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"Aw, shit," Scott said under his breath as the group from the Normandy filed into Citadel Security office. "My dad's here."

Valeria laughed softly and patted his shoulder. "I'll do what I can to minimize the damage."

"Thanks." He tried to smile, but couldn't keep it up.

"My father's here, too." Sixpack glanced at the batarian standing beside Captain Bailey's desk and then stared at the floor. She grasped Scott's hand and sighed.

"I'll see what I can do." Valeria moved aside so the other C-Sec officers could escort the non-injured quarian prisoners into the holding cells. She motioned at the door behind her and spoke to the nearest officer. "We've got some wounded prisoners still on the Normandy."

The woman nodded. "We'll have a medical team take them to Huerta Memorial and send some guys along to escort them."

"Thanks."

Bailey strode over to them and Scott groaned. "Here we go."

"I'll deal with you later." Bailey scowled at his son before turning to the others. "Commander Shepard. Operative Terakkis. Good to see you again."

"Likewise." Shepard shook his hand. "I hope we're not too much of an inconvenience."

"Not at all. Things have been pretty slow since the situation with Elias Kelham and Cerberus was dealt with. It's like the other criminal operations here heard about it and are keeping quiet to avoid attracting attention. But they'll get over it eventually, and things will be back to normal." Bailey motioned at the quarians being herded into the corridor leading to the cells. "We've got more than enough room for them until the Council decides what to do with them, and when the injured ones are taken to the hospital, I'll post guards outside their rooms."

"Much appreciated. Hopefully we won't be tying up your resources for long. We'll be heading straight into a meeting with the Council when we finish up here." Shepard flicked a shit-eating grin over his shoulder at Bailey's son. "We won't keep you from catching up on recent events."

"Before we get to that," the batarian said, "it's an honor to meet you, Commander. I've heard a lot about you."

Uh-oh. Valeria watched the batarian and kept her hand near her pistol, just in case.

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "I hope the things you've heard didn't make you want to start shooting at me."

"No, not at all. I hate to admit it, but too many of my people are criminals or terrorists. From everything I've heard, they either shot first, or were up to something horrible before you arrived. Either way, they earned what you dished out to 'em." He extended his hand. "Name's Borek Kascogan, by the way."

"Nice to meet you." Shepard shook his hand. "It's always good to meet mercs who are reasonable. Haven't run into many people in general who weren't instantly hostile, over the past few months."

Bailey turned to Scott and pointed at his desk. "You're gonna wait right there while I take care of the paperwork for our new 'guests.' Then you and I are gonna have a serious talk."

Scott nodded and glanced at Sixpack before shuffling toward the desk. She kept her grip on his hand and glanced up at her father.

"Whatever you're going to do, please, just don't send me back to Khar'Shan."

"Try not to be too hard on either of them," Valeria said. "They just forgot some of their stuff on our ship and went back to retrieve it. Then they, uh, lost track of time and were still aboard when we headed out to meet up with the Migrant Fleet. We had no idea they were even on the ship until after the shit hit the fan."

"We were afraid we'd be in trouble if anyone found us there," Scott said. "We just stayed in our room and hoped we could sneak off the ship next time it docked somewhere, then catch a ship back here."

"And then a lunatic admiral ordered her ship to fire on yours." Bailey rubbed a hand over his face and shook his head. "Why'd you 'lose track of time,' anyway? Why didn't you just grab whatever you left on their ship and then leave?"

"Seriously?" Borek laughed. "They're teenagers. What the hell do you think they were doing?"

"Eww," Bailey said under his breath. "Did not need that image in my head."

"Like I said recently, I'm not thrilled with it, but I do get some pleasure from seeing you squirm." He turned back to his daughter. "Since you two appear to be so attached to each other, I'd be reluctant to get in the way. I remember what it was like to be your age." His grin faded. "And more importantly, we both know how bad things are back home, so no, I won't send you back there."

Sixpack let out a long breath and put her arms around Scott. "Thank you."

Scott embraced her and locked a worried stare on his dad.

Bailey grumbled and massaged the bridge of his nose, as if a headache had taken hold. "I did more than my share of stupid shit when I was your age. Hell, I'm a grown-ass adult, and I'm still screwing up. The whole situation that got you into this mess in the first place, for instance." He returned to his desk. "We'll talk all this over later, but try not to worry. I'm just glad you're okay."

