Salvation: Episode I - The Taking of the Carmenta Illustria

Disclaimer: This fan-fiction is part of an episodic series taking place after Salvation: A Half-Life/Mass Effect Universe Fan Fiction, which will lead directly to its sequel, Salvation II: Project Prometheus. These episodes and sequel take place OUTSIDE of the Mass Effect 3 continuity. Characters property of their respective companies, Half-Life created by Valve and Mass Effect created by Bioware.

Chapter 46: Coda

An asari sat behind a reception desk at the top of a moderate flight of silvery stairs. Her work space was a little cramped, and a sign on the wall behind her desk spelled out: ADMINISTRATION in brightly lit letters. A large, locked, metal entryway more closely resembling a hatch on a battleship, rather than a door, was nestled into the wall, directly opposite of her desk, within the snug corridor. She had a stack of datapads on her desk, and lights flashed from a terminal, indicating incoming calls. But she was too enthralled by the breaking news events, unfolding on the large, holographic screen behind her, to notice.

“Reports are flooding in from the Citadel now, as we try to get a news crew on sight, that the missing luxury liner, The Carmenta Illustria, was indeed hijacked by a group of unidentified terrorists.” A human, male anchorman reported, as he sat at a large, circular desk, with the words: WESTERLUND NEWS across it, in glowing orange lettering. A red bar was painted across the bottom of the screen, exhibiting his name: Trevor Callaghan.  Directly below that, a rapidly moving news ticker scrolled through the headlines reading: TERROR ACROSS THE STARS - LUXURY LINER HIJACKED!

“Reports are sketchy at the moment, but we ARE hearing that the ship and all its passengers have been recovered safely.” The young news anchor continued to report. “We are getting reports that the Alliance’s own, Commander Shepard, may have had a hand its rescue. We’re going to go live now, to Westerlund Field Reporter, Khalisah Al-Jilani, who is apparently live on the scene.” As Callaghan waited for the screen to cut away, a voice muttered something in ear. He quickly pressed his fingertips to the earpiece in the canal.

“What’s that…?” He subtly whispered. “McClane?! You gotta be kidding me!” His face became etched with belittling disbelief, as the voice in his ear chattered away. “Alright, alright…”

“Ahem, my apologies.” The stately anchor addressed again, with a clearing of his throat. “It is actually Westerlund’s own, Cameron McClane, who is live on the scene. We take you now to a Westerlund News Exclusive - Cameron McClane, live on the Citadel with Commander Shepard.”

The screen cut away, and the anchor’s visage was quickly replaced with that of a slender, blonde-haired woman. She was donned in sky-blue dress, which was begrimed, tattered, and in shambles. Her once lustrous blonde-hair was frazzled, and unkempt, and a shining knot protruded from her forehead, whilst a swollen welt throbbed on her cheek.

“Thank you, Trevor!” She bestowed into the camera - speaking into her omni-tool, with a smile beaming from ear to ear, as if her injuries were non-existent. “I’m standing here, in the middle of Citadel Security Precinct 124, and as you can see from my mauled appearance, I have been through quite a horrifying ordeal. At approximately 9 P.M. last night, Lycuna Standard Time, the Carmenta Illustria was, in fact, seized by its own Security Force. Their intentions were to plunder the vessel, bereave the passengers of all their valuables, and traffic any survivors into slavery.”

The captivated asari viewer dragged herself to the edge of her seat - her eyes glued to the screen, and her ears deaf to everything, but Cameron’s voice. She didn’t even hear the slow footsteps coming up the stairs.

“I was but one of thousands, who were subjected to this voyage of terror.” McClane continued, as she began a slow stroll to her right, while the camera tracked her movements. “A nightmare we would still be living had it not been for the courage a few brave souls; two of which I have the most esteemed honor to be standing with right now...”

As she stepped over, two human figures came into view behind her. Both were beset upon by wounds and contusions that would’ve crippled lesser men. Their faces were swollen, their eyes were bloodshot, their once pristine white shirts were tattered, and soaked with stains of sweat and blood, but they both stood there and stood tall.

“The Savior of the Citadel, Commander John Shepard, and as unbelievable as this may be for humankind to fathom, the One Free Man himself; Dr. Gordon Freeman.” Cameron introduced, as she stood between the two, with the screen perfectly framing both men.

