A/N: Hey! Sorry for the massively late update. My laptop met with an ancient nemesis, gravity, and the hard drive became a casualty about ten days ago. With it went a lot of my story planning as well as this chapter. Ah well, now I have a better back up system in place.

Onwards to story! In this chapter, we see time start to move a bit faster as small steps lead to larger things. Kind of an in between chapter, but super fun to organize and write. Caution: snark is present in some aspects of this chapter :) You have been warned.

One thing to note, in my timeline the Reaper war went from about mid June to December, according to an Earth calender. That puts the Crucible around mid-December, and three weeks later to around January. That's where I'm getting these dates for the week. Also, not sure if I like this whole dates thing, it is kind of a test run of sorts. Would appreciate knowing if it helped frame the chapter better or not.

Athame's Embrace: Labs
[January 4th, 2687]

Chakwas began sending electrical pulses through the sample she was working on. Evatos, watchful as ever, hovered over Chakwas's shoulder and watched the test. The magnification showed a similar start to the test as before; large, sudden activity in the small nanite set, followed by massive failure as the nanites seemingly realized they were in a severed portion. Chakwas sighed, and readied the equipment again, as Evatos groaned slightly and leaned backwards.

"I thought you said this was going to work, Chakwas..." Evatos said, irritation obvious in her voice. Chakwas was not so sure the asari was annoyed with her, so much as the sling her left arm was in after her outing with Miranda.

"Evatos, you know as well as I that these things take time. We must be wary, vigilant, prepared to fail." Chakwas chastised.

Evatos did not seem coddled, but she stopped complaining, deciding instead to groan and move away from the terminal as Chakwas reset again. Chakwas only smiled. Sometimes, the youth of asari showed through to her even when they were as old as Evatos, who looked to be around four to five hundred years. Despite all those centuries of experience, the asari doctor still was as impatient as a mid-thirties, early forties human, and it amused Chakwas greatly.

Looking over at Miranda, Chakwas noticed her own concentration on her tests was not as focused as it had been prior to the incident. The young geneticist seemed absolutely distracted, even disorientated. "Is there anything wrong, Miranda?" Chakwas asked, wanting to offer some help.

"No... No. Just... headaches." Miranda paused, reaching to rub the wrap on her head from the attack. "I've... nothing to report as of yet, but thanks for asking Karin." Chakwas still wasn't clear on the incident, but both of them had come back from looking for the missing data badly injured from biotic fields. Now, both would hardly talk about it. Evatos had been especially strange when they had called in for help, refusing to allow Chakwas to come out personally.

"Are we ready to go, Chakwas?" Evatos asked hurriedly, as if trying to get her focused back on the project at hand.

"Almost, Evatos. Almost." Chakwas said, turning back to her own tests. They were attempting to mimic the electrical signals Shepard's brain would send to synaptic gaps to give commands to the nanites. So far, they had had little success, but Chakwas felt it had to work eventually. The scans she had taken indicated this was how they had been working inside Shepard.

"And you are sure, Chakwas? We don't need to look for anything else? Just march forward?" Evatos inquired, obvious doubt still on her face.

"I'm never perfectly sure, but this is what makes the most sense." Chakwas replied, beginning the next set of pulses. Doubt, however, was starting to creep into her, as well.

Miranda rubbed her head again. She looked at her results, astonishment in her eyes, and then began the data transfer to her omni-tool. This discovery was too great... The DNA tests had come back with a 99.972% match to previous samples. That .028% difference was exactly the same across all samples; Human, Asari, Turian... all organic matter had a deviation from their old results pre-Battle of Earth and post-Battle of Earth. What was more, the difference was identical across every species. Whatever had changed in humanity had identically changed in asari, turian, salarian, everything. It was as if someone had gone into the genetic make-up and altered all the galaxy in one, swift motion.

Miranda knew Chakwas would benefit greatly in her tests from this information. But sharing with her consigned the information immediately to Evatos, whom Miranda still did not trust. She rubbed her head again. Something about that incident in the hanger was... off... At any rate, she couldn't let the asari get their hands on this. This would be her own, pet project. Wiping the results of her tests in the terminal, she reset the data to show perfect matches. Once everything was edited and hidden appropriately, Miranda set herself up for the finale.

Miranda sighed. "I'm sorry, Karin. There is... nothing. The test is a failure. I... didn't want to admit it until I was sure..." Miranda sat back, looking defeated.

Chakwas looked over at her, and then at the terminal. "Let me see." she said, quietly moving over to look over the data quickly.

Evatos smirked inwardly. It had been the correct move to stop hovering over that flopping 'specialist' and start working on Chakwas instead. The Alliance doctor was obviously the more useful tool. Evatos was only waiting for the reply on her reports from the Matriarchs to pull the trigger and give the offer designed for Miranda to Chakwas, instead.

"Everything... looks the same." Chakwas said, a bit of disbelief in her voice. "How... unexpected..."

"Yes..." Miranda replied. "I... I think I'll go back to my apartment, try to think of something new to push into, some new test to run."

"Alright, dear. Let me know if you need anything."

"I will, Chakwas. Thank you. Evatos."

Evatos nodded in acknowledgement as Miranda left the lab. Turning back to the terminal, she awaited Chakwas to continue this bizarre experiment again.