"Thanks, Dad." Scott let out a long sigh and kept his arms around Sixpack.

Valeria clapped each of them gently on the shoulder and glanced around. She spotted Chula staring at the door to the cell block as it closed, probably worrying about her parents now that her anger had faded. Chula took a quick breath and walked over to join Val and Shepard. Shepard nodded at Bailey and stepped through the door into the marketplace outside.

"Let's go see the Council."

---

"Shepard!" Grinning, Councilor Anderson shook the commander's hand before stepping aside to let him, Tali'Zorah, Chula, Valeria, Weyland and Yutani, and Admiral Han'Gerrel into his office. "It's good to see you in person again."

"Likewise, Councilor."

"Hey, what'd I tell you about that?" Anderson aimed a stern look at him, but appeared to have trouble keeping it on.

"Okay, okay, Anderson." Shepard chuckled.

"That's more like it." The grin reappeared and he turned to greet Tali. "Welcome back, Ms. vas Normandy. Glad to see things have improved for you since you first arrived on the Citadel two years ago."

"Thanks. Things have definitely gotten a lot better, in a number of ways. And it's just Tali." She introduced Chula and the rest, then turned back to Anderson. "Chula's parents were among the crew of the stealth ship we captured. As you might imagine, she's probably still a little off-balance over finding out they were involved."

"I can only imagine what that must be like." Anderson turned to Chula with a sympathetic smile. "Shepard told me how adamant you were about arresting them. That had to be hard to go through with."

"Being furious with them made it a little easier." Chula shrugged. "But they're still my parents, so of course I'm worried about what'll happen to them. I hope they're not judged too harshly, but I understand their actions have consequences."

"We understand why the quarians attacked us," Yutani said. "They wished to return to their homeworld and considered us an obstacle, and a threat to their existence. We do not intend to take further action if the attacks do not continue."

Anderson nodded and motioned at a set of hologram projectors on the wall to the right. "The rest of the Council will be joining us momentarily. I'm sure they'll be relieved to hear that the situation isn't likely to escalate. At least then we won't have to worry about the conflict spilling over into someone else's territory. There may not be much we can do to enforce anything, though, since both the quarians and the geth are outside Council jurisdiction."

"It seems we've managed to avoid a shooting war breaking out between them," Shepard said. "That's the important thing. If we're lucky, we can resolve this without just locking the stealth ship's crew up indefinitely."

"I have an idea," Tali said. "So many people on that ship have a deep-seated hatred of the geth, as do many quarians in general. Maybe if they could actually speak to the geth, have a conversation with them, they might begin to see them from a new perspective." She glanced down and wrung her hands. "I had the same hatred and fear of the geth all my life, and learned I was wrong about them only a few months ago."

"I like it," Valeria said. "When we all met with the quarian Admiralty Board, presenting the evidence and just talking it out did a lot to win the crowd over. Maybe the Citadel could serve as neutral ground for continuing talks."

"When I was bitching my parents out in the Normandy's mess hall," Chula added, "I could see some of the injured quarians through the windows into the medical bay. They were terrified of Weyland, but appeared to grow less fearful as they talked with him."

"They had many questions and accusations," Weyland said. "We answered their questions and apologized for the harm we caused their ancestors during the Morning War."

Anderson raised an eyebrow. "I imagine that caught them by surprise."

Yutani nodded. "We learned recently that making amends could increase our chances of resolving the conflict between us and the quarians without further loss of life."

"I'm certainly grateful for that," Chula said.

"Yes," Admiral Gerrel added softly. "So am I. The stealth ship was my project, though Admiral Daro'Xen was involved as well. This whole situation is our responsibility. I hope you'll be lenient with the crew, but Xen and I won't try to resist whatever you decide to do with us." He sighed. "I was driven by grief and rage, though that's no excuse. It prevented me from seeing the situation clearly and realizing that what's left of our civilization would be wiped out if the geth finally retaliated."

"Yes, I saw that in the recording Shepard sent of the meeting with you and the other admirals." Anderson nodded. "You have my condolences on the loss of your niece and Captain McPherson."

"Thank you, Councilor."

