Epilogue - Decisions by Dawn

Thessia, Mountaintop, inside Danger's sport rover

"Let me out of here." Terriana started pushing buttons on the control panel, hoping to find the one that overrode the AI and opened the doors.

"Accessing: Voice Verification Complete. Hello Matriarch Terriana. I have a message for you from Operative Danger."

"You… what?" she stared at the VI representation of Danger warily.

"I have a message for you from Operative Danger. Do you wish to hear the message?"

"I… Yes I want to hear the message. What is the message?"

"The message is, 'Buckle up everyone, especially you, beautiful!'"

Terriana's hand froze on the control panel and her eyes glazed over, remembering another time, not so very long ago when she had first met Danger. Those were the first words the human had spoken to her, and oh, how she had been scandalized! She sat back in the seat and closed her eyes, remembering the warmth of the arms that enveloped her and the strength of both of the humans that had saved her. Danger's best friend Jane Shepard had been there too, and Terriana had to grudgingly admit that she kind of liked the soldier as well. At least, as a confidant for Danger.

"VI, please let me out of this vehicle."

"My name is not VI. It is DIDI, Matriarch, and I cannot let you out. Danger has locked access to only her voice commands, and she has left explicit instructions to bring you to Jane Shepard if she does not return in thirty minutes."

Terriana crossed her arms and allowed herself a little pout. No one but the stupid AI could see her anyway.

What is Danger doing out there? She should be in here with me… in my arms… Oh, we were so close! So close… I was so close to finally sharing all my burdens with someone who would accept and love me forever.

"Why did she put me in here, DIDI?" She decided not to antagonize the unpredictable program, knowing that it was one of Danger's pet projects and was given to flights of fancy.

In response, DIDI merely played back all of the surveillance footage that had been gathered the last several weeks, showing a mysterious figure that was shadowing their movements, both inside the compound and out. Terriana leaned forward, trying to understand what it was she was seeing. The images flickered from one to another, this one in the garden catching the glimpse of a shadow at the far north end, that one showing the same shadow clipping across the doorway as they entered the compound to retire for the night. It wasn't until ten minutes worth of images later that Terriana got a meaningful look at what had been stalking them.

Oh no… That's… that's Siri's eldest...

"DIDI, you have to let me out of this car right now."

"I am sorry, Matriarch. I am unable to comply. Danger has left strict…"

"I know what Danger has left." Terriana's skin darkened with a biotic charge, and the air within the rover shimmered dangerously. "Let me out."

"As I already stated, Matriarch…"

Terriana leaned forward and tilted her head to the side. "DIDI, I will give you one opportunity. And make no mistake, it will only be one. Out there," she pointed slowly for dramatic effect, "is one of the most cunning assassins to ever have lived. Danger doesn't have a chance, and she will never see it coming. I am getting out of this vehicle, and you have a choice. You can either let me out, or you can watch as I melt this entire rover around us. Either way, I am getting out of this vehicle."

DIDI took half a tick to process the new information, and then decided that the only way to handle the situation was to allow the matriarch to follow through on her threat. "Matriarch, I am unable to comply with your request. If you must use force, then use it, but Danger has entrusted your safety to me, and her strict orders were to get you to Jane Shepard or get destroyed trying. If that is to be my fate, then I accept it."

Terriana narrowed her eyes. "DIDI… Jump to another vehicle."

"I cannot."

"Why not?"

"Operative Danger has left express instructions that I am to…"

"Yes, yes, I heard you the first three times. Do my orders mean nothing?"

"You are logged to the Administrator subroutine unless Operative Danger has locked you out for security reasons. Operative Danger locked access to Darla priority one Terriana just before she left."

This is taking too long. Why am I even arguing with this computer? Danger needs me.

"DIDI, I said you would give one opportunity and I meant it." She turned her focus inward and concentrated her biotic field around the main part of the console in the middle. She wasn't certain how far the electronics that housed the AI stretched, so she took a guess and hoped for the best. DIDI was Danger's creation, and she didn't want to destroy it if she didn't have to. The air turned black, and she further focused the mass effect field outward, warping the shape of the rover and causing the metal to grind in upon itself. "DIDI, I strongly suggest you jump… NOW," she repeated, as she closed her eyes and let the field go. The rover shattered around her, filling the air with crystalline shards of metal and residual electricity. Terriana was on her knees, one hand on the ground, breathing heavily. It had been centuries since she had used that amount of force.