Athame's Embrace: Physical Therapy Ward

Jess struggled to walk forward on the treadmill. Her asari physical therapist, Dr. Loran, was smiling encouragingly at her through the glass wall. Jess gripped the bars on either side and forcefully took another step forward, grunting in frustration at the effort she had to put forth to do such simple tasks. It had been two days since she had regained consciousness. Two days since she had passed out from pure exertion hugging Liara. After regaining consciousness again, Jess had demanded a regimen for regaining physical mobility. Chakwas had hesitated, obviously looking for colleagues to get opinions from, so Jess had forced her hand by repetitively trying to stand, which only succeeded in making a mess of the room every few hours, yesterday.

Chakwas had been forced to assign a physical therapist to Jess, but added a nutritionist in as well. The salarian, Dr. Salk, had immediately taken the result of Chakwas's most recent scans and tissue samples and developed a calorie demand chart for Jess. Whereas the average human required two-thousand calories a day to operate, and added on to that if they were physically active on a regular basis, Jess was apparently in need of three-thousand as a base, due mostly to the nanites now swarming through her body. The little hitch hikers were apparently big eaters. Jess had asked for all the ups and downs of the nanites from Chakwas, but the answer had been far from what she had expected. It looked like the little bugs were able to over charge her bodily systems but, beyond theories, Chakwas was unsure what they could do, exactly. Jess had agreed without being asked to submit to any tests Chakwas thought necessary. She needed to know what exactly was going on.

Today was the first day of recovery. Jess wasn't looking to regain full mobility in any record amount of time - she knew better than that - but she wanted to be mobile enough to get out of the hospital. The place was so... sterile... not to mention it's removal from the crew of the Normandy, especially Liara. Grunting more heavily, Jess took a few more steps before the session finished. Dr. Loran headed around the wall to set up the next set of tests while Dr. Salk came in with a nutrient mix he had prepared for the exercises. Jess sighed. It was going to be a long day.

Nos Arium: Consumer District

Liara had awoken in another cold sweat this morning, clutching her stomach and screaming at the imagined pain of being shot. One of Jessica's war memories had terrorized her in her sleep, as they and other memories had in each of Liara's sleeping hours since the deep-meld. Aethyta had become more tense, breaking into the room in the middle of the night at the slightest outburst. This morning, the matriarch had seemingly had enough.

"Alright Liara. It's been two whole days since you last spoke with that girl of yours. You need to begin the process of letting her into your memories. Until you do, this connection is going to be overbalanced in her favor, and you'll keep giving me heart-attacks whenever you sleep." Aethyta said, a stern and unwavering look falling across her face.

Liara had only nodded meekly, and gotten ready for the day. How? How was that supposed to work? Jessica couldn't meld, only accept a meld... Liara walked down the street towards the cafe she had chosen to meet with Sam and Feron at, her eyes fluctuating from deep black pools to the normal blue irises. Her head pounded as she arrived at the door and entered the cafe.

"Liara!" A familiar british accent called to her. Looking about, as if waking from a daze, she pinpointed Sam and Feron at a circle table towards the middle of the floor.

"Is everything alright, Liara?" Feron asked. As usual, the drell was very perceptive to her emotions.

"I just... Headache, that is all. Thank you, Feron." Liara said, shooing him back to his seat as he got up to help her. She squinted a bit, trying to get her eyes under control, before looking at the two of them. "Whats the report, so far? It's been a rather relaxing week of no distress calls."

Feron smiled lightly, his hand falling on Sam's shoulder with a relaxed ease. "There have been massive improvements in efficiency, Liara. Miss Traynor and I have been able to hunt down leads much easier together, thanks indefinitely to your suggestions."

Sam seemed to blush slightly, but kept her gaze on Liara. "Yes, we've made inroads on the Matriarch Council, Turian Hierarchy, and many of the Salarian Dalatrass. There is... A disturbing trend, however, amongst all races, and most predominant in the human Alliance." Sam hesitated, waiting for Liara to acknowledge this. Liara nodded, and the analyst continued.

"It seems each race feels there is more to gain from separate consolidations of power, rather then to rebuild the galactic whole. The asari, with the most damaged reputation coming out of the war, look to be losing ground slowly, while the salarians seem to be maintaining what they had. The turians are making the first moves, but everyone seems to be hinging on humanity, as they gained the most prestige from the war. Hackett's most recent display of passive moderation suggests a return to the old. However... Things on the home front beg to differ."

"What is happening in Earth's political sphere?" Liara asked, finally distracted from her other thoughts enough to properly focus.

"There... seems to be a slight movement on the outside of the traditional parties. At the moment, it doesn't seem to have much power, but there has been a concerted effort to avoid our agents. All we know currently is that the new group is very much human-centric, like Terra Firma from after the First Contact War. The admiralty in the Alliance navy seem very opposed to them, but a growing undertone of public thought is in their favor. They could upset the delicate balance that is settling across the Galaxy before it can cement."

Liara sighed. As always, humanity was moving quickly, and obtusely, to the Galactic whole. "Right, I want you to focus attentions on the other races. Especially the Geth, Krogan, and Quarians. After their efforts in the war, I am expecting attempts to be admitted to the council. We will want to guarantee that they fall in line with tradition, rather than radicalism. I'll focus my personal resources on Earth."

Sam and Feron nodded in unison, and began immediately to draw up plans for infiltration. Liara leaned back on her seat, her headaches setting in once again. 'I need to talk to Aethyta...' Liara thought to herself, wincing visibly as another memory brushed her focus.