“Rineya--” A familiar voice suddenly and unexpectedly called the asari’s name, causing her to jump startled. “Give me a hand with some of this, would you?”

“Dr. T’Soni!” The asari at the desk exclaimed, with surprise, as she immediately switched off her HV, shot to her feet, and rushed around the desk to render aid.

The asari that had come up the stairs was donned in a sporty blue and white leather and nylon ensemble. She had somehow managed to lug a towering column of several large, but thin boxes up the stairs, on her own. Which was quite the feat considering that the stack was tall enough that it completely obscured her face.

“You’re back sooner than expected, ma’am…” Rineya divulged, as she rushed in and took a steady hold of the unstable box tower. “You can let go, I’ve got it.”

Taking her at her word, Dr. Liara T’soni exhaled a winded sigh, as she released her grip on the packages, leaving Rineya with the full burden.

“Oof!” She involuntarily grunted under her breath, as their collective weight was much more cumbersome than she’d anticipated. Her knees bent a little, and shook as she fought their insistence to buckle, whilst trying to keep the boxes steady at the same time. How had her employer just been carrying these, she wondered. She made it look easy.

“Ah…” The returning asari doctor breathed a homesick sigh, as she looked around and wiped her brow with her hand. “Yes, I wish I could’ve stayed longer, but unfortunately I have business ventures to attend to here. Still - it’s good to be back.”

“Uh-huh… Umph!” Rineya acknowledged, as she trembled in place. “Where… Where would you like me to put these, ma’am?”

“Oh!” Liara blithely exclaimed, as she turned to the locked hatchway leading to her office. “Just put them in here somewhere.” She instructed, as she materialized her omni-tool and swiped it across the locked, red panel; turning it green. The large, rounded hatch clicked and spun around, like the dial on a safe, before immediately flying open, with a swish.

Liara floated into her sizeable, dimly lit office, with something of a whimsical air about her. What little light there was in her room was borrowed from the bustling stock tickers of the Nos Astra Stock Exchange right outside her broad window, on the floor below. The twinkling night sky had cast its shadowy veil over this side of Illium. And Nos Astara’s various, glowing structures, towers, and pylons reached far up into the heavens, against a cascading horizon of dueling autumn and lavender watercolors, as the sun retreated into its nightly repose.

“Lights!” Liara called out, upon entering, coaxing the room to suddenly flare up with an artificial, white, luminance. Dr. T’Soni’s office was rather lavish, and contemporarily adorned. A few stylish lounging couches were pressed up flush against the wall, adjacent to the entryway, and opposite of her sizeable desk. A few decorative furnishings were also scattered about, here and there, such as a pair of tall, standing lamps, and a few exotic houseplants.

Rineya lumbered in behind her employer; not quite so graceful, as she lugged the stack of boxes in.

“You can just drop those in a corner somewhere, Rineya” Liara assured, as she gave a dismissive wave with her hand. “Anywhere would be fine.

”Y-yes, ma’am… Umph…” She creaked and groaned, whilst heaving the cumbersome tower of boxes to the nearest corner, where they’d be out of the way. As much as she would’ve like to just drop the boxes right then and there - Rineya had no idea of their contents or their value, so she took special, painful, care to ease them down as gently as possible. When she felt them reach the ground, she sighed with relief, as she pulled her fingers out from underneath - leaving them resting neatly on the floor.

“Whew…” Rineya exhaled, as she pressed her palms to her back, and arched her spine, in a stretch. “Pardon my asking ma’am, but what do you have in there? Rocks?”

“Yes!” Liara spun and declared with a suppressed burst of eagerness. “Xenian rock samples to be precise! Oh, goddess Rineya, Xen was amazing!” She proclaimed, in a voice that sighed with elation, as she began to reminisce in a daydream. “It’s got an ecology like none I’ve ever seen before! The flora, the fauna, the geology! It was all so fascinating…!”

“Oh, that’s terrific ma’am.” Rineya admitted, with a contented nod. “I can’t wait to hear all about it. But there’s something on the news I think you--”

“Oh, and the vortigaunts were very hospitable.” Liara jumped in again, not waiting for her assistant to finish her sentence, as she walked around her desk, and had a seat. “I’ve studied them, somewhat, from records I’ve found in human history codices. But their depiction isn’t all that accurate.” She shrugged and shook her head, as she took up a datapad that was on her desk, and pretended to skim through it. “Humans seem to portray them as a simple, primitive race. But, nothing could be further from the truth - they’re exceedingly intelligent. They’re just accustom to a more simplistic lifestyle, is all. For example, even though they’re already fluent in human english; in my short stay, they actually picked up on my Thesserit a lot faster than I could pick up on their vortigese!” She eagerly continued to explain - disregarding the datapad even though she held onto it.