I hope that the stupid AI got out in time.

Terriana didn't have much time to dwell on that question, however. Her human was out in the wild all alone hunting down a member of the Black Wing, not knowing what it was she actually faced… or why she faced it.

She is so fearless, and foolish… I must get to her in time.

Terriana pushed herself off the ground, raised her arms, and lifted herself into the night.

Thessia, Mountaintop, Out in the wilderness

Danger stepped gingerly, trying to muffle her footsteps in the dry forest land. She wasn't wearing her usual stealth gear, as she didn't expect trouble here on the planet, so it was slow going. She thought she could hear every single movement of her loose clothing and she ground her teeth in agitation.

Where are you?

She had been catching glimpses of the shadow for weeks now, and had instructed DIDI to take over the surveillance cameras around the compound and any nearby satellites. Over time they had put together a profile, but she still wasn't certain who the stranger was or why a Justicar would be after the Matriarch. As far as she knew, Justicars only hunted lawbreakers, not lawmakers.

I should have known better than to bring Terra this far from the compound. I got carried away. I hope she isn't too mad at me for putting her with DIDI.

Danger stopped short. There was the sound of a breath, a whisper almost… a question. Her eyes darted around, barely able to make out anything in the quickly darkening twilight. "I know you are out here," she called. "Show yourself."

"Oh, I'm only too happy to oblige…"

Danger closed her eyes as she felt the arm snake around her waist and the knife press to her throat. This can't be happening. It just can't be happening.

The stranger's chin was on her shoulder, and she felt a slight biotic field envelop them both and lift them slightly in the air. "Tell me, is it true?" the voice whispered in her ear.

What is she talking about? "Is what true?"

"Oh, don't be coy with me, human. Is it true? Have you been Marked?"

They ARE all fucking insane. Living for hundreds of years must cause severe dementia. "Listen lady, I don't know what you want with the matriarch, but you are going to have to kill me to get to her."

"I have no interest in the matriarch." The stranger pushed them both forward and slammed Danger into a tree, pinning her against it with her weight and shifting the knife to the back of her neck. It was easy; barely even a challenge. She had several inches and at least twenty pounds on the human, not to mention a mastery of biotics that rivaled the High Seat herself. "I'm here to talk to you." She kept the knife against the human's neck and used her other hand to lift Danger's shirt. "Well… looks like my father was right. But why? Why did she mark you?"

Gosh what the hell is she talking about? Did Terriana do something to me in my sleep or something? Maybe she put some sort of territorial tattoo on my back. Hmmm… Not so bad if that's what it is. But no, she wouldn't do that, right?

Danger closed her eyes and tried her best to focus. She didn't have any hope of beating a Justicar in a fight, but she could at least buy some time for DIDI to get Terriana to safety and maybe find out what the huntress was after. DIDI would be able to hack her omni-tool once she got the matriarch to Jane and confirmed Danger's death, so she had to try to get whatever she could on audio. She concentrated on her biotic amp, which was just beneath the knife held against her neck, and she pushed, hard. It had almost the desired effect; the asari stranger's hand spasmed with the shock and Danger was able to somewhat clumsily spin out of her captor's embrace as the knife fell to the ground.

"Oh, you shouldn't have done that…" Marisa stated as she flicked her wrist and the knife returned to her grip. The human was moving away, but she was slow and awkward, nowhere near Marisa's own fitness level. "You attacked a Justicar, human. Do you know what the Code requires in such a situation?"

"Code? Lady, listen, you held a knife to my neck. I didn't attack you!"

Marisa waved it off. "Minor technicality. I want to see if you really do have her favor or not." Marisa lunged fast, disappeared, and was on top of Danger again in an instant. Once again she pinned the human against a tree with her body and her biotics, and Danger could feel the alien's breath hot on her cheek. "I've watched and waited for weeks now to get you alone…Why did the goddess mark you? Tell me…" She examined the human's face hypnotically, weaving back and forth as she was taught so long ago, hoping to disorient the creature and force it to spill all of its secrets. "Tell me…"

What the FUCK is she talking about? Is Jane playing some kind of sick joke on me? My first real progress with Terra and I get interrupted by the most batshit insane asari Justicar on Thessia?