Athame's Embrace: Physical Therapy Ward
[January 5th, 2687]

Javik exited the elevator. Despite the likeness to his peoples buildings, he still felt a slight disdain for the architecture of this cycle. Cycle... Was it really over? No... Not based on what he had found on Earth... Javik felt his ire rise again. Shepard had betrayed them. He knew now why the Reapers weren't gone, weren't cowed to the heels of those still living.

His pace quickened as he entered the room the asari at the front desk had told him she would be in. Green biotic energy crackled about him as he tore into the room, pushing aside the salarian and asari standing in front of him. Looking through the glass wall, he saw Shepard. She was struggling to hold herself up, but her movements looked like a soldier pressing through injury.

He slammed his fist into the wall, and a cracked sprang to life. Plying biotic fields into the opening, he shoved the wall open, shattering the rest of it. Shepard gasped aloud, falling to her hands and knees and was thrown off the treadmill.

"Javik, what the hell was that?" Shepard shouted weakly, struggling to get up.

"You! You betrayed us all! You let them live! You denied my people their last vengeance! I should kill you for this. I should rip you apart. Look at you. Hardly able to stand. It would be a waste of my time to kill something so feeble!" Javik roared, picking Shepard up with a lift.

"What do you mean, Javik? The reapers have retreated! We won!" Shepard said, gasping slightly for breath.

"I found... memory shards on Earth. From my people. Our scientists were experimenting with a commingling so as to benefit from the reapers. They... discarded the idea... said it was improbable and uncertain. We wanted them dead. When the reapers weren't found in piles, I wondered as to what you had done. This answers that."

Javik was shaking now. A millennium of hatred and more had been piled into him. "Javik... Look at the memory. Look at what I chose to do. You will understand, as I did, and as Liara does..." Shepard said, now proffering a hand to him.

Javik looked at the human. Even helpless, she seemed in control of the moment. He felt her words. Felt their worth. "Fine. We will look, and we will see, Shepard."

Grasping her hand, Javik's sight disappeared, replaced by Shepard's emotions and memories. They sat in front of each other, sharing in the memory of the final moments on the crucible.

Nos Arium: Temporary Alliance Headquarters
[January 6th, 2687]

Hackett arrived at his office a bit earlier. Today, the Earth Systems Republics would officially declare a permanent council member. Hackett smiled slightly, the feeling at having out maneuvered the Humanists spreading through him. Despite his cliche hatred of politicians, he found a certain... militaristic quality in being able to crush an opponent without risking anything himself. Major Coats was the favored member, thanks to Hackett's plying and suggestions. There was little doubt that the second in command to Anderson would win councilship.

Sitting at his desk, Hackett turned to view the proceedings. Alliance News Network, ever since their agent, Diana Allers, had been on the Normandy, was the go to news source for Earth. Westerlund News, on the other hand was falling behind, based primarily on their humanist standpoint, which was not the popular opinion at the moment.

Nodding at a passing corporal, Hackett smiled. "This is going to be a good day for the Galaxy." He said quietly to himself, leaning back slightly as the votes were counted.

Major Coats laid back on his bed in his private compartment. Today was the day that all of the charades ended. Humanity would once again have a strong leader in their council spot, a fitting replacement for Udina. Coats smiled openly as the final votes trickled in. It was nearly unanimous, he was to be the new Council member for humanity.

An encrypted comm came in over his omni-tool. Answering, he struggled to push down his joy that the plan had moved forward appropriately. "Yes, sir?"

"Coats. Your position is guaranteed. We must move with phase two. Humanity needs to stand strong in the Galaxy. We cannot appear weak anymore."

"I understand, sir. No ground will be lost."

"Good. Resources are being moved into position to assume full control. Bide your time until then. Hadley, out."

Coats composed himself. He would have to go and meet with the other councilors soon. First however, a victory meeting with Hackett was in order. Hadley wouldn't mind.

Hackett pulled out a fifteen-year scotch, and two glasses. Coats sat in front of him, dressed to take office and assume his new duties. It was a good day for humanity, that much Hackett was sure of. Still... something felt off. Coats looked like a cat surveying prey, more than a grateful or anticipatory winner. Pouring the glasses, Hackett smiled and toasted, "To the future!"

Coats seemed to wince at the toast slightly, drinking with him. "Yes. A future where humanity stands tall among the stars."

"Yes, with the council. We owe them a great deal, Coats. It is an honor to pass the rights to you."

"Do we though, sir?"

"Do we what?" Hackett asked, slightly confused.

"Owe the council? What have they done for humanity, besides ignore us and our warnings?" Coats said, getting up to pace.

"We didn't listen ourselves, Coats. Shepard will say as much."

"Right... Except... Shepard ran away, as I recall..."

"Under orders, from your commanding officer himself." Hackett countered.

"Semantics. If she had wanted to fight, she would have stayed. Look at what she did to end the war! The reapers still exist! Wasn't the crucible supposed to destroy them?" Coats said, a fervor entering his voice.

"Shepard did more for the war effort than any single person, alive or dead, Coats. Don't you dare slander her name with these suggestions. The reapers have been neutralized. They aren't attacking, they aren't even making contact. She did her job."

"We. Will. Have. To. Disagree." Coats said, biting each word off in Hackett's face. Placing the glass firmly on the table, Coats exited the room.