Rineya looked on, somewhat surprised  at the level of interest her employer had taken. “I see…”

“I also found them to be powerful biotics, and astute telepaths.” The accomplished archaeologist continued to explain. “They may even exceed asari capabilities, in that sense. But their abilities evolved much differently than ours did.” She continued, speaking with the timbre and guise of a lecturing professor. “Rather than manipulate mass effect fields to generate barriers, or pulses, or to propel objects - they seem to concentrate their energy into potent bolts.” She elaborated, as she pushed her hands out in-front, as if trying to demonstrate. “They also seem capable of triggering ionized reactions from the element zero in their eezo-rich nervous systems, which allow them to teleport across short distances. Teleportation!” She cried out, in an overexcited outburst. “Isn’t that incredible?!”

“Yes. Astounding ma’am.” Rineya concurred, though not quite matching her employers level of enthusiasm. “But listen. I really think you’d want--”

“I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by their evolutionary traits.” Liara reclined back in her seat, and shrugged. “Did you know that Xen is actually about ten times richer in crude element zero, than Thessia? Relatively speaking, of course... After all, Xen’s primary planetary mass is tiny. Really, it’s no bigger than our second moon.”

“Really...?” Her assistant asked - her eyes opening wide with genuine surprise “That small, ma’am? That’s astonishing…” She claimed. “But, I think you really ought to turn on the new--”

“Yes, it’s miniscule!” Liara’s fervent rant continued once more, as she shot forward in her seat again, with her elbows planted on her desk. “But see, here’s the fascinating thing about Xen!” She began to demonstrate, with her hands up, as if she were holding their world within them. “The dwarf planet is so rich and abounding with natural eezo, that it actually generates these natural mass effect field pockets all around its main planetary mass. These pockets maintain a belt of massive asteroids, as big as continents, in constant orbit, WITHIN its own atmosphere!” She exclaimed, as she used the movements of her azure hands and fingers to try and draw the picture. “And they’re brimming with life. Each one, a unique society and ecosystem unto itself! Imagine Thessia being the size of Glarius, our second moon - but then having each of our twelve continents hovering right above it. That’s Xen!”

“And don’t even get me started on the animal, and plant life!” She sighed, with overjoyed overexertion, as she melted back into her seat, once more.  But she quickly perked back up again. “Oh, which reminds me, Rineya--” She shifted gears into a bit of a grim, foreboding tone, as she looked and pointed at her assistance. “I’m having a rather large, crated package delivered here later. Whatever you do, don’t open it if I’m not around…” She sternly warned. “It’s a Xen Tree, and they’re very dangerous. Nearly got skewered by one, when my curiosity got the better of me.”

“A Xen Tree…?”

“A type of large, carnivorous plants on Xen. Very aggressive…”

“I see…” Rineya replied, with a furrowed brow, pondering momentarily about what it might look like, before quickly shaking her head and dismissing the thought. “Anyway, ma’am. You really should tune into the news.” She insisted, as she approached Liara, walking around her desk, while summoning her omni-tool. “There’s a report on I really think you’ll want to see! I hope we haven’t missed it…” She said, as she suddenly turned Liara’s massive window, into a static-filled flurry of snow, with her omni-tool. The static didn’t linger, however, as it was quickly replaced by the visage of a group of stately dressed asari playing an extravagant, orchestral piece on a stage. Suddenly, it changed to two teams of turians, mounted onto some sort of hovering platforms, as they attempted to guide a holographic sphere, with rapid-fire beams from their omni-tools, into the opposition's goal. Again and again the screen flashed and flickered, with media from around the galaxy, as Rineya attempted to seek out the appropriate human station.

Liara sighed, and rolled her eyes, as she rested her temple on her fist, and leaned against her arm rest. “Honestly Rineya, the news is the last thing I want to see right now.” Liara affirmed. “I had a long flight back, and I’m feeling a little shuttle-lagged… The only thing I wanna do is curl up with a good sedimentary classification guide, and catalog my rocks.”