"I… I really don't have a clue what you are talking about…" And stop trying to seduce me. Just not going to work.

"Oh, I think you do know what I am talking about." The knife reappeared, slicing gently down the front of Danger's shirt. The human held her breath as the tip just grazed her skin, leaving a faint red trail in its wake between her breasts.

"Look, what do you want? Money? I can get you money. You need someone extracted? Done. I even have some contacts over at C-Sec if you need something. Just… Stop whatever it is you are trying to do."

Marisa's face broke into a feral grin as the scent of Danger's blood reached her senses. She closed her eyes and pushed closer to the human, relishing the feel of contact once again after so long. Surely the goddess wouldn't mind if she took a small bit for herself… Athame was known to… share.

"Look lady, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but I'm kind of taken you know…"

"Ah, but I thought you didn't know anything about the mark? Tsk tsk, lying to a Justicar. What does the Code require now, I wonder?"

Holy hell, what is going on here? Danger was starting to seriously panic. This asari was clearly misinformed about something and the human had no clue how to talk her way out of this situation.

What do I do? Come on, THINK Darla. What the hell would Jane Shepard do? Wait… Jane's been a little frustrated lately… She might not be too opposed to a random Justicar raping her in the middle of the forest… hmm… no, FOCUS!

The crazy asari was still pressed against her, one hand on her blade between them and the other curved around Danger's back, scratching at the Mark put there by the asari demon-god. "Twice now you have broken a law that would require action according to the Code and twice now I have spared you your life. Do not test me a third time, human. Tell me everything. Why are you Marked? When did she Mark you? Why are you here?"

Danger just stared up into space. She didn't know how to answer any of those questions, and all she could think about right now was how badly she wanted out of this situation and to be back with Terra, who was waiting for her in her sport rover.

"I…" She started nervously.

Marisa closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She could see why the goddess had been so allured. This human was fairly intoxicating, smelling faintly of raspberry and machinery. She was tall, almost as tall as Marisa herself, and she was surprisingly well muscled for a human female. "Tell me everything," she whispered as she rubbed her cheek along Danger's. "Tell me who you are, and why you are here." The scent of the blood was getting to her. The hand that held her knife settled over the human's heartbeat, smearing the faint trail of red and synchronizing the tempo in her own chest to it. Her other arm tightened around the mercenary's waist, pulling her closer and covering them both with a light haze of violet electricity. Her eyes darkened, reaching out to Danger and promising deliverance from all of her sins, if she would only open herself to Marisa now. She lightly bit just where the human's jaw met the sensitive skin underneath her ear, and pushed harder, offering her own body and utter salvation if Danger would just surrender...

Ok… I need to get the hell out of here… NOW!

Danger summoned every last bit of biotic… talent… she had and focused the weak charge in front of her. She wasn't able to push the asari very far, but it was enough to allow her to slide to the ground and disorient her captor momentarily. Clearly this seduction technique was not something the alien had expected to fail. Danger rolled to the side and staggered to her feet, leaning against a nearby tree. "Lady, for the last time… I have no idea what you are…"

Danger couldn't finish her thought. The Justicar had recovered quickly and advanced on her once again, but was suddenly distracted by movement behind them. A lone figure materialized in the clearing, and Marisa wasted no time in reversing her grip on the blade and turning around to face the intruder.

No, Terra! What are you doing here?

Danger barely had time to react. She gathered what little biotic power she had left after her last nearly heroic lift, pushed herself away from the tree, and launched herself at the Justicar, knocking her to the ground and rolling them along the brush until her back hit a boulder, hard.

Oh god, that hurts, what happened?

Marisa pushed herself off the ground and stared in horror at her blade, now sticking out of Danger's abdomen. She hadn't meant to seriously injure the human; after all, she was marked. She had just wanted to scare her a little, arouse her a little, and perhaps take a small piece for herself before the goddess came to claim her property. She should have never allowed herself to slip into the joining ritual and become distracted like that. Of course the damn matriarch would have found some way to get around the lockdown Marisa watched Danger program their rover with. Of course she would have interrupted the interrogation and turned the whole thing into a disaster.