"Son of a bitch..." Hackett muttered to himself. He had thought Coats to have been more moderate. Hell, after interviewing the man himself, that was how it had seemed. 'The kid is one hell of an actor...' Hackett thought to himself. Putting his own drink down, he collected some files and started for the hall. The other councilors needed to be briefed on the internal issues of Earth.

Nos Arium: Temporary Council Hall

Hackett entered the council hall and quickly scanned the room. Coats had still not arrived. 'Good. He's at least complacent.' Hackett mused. Heading towards the council seats, he saw Tevos and Sparatas in heated discussion. 'These two need to make up, now...' Hackett grimaced. This was going to be quite the feat.

Walking up to the two councilors, Hackett immediately caught on to the current discussion. "Well, Councilor Tevos, it isn't the galaxies fault that the asari decided so late that they still needed us... younger races."

"I've told you repetitively, Sparatas, that is not how we viewed the issue. We merely saw no benefit in joining arms when the foe was so far off. It was an obvious miscalculation, and we have paid the price. Do we now owe the Galaxy reparations to prove it still further?"

"That wasn't of my choosing but, then again, neither was deferring to the human in Galactic defense releases, which have traditionally been a Turian responsibility. That it did not turn out for you as you would have liked is of no concern to me. Besides, the issue isn't what is fair, it is how we trust. You have used the Turians for centuries as the strong arm of the council and yet, when we needed you most, as Palaven burned, where did help come from? The humans. The krogans. The asari? No. I do not feel sympathy that asari interests are waning, just as the asari were content to sit and watch the galaxy burn about them."

"That is enough." Hackett sounded sternly. "I have a much more pressing problem then the hurt egos of those who survived."

"Ah... Admiral Hackett. I had heard that Earth was sending us a new representative. One that would be possibly more receptive of our offers for a less... costly resolution to the asari and their... less than composed actions during the war." Tevos said warily.

"Those in the Alliance with power want the same thing. Unfortunately... A slip on my part has robbed us of that outcome, I'm afraid." Hackett admitted ruefully. A radical mindset, very much on the fringe in Terran politics, has gotten through our screening. The candidate being sent to Council is of their numbers."

"Major Coats? Primarch Victus was very pleased to hear of his candidacy and victory. Surely there has been a mistake, Admiral." Sparatas said.

"He is quite good at masking his true intent. The radicals are very much xenophobes, and want human supremacy. As far as I am aware, none are in the upper echelon of Alliance politics, as of yet. The only man I have any doubts on, Admiral Hadley, has been quiet in recent months due to the war. I very much doubt he has the power base to succeed at such subterfuge."

"Just how bad could this be? I doubt, after Udina, that humanities councilor could be too difficult to handle." Tevos suggested.

"There have been terrorist attacks in fringe colonies and other showings of force. They know they cannot deal with the Alliance military, so they run and hide when we arrive to clean up the mess. At the moment, I have the Navy spread to breaking keeping Earth's colonies safe from within. It has been tiring handling these internal machinations as well as tracking the reapers, but Earth's leaders wanted the issue hidden."

"More secrets. How can we ever be allies. First the asari nearly rip the Galaxy apart with their stubbornness, then the humans allow political decay to threaten reconstruction. Perhaps the council has run its course...?" Sparatas said, obviously annoyed.

"As I remember, a certain race left a certain device on Tuchanka that could have thrown the Krogan support out of the war entirely." Hackett noted. Sparatas took the hint, and his demeanor immediately shifted. "From now on, we must deal together. We cannot be of split mind at this time. The Galaxy needs unity."

"Aye... So what is the plan of action?" Tevos said, an impressed smirk on her face as she watched Hackett wheel through the political jabs.

Nos Arium: Consumer District
[January 7th, 2687]

Liara approached the table that Ashley and Joker were sitting at. Smiling, she winced as yet another of Jessica's memories briefly touched her consciousness. Despite having been living with Aethyta, Liara had not bumped into the Matriarch for the last few days. It was odd that her father would not stop by her own home, or any of her favorite haunts. Liara had been dropping in on less then happy spots trying to catch the gruff Matriarch out in the open. 'Ah well... She wouldn't leave me after all of this,' Liara thought to herself, 'At least... I hope not...'

Ashley waved. "Hey Liara, hows it been?"

"Just... catching up with my father." Liara said while attempting to banish the headaches.

"So... I heard that Shepard is up and moving again...?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah, and that Javik went and blew the place up." Joker added. "Crazy popsicle man finally had a cold snap." he added, chuckling.

"What?" Laira said, confusion obvious on her face.

"Oh... You hadn't heard. Yeah, Javik walked in all terminator-like and said something about how Shepard had promised him a different future. Then he shattered some glass and they settled on the floor to hold hands. It was all very romantic." Joker laughed a bit. "As usual, the commander told us to leave him be. She seems to like it when her crew points guns at her, or attacks her with biotic fields." Ashley fidgeted slightly, and Joker cried out in pain. "Hey. No kicking. Brittle bones, here."

"Then don't say stupid shit, Joker." Ashley said, kicking him again.

"So... I don't understand. Shepard's alright?" Liara asked, worry replacing the initial confusion.

"Yeah. Javik seemed really... quiet? after his kumbaya with Shepard." Ashley said. "He left the hospital peacefully and settled in his compartment to think. No one has heard from him in a day."