“But it’s about your friend, Commander Shepard, ma’am.” Her helpful assistant assured, as she continued to skim through the stations.

“Oh…” Liara replied, showing a spark of enthusiasm, despite her efforts to conceal it.  “Well, Shepard has been in the news all week. He did stop the Reapers, after all.”

“This actually had nothing to do with the Reapers, ma’am.” Rineya explained, as she flipped to a channel with 3 battered figures; the bruised, blonde reporter, a wounded physicist, and a bloodied Commander. “Ah, here it is. Have a look.”

McClane had stepped to one side, with her omni-tool held up to Commander Shepard, whilst nestled closely to the fidgety Freeman.

“A handful of Blood Pack mercenaries boarded, with a moderately sized squadron of LOKI class mechs.” John Shepard proceeded to naturally dictate, for the screen, with his arms locked behind his back. “Their numbers were bolstered by the ship’s own security outfit, which had gone rogue. After seizing full control of the bridge, they subdued the passengers and herded them into the Promenade Deck. Tragically, for wanting nothing else but to keep his crew and passengers safe, Captain Arthur Ryback was executed at the hands of the offenders.”  

Liara looked on at the surreal broadcast, with a mixture of surprise, disbelief, and admiration reflected in her eyes. She could not believe that just one week after contesting against, and defeating, the most omnipotent force of destruction and annihilation the universe has possibly ever known - here he was again. She noted the LIVE stamp superimposed to the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, almost as if wanting to prove to herself that this was not happening now, but was rather a pre-recorded feed of one of his previous goodwill missions. But no, this WAS happening. The sides of Liara’s lips curled into a pleased and amazed smile.

“Rineya, would you run and get me an iced latté, please?” She asked, now completely enthralled in the broadcast, as she sat forward in her seat, and used her opened palms to cradle her chin. “Thank you.”

“Of course, ma’am.” The obedient assistant acknowledged, turning and making for the door, as the broadcast continued.

“With communications down, and the defection of the ship’s only line of defense, my - ahem - fiancée and I--” He smirked with a subdued giddiness - pausing only for a moment to clear his throat. But that moment took the ground out from under Liara’s feet, as a gasp escaped her lips when her mouth fell agape. “--We decided to try and mount a covert assault. An operation which was severely complicated by the presence of a lost, young boy we’d rescued from one of the decks. Even so, he proved himself to be a courageous, stout-hearted little trooper. After moderate resistance, we managed to make contact with the Alliance, and began to mount an improvised counter-offensive. Unbeknownst to us, however--” He continued, as he shifted about on his feet, and turned his attention towards the bashful scientist. “--Dr. Gordon Freeman here, who played a pivotal role in the downfall of the Reapers, had also evaded capture, along with my Second in Command, Miranda Lawson, as well as yourself, Ms. McClane.” He nodded towards her.

“Yes, indeed.” She subtly added, moving her omni-tool closer to her own mouth, as she turned about to face Gordon. “And although the experience was terrifying, I owe my own life, on more than one occasion this night, to Dr. Freeman. He saved me from being captured, rescued me from certain dismemberment within the innards of the vessel, and pried me from the ruthless, murderous hands of the vicious hoods themselves.”

“But tell me, Dr. Freeman.” She inquisitively continued, as she move her omni-tool closer to him. “How would you describe the ordeal, in your own words?”

Gordon stood silent and wide-eyed for a moment. He was like a stage-fright frozen child on talent show night. His pupils kept darting over towards Shepard, as if hoping he would jump in at some point, whilst a half-swallowed gulp had managed to lodge itself in his throat, and choke back any potential words.

“Mmm… Ahem… Uhm…” He coughed a little, awkwardly garbling something under his breath, as tried to force himself to speak. He huddled over a bit, moving closer to Cameron’s omni-tool, almost as if trying bury his face behind it. “Was uh… It was rough…” He said, in a hushed voice. That being said, he quickly pulled away, indicating he was done, and hoping this was over.

“Yes…” Cameron concurred, with a blithely nervous chuckle. “Rough to be sure. And if I may, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you personally, live on the air, for your valiant efforts, and especially for saving my own life.” She bestowed.

With nothing verbal to add, Gordon simply replied with a subtle, gracious nod.

“Is there anything else you’d like to add?” She queried, practically begging him for a comment with her eyes, as she moved her omni-tool back towards him. “Anything you’d like to say, to the viewers, about your heroic actions in the face of certain death? Or perhaps about your crusade against the Combine during the darkest period of human history? Anything at all…?”