"Matriarch…" She tried to turn toward the asari who had entered the clearing, but her limbs felt heavy. Her skin felt tight. Her mouth was dry… and her nerves were suddenly all on edge and seething with… fear…

I am not a matriarch.

The words weren't spoken, but they were everywhere in Marisa's mind. Her head pulsed with the sound. Her eyes vibrated with the intonation. Her lips quivered with the sense of dread that was slowly washing over her.

"Athame?" Marisa started weakly.

Hardly.

The Justicar's eyes grew wide as her entire body was lifted and turned toward the smaller, yet more formidable asari. She tried to activate her biotic strength, but it seemed to have been completely drained away. The sky, which was already dark at this point, turned deep black, and violet lightning crossed it, dancing all around them.

"Forgive me…"

Run, Justicar. Run, and never look back.

Marisa closed her eyes as her body twisted and sailed through the air for what seemed like miles until it connected with a dark marble wall. She fell to the ground with a sickening thud, and stars flashed before her eyes. Her back and one arm were broken, and her right leg felt stiff as well. She looked around her, and realized she was back in front of the Temple of Athame. She painfully dragged herself to a sitting position, and thought she heard the abysmal voice in her head one last time.

Run…

"Shit…" she whispered.

Terriana's eyes cleared and she dismissed the violent winds that had carried the Justicar wretch's body back to her daddy's temple. Danger was here, and she was hurt, possibly fatally. She looked around quickly and spotted the human with her back to a boulder, holding a wound on her abdomen that was rapidly soaking her shirt with blood. The matriarch raced to her side and fell to her knees.

"Danger… Oh Danger… why…"

"Hey, Terra," Danger said jovially. "Are you a hallucination? I thought I told you to stay with DIDI. Where did that Justicar go?" The human winced as pain shot through her body and she lifted her hand, showing the matriarch the damage. "I don't think this is good, Terra."

Terriana stared at the wound and shook her head. All this time they had been together she had been able to protect Danger from harm. The human may have thought that she was the bodyguard, but in reality the matriarch didn't really need one. She hired them so she didn't have to expose herself, and she kept Danger because she fell in love. "Why couldn't you be asari? I could have… I could save you."

Danger smiled weakly at Terriana and gathered what little strength she had left to raise her hand to the woman's cheek. She didn't know what the matriarch was on about this time, but she was glad the woman was here. Even if it did turn out to be a pre-death psychotic break, she was glad that the last moments in her mind were filled with the one her heart belonged to. Softly, she whispered, "Oh… you already have. I… I love you, Terra."

Terriana closed her eyes and leaned into the touch, wishing beyond anything that she wasn't who she was, and that she had just been left alone to enjoy her life in quiet comfort. She would have given all of it up; indeed, she already largely had given all of it up to lead a life among the mortals of Thessia.

She opened her eyes again and saw the life leaving Danger's body. She didn't have much time. "Bond to me?" She whispered, praying Danger had enough strength left, and praying that the human wouldn't deny her this one last request. "I will never belong to another, Darla. Please… bond to me?"

Danger tried to grin, but life was leaving her fast. Still, she knew that this was somehow important, somehow… critical. She adjusted her back against the rock and opened an arm weakly, the other hand still covering her wound. "Yes," she barely managed as the asari matriarch straddled her lap, and whispered the joining words. Danger's consciousness barely registered the almost audible click and she closed her eyes, opening what was left of her mind to the only one she had ever loved. If felt like nothing she had ever experienced, and she bared her heart and soul to the asari who was clutching at her, begging her for a lifetime of love, a lifetime she could no longer provide. In that moment, she knew that Terriana had loved her for just as long, and she tried to push down the bitter regret that now, now that they were being so painfully honest, now they were out of time.

"Terra," Danger started weakly.

"Shh, it's ok." The matriarch tightened her grip around Danger and pressed her lips forcefully to the human's dry, cracked ones. If this was to be Danger's end, she wanted to taste those last dying breaths.

Danger smiled through the contact and whispered, "Third time's a charm, huh Terra? Gosh, I've been waiting for this for so long."