Tali and EDI joined the rest of them, and server dropped by the table. Ashley, Joker, and Tali ordered drinks, while Liara merely shook her head no and sat quietly, thinking on what she had learned. 'Every time I focus on one thing, everything else explodes...' she moaned inwardly.

"Hello. Liara. Hey, there, we're all over here, in real time." Ashley quipped, shaking her slightly.

Liara rubbed her forward slightly, "I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"Well... Tali was just informing us of news from Rannoch. It seems that the Geth and Quarians are leaping forward in technology exceedingly quickly. The individuality Legion gave to the Geth has allowed them to conquer many sets of advances in what would seem to be no time at all." EDI said, catching Liara up.

"Yes. The Geth have most helpful to our people. At this rate, they will have updated our immune systems within the next few months to be strong enough to live on Rannoch. From there, we will only put the suits on for parts of the day to allow them to further manipulate the inoculations until we no longer need them even when we leave the home world." Tali seemed to beam with excitement.

"And how has our newest Spectre been doing?" Joker added, still reaching down to rub his shins.

"It's alright... With the Galaxy still picking up from the Reaper War, I haven't been given any orders, although I pin that more on Hackett permanently locking my feet to Thessia until Shepard is well again. I haven't had to deal with the new councilor, yet, but I hear he's a good guy. Won't mess with the balance Hackett has tried to build, at least."

Liara piqued slightly at this. "Who, exactly, was the new human councilor, again?"

"Oh... uhm... I think it was that Major Coats guy, from Earth? The one Anderson was with when he picked Shepard, Garrus, and you up off that roof top?"

Liara nodded, making a note for later. "Right. He seemed nice enough."

EDI shook her head. "No. The last time I was in his presence, I detected high levels of Catecholamines. These chemicals are most often released during points of fight-or-flight, or when a person is anxious due to a situation they have been placed in. They are often excreted in abundance when someone is lying. I very much doubt Councilor Coats was very honest with any of us."

"Pffft. We met him during the war, and there has been no end to the difficulties of the Galaxy since that ended," Joker said. "The guy is probably just stressed."

"No, Jeff. I really must insist that his body language did not read towards outward motions of non-personal stress. Coats very much seemed self-absorbed in his stress, as if the slightest misstep would alert his enemies to his presence."

"Alright then," Ashley said with a weird look on her face, "Remind me to not let EDI scan me when we talk, or we might think I'm a secret villain as well."

"Please, Ashley. Based on our previous correspondence and your body language, I would obvious note that you were merely anxious to see old friends, or worrying that you might misstep your societal bounds. Really, you must not assume things so hastily after all. No, based on accurate and detailed analysis, I feel Councilor Coats is not to be trusted. Do what you will with my critique. It is merely an opinion."

Liara picked up on EDI's tone of voice, as well as word usage, immediately. There was something... organic in quality to her behavior. Just as she was about to ask about it, Joker spoke up. "Since when have you valued opinion over fact, EDI?"

"Since Shepard allowed me to, Jeff."

Ashley moaned slightly at the cheesy line, but now Tali was looking at EDI oddly as well. "The Geth on Rannoch have been showing oddly... organic traits in their words, behaviors, and decisions. Have you noticed anything different about EDI, Joker?"

"I'm sitting right here," EDI said in protest, "If you have a question regarding my functionality, you can just ask me."

"That about sums it up, Tali." Joker said, leaning away from EDI's chair.

"I do not know what you are referring towards, Jeff. I have not changed at all since Shepard helped me gain my individuality."

"Yeah. About that. How did she, exactly? Was it, like, upgrading your core processors, or what?" Joker said, laughing slightly.

EDI seemed to flounder slightly. If she could, Liara thought she would be blushing at this point. "I don't know, Jeff. There are memories from before the individuality, and then there are memories after. How does not seem to be in either subset. All I know is that Shepard is the cause."

"The Geth seem to say something similar," Tali noted. "Although, after watching what Shepard allowed Legion to do on Rannoch, I'm not as shocked at their admittance of this. Shepard did, quite literally, allow them to achieve it."

"Look, we're not here to talk about robot feelings," Ashley said. "We're here to drink and catch up on each others lives. Whats been going on with you and EDI, Joker? Brittle bones not holding you back from the robot hanky panky?"

The conversation devolved to quips and less-than-witty one liners from Joker, and Liara began again to dwell on her own thoughts.

Nos Arium: Aethyta's Apartment

Aethyta slumped onto a stool at the kitchen bar. She downed a glass of Ryncol and poured another. "Uhhhh..." she moaned, tired from the last few days.

Aethyta knew she would have to face the Matriarch Council with her decision to reveal and practice the deep-meld on a non-asari, something deemed excessively dangerous after the last known attempt some seven hundred fifty years prior. The last known case had been between a turian and asari couple that had wanted to know each other more thoroughly, but didn't know how to go about it. The Matriarchs' deemed the attempt acceptable, as long as both agreed to and understood the risks involved. What was unknown to them was that the turian that had been brought to them was a decoy, so that the name of the true candidate could remain hidden; for political reasons, of course. The asari maiden attempted the process on the turian scapegoat, and his mind had broken. Not concerned, she took her new found knowledge to her mate, and together they attempted the process in secret. The next day, the Turian Hierarchy was thrown into chaos as the Primarch at the time was found dead in his chambers, his asari lover dead with him from a weapon discharge through her mouth. Suicide, due to killing her beloved. The clean up and hiding of the truth had been a very contentious moment for the Matriarchs', who scapegoated Batarian terrorists, due in no small part to a convenient ship drop from a Batarian transport the night before.