“Uh…” Gordon stuttered again. His pupils continued to dart about, like a shuttlecock over a net. He clenched his lips and leaned in towards Cameron’s omni-tool again. “Glad… Glad to help.”

Cameron sighed and smiled, as she granted him a grateful, acceding nod. She slowly turned back around to face the camera, and spoke into her omni.

“‘Glad to help…’” She proudly reiterated; with a reverent sense of grandeur. “Such simple words, and yet they resonate with chivalry, selflessness, and valor. Can we come to expect anything less from the Opener of the Way himself? The man who, nearly two-hundred years ago, on a night much like tonight, stood alone against an army of Combine Soldiers, as he had so many times before; fighting for freedom against tyranny and genocide, only to meet his end in the battle of Calvary Road.” She elegantly announced, with a genuine sense of admiration and respect shining in her eyes. “But as luck would have it, it seems the reports of his demise have been greatly exaggerated.”

“Excuse me, Cameron.” John modestly bestowed, with a sudden austere tone, as he took a step forward and glanced down at her, before looking back up at the camera. “That was beautifully put. And I apologize for interrupting you, but might I be allowed say one last thing? “

“Yes, of course, Commander.” The journalist eagerly obliged, as she held her omni-tool up to him. “By all means…”

“First, allow me to assert that what I say now, I say completely of my own volition…” He proclaimed, pointing a finger down towards the floor, with an etched-in-stone expression of stoicism on his face. “I do not speak on behalf of the Alliance or on behalf of the Citadel Council. But one of the men who carried out this attack was a krogan who did so out of his own desperation for wanting a cure for his people. The krogan genophage is an abhorrent transgression bordering on a war crime.” He asserted, with a sneering lip, and a fiery resolve in his dusky-hued eyes. “It was wrong when it was contrived, it was wrong when it was implemented, and it’s still wrong today... Tuchanka has suffered long enough… Give the krogan a cure.”

With his peace said, John Shepard stepped back, took a deep breath, and stood tall, with his chest puffed out and his hands clasped behind his back.

“Strong words, Commander Shepard.” Cameron attested with a nod, as she turned herself back towards the camera, with her omni-tool before her. “Perhaps now, with an endorsement from the Savior of the Citadel himself, the Council races may finally elect to make reparations to the krogan people, and cure the genophage… Only time will tell...”

“But in the meantime, I invite all our skeptic viewers out there to join me live tomorrow night, for a special Westerlund News investigative presentation--” She declared. “--as I delve deep into the Nevada underground, in search of the truth and an edifice known as the Mojave Delta Containment Facility - the alleged structure where Dr. Gordon Freeman himself remained alive and undisturbed, in a state of suspended animation, for the last two centuries.”

“Until then--” She continued, her voice perking up with levity, and cheer. “--please join  me in giving thanks to these two echelons of gallantry and valiance.” The reporter declared, nestling herself between the two, in a manner so that all three of them would be perfectly framed by the camera. “Truly a case of an irresistible force meeting, and joining forces, with an immovable object. Which is which? We’ll let you decide. Live, from Citadel Security Precinct 124, this is Cameron ‘Action Cam’ McClane, with your Cam on the action. Back to you, Trevor!”

Before the screen could cut back to the anchor in the newsroom, there was a sudden flash, and everything went dark - like a blackout after a powersurge. Liara looked around as her HV screen reverted back to being a mere window. At first, she thought it might’ve been a power outage - but this idea was quickly slain when she noticed that the lights and figures from the perpetual stock tickers of the Nos Astra Exchange outside, were still lit.

“Well…” A coarse, male voice suddenly creaked from within the shadow-choked room, causing Liara to spin in her chair, with a jerk; narrow-eyed and battle-ready. “I thought they looked rather classy, didn’t you?”

“Who’s there!” Liara shouted, peering into the darkness, as she shot to her feet, and ignited her fists into twin torches of indigo flame. “Who said that?!”

“But Dr. Freeman has always been one to…. ssshy away from the limelight. Always a bit of a rigid sort - he really must learn to relaxxx.” The same hoarse, creaky voice rang out again, speaking with an almost supernatural essence, as it seemed to emanate from the walls of the room itself.

