chapter's Name: A Prime Target

Lemme know what you think about this chapter, the next one should be up within a week or two (hopefully), and I'll see you next time...

-swrWriter