Thus began a series of engagements with Turian and Batarian forces in 1862 GS, which culminated in Turian vessels patrolling trade and asserting a more dominant role as the military wing of the council, a role previously shared between member races. And now, Aethyta had unleashed it yet again on another high ranking member of another species. For the past few days, she had been involving herself in the council, as a result. She needed to reassert her power, call the younger Matriarchs that had once followed her unerringly to, again, come into her fold. Aethyta had been doing what she hated most of all; Politicking.

"Goddess be damned, this stuff needs to be stronger..." she muttered, pouring a seventh glass and gulping it down. Footsteps echoed behind her, and she lazily spun around, erecting a barrier of purple energy around her. "Who is it?" she slurred.

Liara brushed through the poorly held barriers and up to her father. She had an angry look on her face as she stood in front of Aethyta. "It's me, Father. Your daughter? Or did you forget I was here?"

Aethyta smiled slightly, and stumbled to her feet. "Oh! Liara! Great ta see ya!" Leaning on Liara, Aethyta fell forward. "Why donchya... help daddy ta bed, ey?"

Liara sighed. "Alright, father. Lets go."

Aethyta giggled, and swayed with each step Liara helped her take to her room. As she plummeted to her bed, her eyes shut. She never connected with the surface.

Aethyta growled as the shades on her window were drawn. "Shut that damned thing, you stupid drone." She muttered.

"Sorry father, I'm not really feeling like it." Liara said.

Rolling over to look at the door, Aethyta saw Liara with a cross look on her face. "Little Wing..." she began.

"Don't you Little Wing me. What was that last night? And where have you been? I..." Liara winced slightly and shook her head, "I've been looking for you everywhere."

"Oh... this and that. Why, scared I was going to leave you?" Aethyta smiled slightly.

"Hardly," Liara scoffed, "But I've been needing to talk to you. I... The deep-meld has left me..."

Grimacing, Aethyta sat up on the edge of her bed to. "Let me guess... headaches, loss of self, dreams that aren't dreams?"

"I... yes. I can't focus in public, sleep is torturous, and there are moments when I don't know who I am..." Liara said, holding herself across the waist.

"Well... That is to be expected." Aethyta offered a hand to Liara, and led her to the living room.

"What exactly do you mean, expected? You knew this would happen?"

"There is a bit I left out last time. You had so much on your plate... I couldn't let nerves turn you away from this." Aethyta said, sitting Liara down.

"What you said seemed pretty complete to me."

"Well... yes and no. The asari banned deep-melding for a few more reasons than self-serving needs, although only because it would hurt our image if other races knew. When two asari enter into the process... They both draw at each other, pulling the others consciousness into their own stream of thoughts. In effect, each asari swaps bodies for the duration. It works because each person involved can initiate a meld and return to themselves afterwards. In other species... You need a particularly strong sense of self to make it work."

"So, are you telling me that Shepard might be permanently damaged from this?" Liara said, shocked at the hidden risk she had taken.

"No... I think not, anyway. It is part of why I had you do you half of the process first. What you are experiencing is a loss of self. Personality is derived from our own set of morals, codes, beliefs. If you could retain someone so completely that their personality is better understood than your own... well, the mind gets confused as to who it is. And despite our best intentions and hopes, we always hide things from ourselves to make life easier. When the deep-meld occurs, we are forced to evaluate our own lives just as much as our opposites. It balances out, and you become overtly close because you share in each other fully, to the point where minor brushes of her memories don't matter. In a sense, you become one person. At the moment, since only Shepard was fully looked over, she is overly dominant in you mind. It makes her a more realized individual, but ruins your sense of self as a result."

"So... you think I've made her self-aware enough through this to be able to find her way back?" Laira asked, trying to follow the thought.

"Yes. The reverse... It will be harder, Liara. You have to build the channel from yourself to her, for her. Then you must draw on her and let her into your mind. Once she is there, she will have full access to it. There will be nothing hidden."

"But... that sounds normal. Simple, even. What could make it so hard?"

"A normal meld is frontal. You attach to her mind and share in whatever she lets you, while surface thoughts from your side leak over. This type of meld goes deeper. You must penetrate your own defenses to let her in, which is fundamentally difficult. She may be very receptive, but you have to be willing on a subconscious level. Especially considering you must build the channel. In an asari-asari relationship, it is not so hard; both parties can create their own channels. This becomes harder purely based on the fact that you are in control of the conduit, and therefore you must resist closing it off regardless of what she finds."

"Every time we discuss things, father, I feel more worried than when we started..." Liara sighed, "When should we attempt it?"

"That's up to Shepard. Will she be willing, and strong enough, any time soon? I suggest talking to her about it, Liara. I will be here, don't you worry. Just let em know when you plan to attempt, and I will come and help you." Liara sighed again, and left the room. Aethyta's face took a grim expression. "It has to be ok, Little Wing." she whispered to herself.