“Who are you?!” Liara demanded, trying to conceal a growing sense of angst in her voice, as she walked around her desk, turning in small circles and swiveling her head back and forth frantically. “Show yourself!”

“Be weary of the shadows, Dr. T’Soni…” The voice spoke up again - but this time it’s location was a lot easier to pinpoint. “They hide more than you think…”

Liara turned with a jerk to face its definitive source; a small couch pressed flush against the wall, adjacent to the door and opposite her desk. Despite the cerulean flames on her hands illuminating most of the room, this one corner was still shrouded in darkness, as if no light could reach it. As if the darkness itself was not a mere lack of illumination, but a presence - a solid, tangible form. And there, in the center of the murky blackness, an icy-pale face hung staring back at her, with a conniving grin.

“You have five seconds to tell me who you are, and how you got in here, before I hit you with a warp field so powerful, it’ll liquify you right where you sit!” She snarled, as she pointed a glowing finger at the figure, like she were pointing a loaded gun

“Now, now, there’ll be no... need for that.” The pale specter assured, waving Liara off dismissively. “Such violent... ssuggestions are… beneath you. Quite unbecoming of someone of your intellectual sstature, Dr. T’Son-i.”

The way he spoke was very unnatural. Every word, every syllable was perfectly enunciated. But more than that, he seemed to speak with a snake-like hiss. He paused at awkward places, and placed the emphasis on the wrong syllables. It was as if language itself was a foreign concept to this man or creature.

Just then, he rose to his feet, and adjusted his tie. It was perfectly staight to begin with, but he adjusted it anyway. Perhaps doing so out of pure compulsion, or perhaps as a conditioned response to appear more natural

The ghostly figure casually stepped into the light, and for the first time, Liara was able gaze upon him in his entirety. He was a tall, angular figure in a dark blue suit, a black tie and a dull, black set of dress shoes whose luster had long since faded. He had greasy, thinning hair slicked back, aqua colored eyes that swirled like a vortex, and flesh as pale as death.

“I’m merely a... mutual friend who’s come to bestow some… helpful information.” The grim apparition continued to disclose, with his unsettling speech patterns. “Surely someone of… your trade knowss the value of information, hm?”

“Information…?” Liara queried. Though not willing to admit that she found herself intrigued, she did allow the biotic blaze around her hands flicker and die, like a flame at the end of a used-up wick. After all, she did have a small pistol concealed under her jacket, behind her back, if she needed it. “What kind of information?” She demanded, as she paced behind the figure, who seemed to wander about the room, examining her curios, like a shopper in a bazaar. “What’s the catch? No one gives for free.”

“I must confess-ssomething, if I may.” The hissing figure began to divulge, as he examined one of Liara’s house-plants - stroking one of it’s, smooth, waxy leaves between his fingers. “Over the course of my… career… I have accrued a bit of... an affinity for individualss with a penchant for being in the wrong place, at the right time, as well fascination for those-sss… who adapt and survive against all odds. They rather remind me of myself… Your friends are no omission, of course.” He said, as he briefly turned back to face her, before continuing his self-guided tour around her office, with the asari in-tow. “Quite a remarkable menagerie - I’ve taken great delight in observing your little assoc-ciation for quite some time now, at the behest of my employers.”

“As far as a catch goes--” He continued, as he approached her desk, and stared out her window. “I’m sure that will all become clear in the course of… Well…” he shrugged, as he turned back towards her, with a duplicitous smirk. “I’m really not at liberty to say…”

“What employers? Who do you work for? Why are you here?!” Liara sounded off with an adamant litany of questions - shaking a rigid finger at the ghoulish figure, whilst keeping one hand close to her back. “I suggest you answer me. My biotics are just a small part of my repertoire - I assure you I am quite capable of rendering you lifeless without them... “

“I am merely here to asssist you, Dr. T’Soni.” The bleach-skinned human assured, as he turned; now standing face to face with the asari beside her desk. “I have what... you might call a vesssted interest in the coming course of events. And it’s time for the pieces to begin taking their rightful places upon the board…” He cryptically declared, as he glanced down at the idle datapad on her desk. He reached out, and with a subtle tap of his finger on the screen, it lit up; exhibiting a photograph of a drell, against the backdrop of a dreary, cloudy sky.

Liara’s eyes took to the datapad, like moths to an open flame, as she immediately snatched it up off the desk. The photo was supplemented with a treasure trove of intel; call logs, surveillance footage, and detailed galaxy maps pointing to the garden world of Hagalaz.