A sudden thought occurred to Terriana…

Oh, please let there be time for that. Please…

"Danger…" she whispered, breaking away from the human's lips for a moment. "Can I… Will you…? I…"

Danger's eyes were dimming, but she still understood what the asari wanted through their shared link. She nodded almost in relief and used what remaining strength she had to grasp the asari's hip with her free hand and pull her closer. Terriana wasted no time searching through the human's mind, covering the hand that held that hideously gaping wound with her own, connecting herself to the very lifeblood of her mate. If she couldn't have Danger, she would at least bear Danger's legacy, and in that way, have some small comfort in the twilight of her existence before she was forced to return to her mother's lair and attend her. She would have at least this, a beautiful daughter, to love and to hold and to teach all of the things that Danger loved, and all of the things that she loved about Danger.

She would have at least this, and as she took her last selections into herself and away from Darla Vance, she felt one last shudder, and life left the human vessel.

Danger's eyes were darkened forever.

"I won't cry," she whispered as she held the dead human. "I have a piece of you now, and I won't cry." Terriana stood and stepped back, removing the heavy robe that always covered her back and shoulders, feeling the air on her perpetually open wounds and delighting in the pain it caused. Her eyes were still obsidian, and she watched as Danger's confused soul rose up out of her human body and looked at her, seeing her as she really was for the very first time.

"I love you too, Danger. Goodbye… We may meet again. It may come to pass that he will give you to me, if I ask it of him." Terriana said as the soul, reaching for her, rose into the air. Her eyes followed it as it disappeared over the horizon, heading toward Palladium's eternal kingdom. Or at least, that's where it should have been going… Terriana squinted at the distance and rubbed her eyes… It couldn't be… There was no way that it could… She stopped and examined her link to Danger; that swiftly forged bond just before the human died. She looked though every memory and as she did, her eyes grew narrow and her fists clenched. She had been so distracted by her own grief and securing the human's legacy that she completely missed… Rushing to the human's corpse, she forcefully flung it face first on the ground and nearly ripped the bloody shirt from the lifeless back. There, almost imperceptible to the mortal eye but burning bright black in her own supernatural ones, was the mark of her mother.

The Mark of Athame.

Terriana fairly seethed with anger. It all made sense, now.

Temple of Athame, High Seat

"I know what you have been up to, Siri."

The High Priestess sat motionless on the marble seat, seemingly unaffected by the darkened electricity swirling around the room. This was not the first time she had been visited by Athame, having stood in the wrath of the goddess over seven hundred years prior when she was selected as the next High Seat. Now, after centuries of silence and relatively smooth running of the temples, her goddess had returned. And she wasn't happy.

"You meddle far too much."

The asari priestess did not respond. It was not wise to reply to Athame unless she directly asked a question, and so far, there had been no questions. There had been declarations, there had been accusations, there had even been threats, but there had been no questions. Siri merely sat and waited until the goddess exhausted herself and asked something of her. Only then would she respond.

"Did you think I wouldn't notice?"

Ah, there was a question, finally. That was her cue to join the conversation, if it could even be called that. Much like the last time she had been in the presence of the unpredictable deity, she was talked at rather than with. Demands were made, rather than favors asked. Requirements were informed, rather than allowanced requested. That time, there had been no questions at all, just a simple statement that she was directly intervening because she disagreed with the choice of the next High Seat, and a number of other, much darker moments that Siri took care to remember seldom. The following day, the top candidate had been assassinated and Siri was fast tracked to the highest spiritual position in asari society. She had held the seat since then, and as her life was coming to a close she had expected guidance from Athame on who the next High Seat would be, but she wasn't quite expecting… this.

"My Goddess, I do not know what it is you are asking."

"Oh, don't play dumb with me, Siri." Athame spat the words, disgusted. "I know full well what you are up to. Who I mark is MY business and I don't need your lunatic assassin daughter chasing her all over the planet."

"Marisa is a Justicar, now."

Athame waved her topmost hands dismissively. "Justicar, Assassin, same difference. Neither one allows themselves to enjoy all that I have given your kind, so neither has any value to me. You would think that being so closely involved with one another would lead to them relaxing a sutra or two... or twenty… or two hundred… but no matter. If they want to punish themselves, so be it. Have at it. I no longer care."