Athame's Embrace: Physical Therapy Ward
[January 8th, 2687]

Liara stood by Dr. Loran as Jessica took a normal walking pace on the treadmill. The asari physical therapist had been gushing at Liara over how fast Jessica had been recovering. Jessica was smiling broadly at the one way mirror, unaware that Liara was on the other side. There was little damage left from the attack Javik had orchestrated. It seemed almost impossible that the Prothean had even been in the room. The only evidence was the one-way mirror - a new addition that was also braced and sturdier than the last window. Liara smiled slightly. She rarely got to surprise Jessica. How would she react?

The thought brought the memory of Jessica's birthday on the SSV Einstein. Liara leaned back on the counter, gripping the edge with one hand and her forehead with the other. Mother was leading her down the hallway. Another two-person birthday. Boring. But... This isn't the right way... Where are all the lights? And then, a sea of noise. So many of the crew. Pilots, marines, the Captain himself. Her breath catches. She looks at mother. Tears well up. She can't speak. Words won't come out.

Liara opens her eyes. Jessica had finished on the treadmill and was moving towards the door. "Ms. Shepard, I really must insist you sit in the wheelchair when not on the equipment." Dr. Loran says as she makes her way towards the door.

"Yeah yeah, Loran. Wheres Salk? Need to make sure I don't break his diet. Last time wasn't much fun." Jessica threw back, settling into the wheelchair for Dr. Loran as she huffed.

"Just because your recovery is moving along well ahead of schedule does not mean we need to take risks, Commander Shepard." the asari complained. "Dr. Salk will be down shortly. He was called up to discuss with Dr. Chakwas about your diet."

"God dammit. At this rate, I'm going to waste away. See if you can't speed his return, Loran. I'm starved."

"Always so pushy, aren't we Jess?" Liara quipped, unable to stop herself from giggling. She had blown her own cover, but Liara blamed Jessica at least partially for being so obnoxious.

"Liara? I fucking hate that mirror. If I had known you were here... well... I definitely wouldn't of sat in this stupid chair." Jessica said, starting to get up.

"No no no. Doctors orders," Liara said, pushing Jessica back down and nodding at Dr. Loran. "I can take her to her room, if you want some peace, doctor?"

Dr. Loran seemed against the idea. Jessica looked at her slyly, as if ready to be even more obnoxious, and the doctor rethought her position. "I think that sounds wonderful. We all might benefit from a... respite..."

Jessica began to laugh loudly. "I like you a lot, Loran." Looking at Liara a bit, she added, "But don't tell this one, eh?"

Dr. Loran smiled a bit frostily, and nodded at Liara. "She's room..."

"I know, doctor, but thank you. Please, enjoy your time off." Liara said, spinning Jessica's chair around.

"Spoil sport." Jessica pouted, as Liara pushed her to her room.

"Right, she was obviously happy with that arrangement. You know, she is actually trying to help you, right?"

"Yes, mom." Jess strained.

Liara sighed. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Hopefully, lots of things?" Jessica hinted, looking up and winking.

"Nope. Not until you are one hundred percent better."

"Ok, ok. So, what brings you down? Decide to stretch those pretty little wings?" Jessica asked, reaching up and holding Liara's left forearm.

"Well... Yes, actually. I've been a bit cooped up, worried about you," Liara said, giving Jessica's hand a squeeze as she pulled her arm out of the grip, "And also... a bit of business."

"Ooooh. Lemme guess! Big Shadow Broker has a bone to pick with an information broker?" Jessica said, laughing at her own joke.

"No... Little Liara has some big people things to talk to a certain human commander, though, if she's willing to listen."

"What is it?" Jessica said, her attention immediately snapping to.

"Lets wait till we get to the room." Liara suggested.

"Fine..."

Athame's Embrace: Lab

Chakwas and Salk settled their most recent discussion about Shepard's health. Evatos was, as usual, taken back by how much seeming no-name scientists were contributing to the understanding of Shepard's recovery. Salk had, through use of Chakwas's scans, found a caloric intake model for Shepard's body with it's new found hitch hikers. In little under a day, Salk had even devised a regiment that he felt would best aid the nanites in staying at the peak of efficiency. Of course, all his findings were experimental, but the implications were apparently massive, according to Chakwas. Her own tests on activating the nanites outside of the body had been meeting similar results to the previous attempt; abject failure after seeming success.

Chakwas had been having Evatos activate electrical signals that coursed through tissue sample after tissue sample, each housing a couple thousand of the nanites. Where she was taking them from Shepard was unknown or,a t least, Shepard's body seemed able to replace the tissue faster than could be fully noticed. Which, of course, played into separate observations Chakwas was taking on the rejuvenation properties of the robotic parasites. Evatos gagged slightly as the most recent test flashed red and the chamber self-ignited to avoid any contamination leaks. The smell of burning flesh had been a constant, but the asari agent still couldn't get over the initial shock of the pungent aroma. Chakwas sighed and cleaned the station. This time, however, she did not replace the sample.

"Alright. I think it is time to approach this slightly differently. Dr Salk, would you be so kind?" Chakwas said, beckoning the salarian over.

"Of course. Yes yes. I see what you are trying. Activation through electrical signal. Rudimentary Good first step. However, have found that nanites actually consume very small amounts of specific compounds, most notably trace amounts of Element Zero. Very hard to get the body to adapt to the inclusion of the element."

"Hrmmm... Yes... I could see that being a problem. Human tissue does not normally have long exposure times with the mineral, and reacts awkwardly to prolonged presence. How exactly have you worked around that?"