“Feron…!” She uttered with a gasp. She’d become completely enthralled in the datapad - such was her nature. As she skimmed through the files, she never even noticed the phantasm-like figure turn and head for the door, in silence. “He’s… He’s alive!” She exclaimed, with a released exhalation of solace. “Where did you ge--” She began, as she looked up, still expecting to see the figure before her. As she glanced around, she quickly spotted his dark silhouette against the brightly lit hall, just as her door slid shut behind him. With datapad still in hand, she bolted off after him. It took her sizeable, silvery door a moment to turn and slide open again. When it did, she exploded out into the reception area, and quickly looked around. She immediately spotted him at the bottom of the stairs, turning the corner out of sight - he was much faster than she imagined. Liara practically flew down the moderate flight of steps, taking bounding leaps of clusters of five or six steps at a time. Reaching the bottom, she practically screeched around the sharp corner, when suddenly WHAM! “Umph!” “Oof!” Two asari collided like a car wreck, as krullers and coffee went flying into the air. Liara and Rineya toppled to the ground together, after crashing head on, and both were showered by a freezing cold deluge of iced latte.

Rineya sat up, looking about in a daze, as the biting expresso chill washed over her face and body. “Argh! Wh-what… Dr. T’soni!?” She beckoned, in a stupor, as she wiped her drenched face, and shook the excess off her hands.

Liara recoiled for less than an instant, as she shot back to her feet, unfazed, and continued her pursuit. She ran out into the open area of the Nos Astra Stock Exchange, and was confronted by the bustling, crowded hub of Illium’s enterprising elite. Her eyes sifted through the crowd for the peculiar human. But picking him out at this point would be like picking out the proverbial needle in a haystack.

Liara clenched her lips and gave a single, damning shake of her head, as she turned back around. With her mind racing, she swiftly strolled back to her assistant, who was still sloshing about on the floor, in a puddle of coffee, soggy krullers and non-dairy creamer.

“Did you see which way he went, Rineya!?” Liara demanded, with little regard for her assistant’s well-being as she walked over, took her hand, and jerked her back up to her feet.

“Huh? Did I see what…?”

“The human!” Liara snapped back, with little patience left. “Where did he go?!”

“What human, ma’am…?” Rineya implored, with her brow furrowed in confusion.

“Goddess, Rineya! The human that just passed through here not ten seconds ago. He went right by you! Didn’t you see him?!”

“...Ma’am.” The assistant reluctantly began, looking at her employer as if she were crazy. “No one’s passed through here. I would’ve seen them. You’re the only one that--”

Rineya stopped dead, mid-sentence as Liara turned away from her again. She looked back and forth, pacing up and down the small corridor, in a frantic bout, as if searching for some detail; some clue she’d missed. Just then, she turned about and walked back up to her assistant. Rineyea winced a bit, actually worried about her own safety, as she had never seen her employer in a worked-up state such as this before.

“I couldn’t have imagined him… Could I?” The perplexed archaeologist said, speaking mostly to herself, as she clenched her hands and furrowed her brow. Just then, her sights set back on the datapad lying on the floor, drenched in brown, sugary liquid. She walked over and picked up the pad - shaking off the excess fluid. With a few quick taps, the screen lit back up, still exhibiting all the information she’d received from the pale-faced enigma. “I couldn’t have…”

[:::Connection Lost. Data feed has been terminated until further notice. Goodbye.:::]

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Author's Special Request: Wow, I can't believe it. I finally finished it! I know this thing which was originally supposed to be a "Short Story" turned massive, and it took WAAAAY longer to finish then I ever anticipated, but thank goodness it's done! Huzzah! Several things in my life impeded the progress of this story - including a 1 year hiatus that I took due to being without internet or computer. But, here it is, and now I'd like to make a special request. For anyone out there, if you've been following my work - if you've been following this story, please leave me a review. Even if you've never reviewed before, please leave me your thoughts. I don't care if your review is praising or damning - whether you loved my story or absolutely hated it. Let me know what you thought, what you would've changed, what you'd like to see in the future etc. I accept all criticisms, because that's the only way we can grow as authors and artists. So again, please review. And thank you Hope you enjoyed.

Dr. Freeman and Commander Shepard will return in Salvation: Episode II - Lair of the Shadow Broker