Siri did not respond. She knew that Athame had no interest in either organization aside from her mild amusement that the heads of both academies always seemed to be bondmates. Siri herself found it entertaining as well, but understood that it was also terribly necessary. Both the Justicar Academy and the Order of the Black Wing provided necessary services to asari society, and it was important that both continued to. In order to ensure their relatively peaceful co-existence, leadership was hand-picked from the top graduates of each academy who had been observed secretly maintaining romantic ties across campus lines. Once selected, bonding was encouraged although it was also an unspoken rule that it would remain… secret. In this way, the two academies would endure without wiping each other out, and both services would continue to be provided to Thessia and the rest of the universe.

"My Goddess?" Siri took her chances with Athame's wrath. The goddess had turned from her and darkened the air with her wings, allowing her biotic strength to warp the room and rock the marble chair sickeningly. She was no doubt attempting to intimidate. The high priestess didn't flinch, however, and Athame eventually tired of her game and turned back around.

"Do you know why I wanted you as High Seat, Siri?"

The High Priestess didn't respond. It wasn't a question that Athame really wanted her to answer. It was a question Athame wanted to give her the answer to.

"I chose you because you are fearless…" her eyes took on a faraway look as she remembered a night in the distant past, somewhere near these very halls. "You are fearless…" she looked straight through the stone cold asari that sat before her. "Your bondmate is fearless…" Her gaze rose and seemed to penetrate the secret door just over the high priestess's shoulder. "Your daughters are fearless…" The insane goddess crossed all six of her arms and leaned lazily against the marble wall of the temple's audience chambers. "Your third youngest is to be next. She has bonded now?"

"She has. To an older acolyte in her four hundredth year. Cythee, I believe."

"Excellent. Mara is to be the next High Seat. Your line is fierce and loyal, if meddling and intrusive. I would like to continue this tradition for a time, and see where it leads."

Siri just nodded. She had already been leaning in that direction, Mara being faithfully devoted to the temple and newly settled with a companion who shared her convictions. The goddess' command just meant she didn't have to worry about another situation like what happened when she was selected as High Seat.

"It will be done, My Goddess."

"That's not the only reason I came here, Siri. Your Assassin daughter is outside, and she has some news for you. I suppose I should thank you for moving this whole thing along but… Now I will have to deal with grief from another that I wasn't expecting so I won't. The next time you decide to meddle in my affairs, don't send your pet wolf after it. You know she can't control herself."

The high priestess wisely remained silent.

"I must depart, Siri. I have a… soul to receive."

In an instant, the darkness was gone and so was the goddess. Siri waited a few moments, and then allowed herself a sigh of relief as she pressed a button on the side of her chair, indicating she was ready for the audience with the Justicar. She turned slightly to look at the secret panel that hid her personal bedchamber, and smiled as she felt her bondmate's mind link up with hers.

"I am here, Siri."

"Did you catch all that?"

"Yes."

"I can step down soon. I will finish this one final task and then hand the temple over to Mara and Cythee. Do you agree?"

"Yes, Siri. I want to retire, and escape all this intrigue and enjoy what is left of our lives together. Maybe Marisa will visit us."

"Maybe she will, my love. Maybe she will…"

Heavens, Halls of Obsidian, Throne room

"Athera is here."

Athame merely nodded her head at the messenger. She had expected as much, although she hadn't seen her daughter in hundreds of years. The child had rebelled, as most children were wont to do, and had decided to remain on the planet and deny her unholy heritage. The goddess was amused and allowed it, even going so far as to watch over her and ensure her good fortune in that world. They hadn't spoken in centuries, but she still cared for her eldest and had been working with Palladium to try to secure a suitable mate for her before she ran out of time.

Athame turned and lowered herself majestically into her throne, crossing one luxurious leg over the other and folding two pairs of hands neatly across her black stomach. The sky darkened, and she waited for her progeny to make her entrance.

She wasn't disappointed.

The doors nearly burst off their hinges with the wrath of the much younger demi-god as she darkened the sky further with her own display of power. She stalked up to the foot of the throne, a slight inclination of her head the only acknowledgement she gave of Athame's authority over her.

"What are you playing at, Mother?"

Athame waved her topmost hand and blinked innocently. "I'm sure I have no idea what you are talking about, Athera. Tea?"