"I... haven't. Her first set of food, I merely added trace amounts. Low enough to only make her sick, should it fail. Her body... responded normally. As if it was correct and usual to do."

"You did what?" Chakwas shouted. "We did not authorize undocumented testing, Dr. Salk. She could have been -"

"Bed ridden. He just noted that it wasn't a high enough dosage to kill, Dr. Chakwas." a voice from the hall chimed in.

"Dr. Loran. I see Shepard's tests are done. May I please have your report?" Chakwas muttered, still obviously angry with what she just heard.

"Certainly. Dr. Salk, our patient is clamoring for your attentions to her stomach. Would you be so kind?"

"Of course. I lost track of time. Very stimulating conversation, Dr. Chakwas. Sorry to leave in the middle of it. Please, feel free to include me in further looks at nanite behavior. More than willing to help."

"We aren't done with this discussion, Salk." Chakwas noted, taking the reports from Dr. Loran.

Evatos leaned back slightly. 'EEZO, huh? That's useful...' she thought.

Miranda vaguely acknowledged Shepard's recovery coaches as they left the lab. She had hoped to stay in her private quarters and work on this DNA shift alone, but the lab had needed equipment. She was so close to figuring out what exactly had changed, she could feel it. Pressing the start key, her tests slowly hummed to life. 'What did we change, Shepard...' she thought to herself.

Evatos had apparently dropped hovering over her. In the past week, the asari had shown only passing interest in Miranda's work, seemingly turned away by the lack of immediate results. Instead, the asari had been attached to Chakwas almost constantly, to the point that the military doctor could not even right a note down without it being overlooked. Miranda smiled a bit at the thought; the asari must feel that Chakwas's initial successes warranted more focus.

It had taken Miranda a bit of recovery to piece what must have happened in the hangar. After being knocked unconscious, the "commando" must have stepped down and allowed Evatos to set up a scene in which Miranda would feel sympathy and common ground with the asari's purpose. Well, the Matriarchs could take a flying leap. Now, with a few failures under her belt, it seemed the asari were less interested in her talents. 'That's fine. Chakwas deserves some time in the lime light. I'll quietly continue my own projects. Chakwas has short-term, but I... I have long-term.' Miranda smiled again, staring at the data as it compiled.

Collecting what she had gathered, Miranda nodded at Chakwas, who nodded back absently, and left the facility. She had more work of her own to do.

Athame's Embrace: Recovery Rooms

Jess dove into her food, ravenous from the day's work. She had been increasingly gaining strength over the past four days, a remarkable feat that was, as far as she knew, unprecedented. 'Whatever that drone did... Well, I can't say it's awful' Jess thought to herself. Liara was staring out the window at Nos Arium as vehicles flew past. She looked so pretty, silhouetted by the pale, yellow-white sun. Her crests crackled a little more then normal and Jess saw Liara's hand shoot up to her forehead. 'I wonder what's up with that...' Jess thought to herself, shoveling whatever it was that Salk had organized for her as food.

Finishing her meal, so quickly wiped her mouth with a napkin and tried to hobble up behind Liara. The asari maiden seemed preoccupied to the point of negligence, so Jess felt a bit of a fright was in order. Getting up alongside her back, Jess suddenly grabbed Liara around the waist in an attempt to shock her focus back around. Liara tensed, and a biotic field enveloped them both. Jess felt odd, as her blood began at once to almost lift towards the field itself. "Liara? It is just me, Liara. It's Jess."

Liara shook her head, and turned around. Her eyes looked to be partially blanked, as if attempting a meld. She shook her head and once more passed her hand to her forehead. "I'm... sorry, Jess. I didn't mean to scare you."

"That's... What was it you wanted to talk about, exactly?" Jess asked, sitting back on the bed, a bit rattled at what had just happened. She rubbed her forearms, trying to get the prickling sensation in her veins to go away.

"I... The meld that I did to you... When you were unconscious..." Liara began.

"What is it? Did I do something wrong? What can I do to help?" Jess asked, pushing past Liara's attempts to talk.

"Listen. The meld... It was a more permanent form of the common melds used by asari today. An old custom. Well... It was discontinued due to issues of use with other races. Only, Aethyta suggested it could help get you back to yourself, so I did it, and..." Liara was crying now.

"Hey... Hey, it's alright Blue Bird. I don't mind. I'm really happy you helped me out." Jess said, wrapping her arms around the shaking asari's shoulders.

"That... thank you, Shepard. But... I need you to look through my mind now. Otherwise, I'm afraid I'm going to lose myself." Liara said, leaning into Jess's embrace.

"Now? As in, right now?" Jess said, confused a bit. "I mean, yeah, sure, just tell me what I need to do, and I'll do it."

Liara gasped a bit, a laugh lacing her tears. "Always so ready to dive into the unknown, aren't we?" Jess shrugged, and Liara continued, "I'm not really sure how to do it... I wanted to ask if you felt you were up to the attempt before I actually brought her with me, but... Well, father said she could help me draw you into my memories and complete the process."

"Ok. Well. When do we do it then? I'm ready when you are." Jess said, unsure of what she was agreeing to.

"I'll let Aethyta know, and drag her here tomorrow to explain how this works exactly to the both of us. Deal?"

"Deal." Jess affirmed, kissing the asari on the forehead before nuzzling her crest. 'Whatever it takes, Liara. Anything.'