"I do not want any tea, Mother. And don't play dumb with me. You know exactly what I am talking about. Why did you mark her? Why did you take her? Why couldn't you just… let me have this?" Words threatened to fail the demi-god, and she clenched her fists to try to master her rage again.

"Child," Athame started dangerously, "There are forces at work here that you cannot even begin to understand." She leaned forward, capturing her oldest daughter's eyes in her gaze. "I had intended to leave her to live the rest of her natural life on Thessia for your entertainment. Her death was unexpected. And for the record, I had already selected someone else for you but you decided it wasn't good enough. You were supposed to have Jane Shepard, Firstborn of Palladium, and youngest soul ever to ascend to the ranks of the Silver Hand. We had it all worked out."

"Shepard?" Athera was incredulous. "How could you have thought for a moment I would be interested in that… soldier? She is just like Palladium! She's too young! She's too bloodthirsty! She's too reckless! And you still haven't answered my question." Athera's own speech slowed this time, and she leaned forward as well, challenging her mother and daring her to strike. "Why did you take her?"

Athame held her daughter's gaze for a short time, then rolled her eyes and leaned back on her throne. "Child, get over it. Your pet human was never important. The vessel was never important. What is important is the soul within." She produced a vial from a pocket in her robes and held it up for Athera's inspection. "This is my original consort soul, lost to me millennia ago when the machine-gods first appeared and scattered us to the four corners of the universe. Hidden among Palladium's children! Can you imagine? This soul isn't your pet human, it was never meant to be in Palladium's cache at all! It is my consort, and now that the soul is back in my possession, I will await the contemplation period and place her back into an asari body, where she belongs. Then she will ascend here to sit by my side for the rest of eternity."

Athera was clenching and unclenching her fists, her fury rising as her mother's words washed over her. How could Athame do this to her? Billions of asari dotted the far reaches of space, and her mother had lived to see the rise and fall of several civilizations. Why did she have to pick this one human, now, in Athera's lifetime? Why Danger?

"I have already bonded to that soul, Mother. It is not yours…"

Athame was able to hide her mild surprise, though barely. She looked at the vial in her hand and saw that it was indeed, a darker hue than it ought to have been. It had been bound, but that was insignificant. Once it was recycled into the correct vessel for the goddess, the binding would wear off and need to be renewed again. It would be renewed when she was old enough and the goddess decided it was time for her to ascend to her rightful place. It would be renewed by Athame herself, when she brought her consort back home again. She rounded on her daughter viciously, and nearly spat a response.

"Insolent child, you can't bond to this soul. It wasn't in the correct vessel. The human is insignificant and doesn't exist anymore. The only reason she was compelled to you at all is because she thought you were me. The soul is mine, and that is how it will remain. Now, I have to focus on the machine-gods. I don't have time to play games with you, Athera. Return to the planet and continue your petty politics. Find yourself another human toy. Find a hundred! This is far beyond your comprehension."

Athera closed her eyes and clenched her fists one last time. "If you take this from me…" Her speech slowed dangerously and the already darkened sky took on a new hue, a younger hue, a much more treacherous hue… "I will recruit Liara… and Morinth… and anyone else that I can rally to my cause, and I will overthrow you, Mother…"

Athame was silent for a moment, considering her eldest and most beloved daughter. The child was truly something out of a delightful nightmare, having the goddess's own swirling markings and her father's deep blue skin. She was tall and statuesque, bred to dominate and control the lesser daughters that walked Thessia. She was one of only three that Athame herself had birthed over the long millennia, and she was by far the toughest and fiercest of those daughters.

Athame thought back on the night spent with Athera's father with some fondness, her current High Seat who was fearless in her presence and fought the goddess for dominance during their encounter. That soul was not her consort soul, but it was certainly one that had gotten Athame's attention… and her submission. The product was a child so extraordinary that Athame could deny her nothing during her first years of life. She was beautiful, she was terrible, and she was oh so insolent! Athame was almost impressed with her display of petulance tonight.

"Is that right, Athera? Well…" She leaned forward and rested her chin on one of her hands. "I suppose you had better get started then, hmmm?"

She waved a hand, and Athera… Terriana… found herself back in her bedchamber at her compound, in her dressing gown, as if nothing had happened at all. As if the night had just started and she had merely said goodnight to her human bodyguard instead of goodbye. The blood was washed from her hand, and the places where her nails had dug into her flesh as she clenched her fists in anger had healed. She could almost believe that it had been a dream, if it weren't for the emptiness descending upon her heart and the new warmth of life that was present in her abdomen.

She flexed the muscles in her shoulders, testing, and with some relief nodded to herself. It would take time, but they would grow back. They would grow back, she would birth her lover's child, and then she would start on her long journey to take back what was rightfully hers.

Temple of Athame, High Seat, Audience with Justicar Marisa

"It is true then?" Siri asked the question more out of obligation than actually needing the answer. Athame's visit had confirmed all of her suspicions already, but somehow she still wanted to hear it from her daughter. The justicar was hunched over on the floor where the acolytes had left her in the darkened room, and she delivered the most fleeting of nods. "She was indeed marked, and seemed to be completely unaware. I was able to get her alone for a few moments before my interrogation was… interrupted. I was… forced here… told to run…"

"Did you kill her?"

Marisa sighed. "I'm not sure. I wasn't trying to. I was not expecting…"

Maybe I wasn't clear in my instructions.

"There is something else that you need to be informed of. Something that might explain this a little better."

"Yes?" What more can there possibly be?

"You will need to… see this to believe it."

The High Seat nodded and gestured her eldest daughter forward. It wasn't often that a Justicar opened herself to the Temple of Athame, so this had to be very serious indeed. "I will be gentle." Without warning she pushed into her daughter's mind, albeit in a much kinder fashion than she would have with any of her acolytes.

Marisa offered up the memory, and suppressed a shiver of fear. Even looking at it from this distance of both time and space, she could see the power and feel the danger. Still, she forced herself to watch as her father sifted through her memories, verifying this particular one's authenticity. After the High Seat was finally satisfied and had withdrawn, the Justicar fell back against the wall in exhaustion.

"You are absolutely certain, Marisa?"

"I am certain, Lady. There is no doubt about what I felt, or saw, there."

"Well. This certainly… complicates things. All this time… We all thought that N'Vara was the only one aside from the ardats..." This must be what Athame meant about dealing with grief from another….

"T'Soni," Marisa corrected. The high priestess just waved it off.

"Fine, T'Soni. She's a N'Vara no matter what she wants to call herself."

The justicar just nodded. "But this one isn't like her, is she?"

"No, she's nothing like N.. T'Soni. She is far more… unpredictable. She is a direct daughter of Athame, not the product of her seed."

And one that could very well challenge your throne, my goddess… Especially if N'Vara helps her. No wonder you are nervous. Wouldn't that be an interesting battle? This explains much. Perhaps mother and daughter are in some sort of a competition over the human toy? Can you really be that bored, my goddess? I wonder if… Athame… why didn't you ever tell me?

"Right, that's what I thought. But shouldn't she have… you know…" Marisa gestured weakly to her shoulders.

"She's clipped them, I imagine. It's likely the only reason you are still alive. She's considerably weakened. It's also likely the reason she's been under our radar for so long." Siri tried to swallow the bitterness at the revelation that this might actually be her child.

"What do you need me to do now?"

Good question. Oh my Goddess, what are you playing at?

"First, you will recover. And keep this to yourself. Don't confront Terriana again. Once you are strong enough, find the other one, and keep an eye on her. If Terriana makes a move, she will seek out T'Soni. She will need help. She may seek out others as well, we cannot discount that possibility. Gather the names of all the remaining Ardat-Yakshi and send them to me. Be ready, Marisa… be safe…"

And pray for us all.

A/N – Pray for us all indeed! I want to thank all of you who joined me on this journey. It's been an interesting ride, and though the plot changed direction a few times during the (wow, 4 years?) I have been writing this fic, I'm happy with where it ended up. In part 2, we will pick up just before Jane's death to flesh some things out further and be a little fluffy, and then join Liara on an epic quest to save not just our favorite commander's body, but her very soul as well. I think Liara will be interested in helping Athera, don't you? And well, Morinth doesn't have anything better to do until Shepard is back anyway, right? We'll even have some fun with Aethyta.

See you all in a few months.