A beep came from the console on Anderson's desk and he walked over to tap a button. "The other Councilors are about to begin the conference. I just hope they'll listen to reason, given what the whole galaxy could lose if everyone in it continues fighting among themselves. Last time Shepard was here, he brought Legion along, and none of them even wanted to hear what it had to say."

"I've heard the Council has been a lot more cooperative lately." Shepard shrugged, but there was a hint of a smirk tugging at his mouth. "Can't say why."

Chula grinned and was thankful that her helmet visor kept everything except her glowing eyes hidden. She'd promised not to reveal the secret, so she kept her mouth shut. It's just sad that a crime lord way over on Omega had to blackmail them into doing the right thing.

"And here they are," Anderson said as the holograms of the asari, turian, and salarian Councilors appeared. "Thank you for taking the time to speak with our guests."

"Of course, Councilor Anderson." Councilor Tevos turned to Shepard and the others. "We've reviewed the documentation you sent us and found it … troubling. However, we're unable to interfere in the affairs of the Migrant Fleet."

"As open warfare between the quarians and their synthetic creations could endanger others," Sparatus said, "I suppose we should try to come up with a solution. After all, the last time the geth went on the warpath, it ended with an assault on the Citadel itself."

"The geth are willing to let the matter drop if the quarians don't attack them anymore," Shepard said. He and the others repeated their earlier conversation to bring the Council up to speed. "As you saw in the records we sent, the geth believe it would be best if the governments of all Citadel species receive copies of ithat ship's schematics. I agree, since a fleet of similar ships would be a huge help against the threat the whole galaxy will be facing soon."

"Ah. The 'Reapers' again." Valern sighed.

Tevos flicked a sharp glance toward him, and Sparatus tried to remain stoic but couldn't stop his mandibles from twitching nervously.

Chula sneered at Valern's projection. Since salarians didn't have a libido in the same way most other species had, he hadn't been caught doing anything naughty by the bugs Aria T'Loak planted in the Councilors' quarters centuries ago. Any skeletons he might have in his closet were probably from financial indiscretions or political corruption, though the "Queen of Omega" hadn't found any evidence of such. At least, none that she'd been willing to use. So he had less motivation play nice.

Sparatus's wife, on the other hand, had been recorded having sex with an underage prostitute while Sparatus watched, and Aria had discovered Tevos was using the same hooker, so both of them had much more incentive to cooperate to keep it from becoming public knowledge. And as much as Chula wanted to rub it in their faces, she kept it to herself.

"Yeah, yeah," Shepard said, rolling his eyes. "I know, you've 'dismissed that claim.' Well, I've got a surprise for you." He opened his Omni-Tool interface and tapped a few buttons. "I'm sending you a new file. You, too, Anderson. We encountered a badly damaged Reaper in the Typhon system and managed to scan it thoroughly before it jumped to FTL."

The Councilors stared at something outside the holo-projection and their jaws dropped almost in unison. Anderson frowned, hurried over to his desk, and opened the file. He skimmed through it, shook his head, and turned to watch the other Councilors.

"And in case you still don't believe me," Shepard said, "you can ask Captain Hannah Shepard of the SSV Orizaba. Her ship was right there alongside mine, and scanned the Reaper just as intensely as we did. I think you'll find we both got similar data independently of each other."

"Hmm." Valern stared off-screen for a few more seconds, blinked his huge eyes twice, and returned his attention to Shepard. "It seems you were … not wrong about there being more than one Reaper."

That's it? Chula waited for him to continue. When he didn't, she fought the urge to grab the nearest heavy object and hurl it through his image. Not even an apology for ignoring Shepard's warnings and treating him like he was delusional. What a fuckin' asshole.

"No," Sparatus said softly, shaking his head slowly as he continued looking through the data. "Oh, no."

Finally getting it, are you? You had two whole years to prepare, and you let it slip through your fingers just because you didn't want to accept it.

Tevos's normally aloof expression crumpled and she leaned over to brace her hands on something outside the holofield. Finally, she mumbled, "Shit."

Chula sighed. I just hope it isn't too late.

---

"Good news." Dakka pointed at the text on her Omni-Tool interface. "Just got a message from Valeria. She said the Council is actually listening to Shepard, for once."

"That's a relief." Lia smiled and leaned against the edge of the doorway to C-Sec headquarters. "Any news on what'll be done with the stealth ship and its crew?"

"I guess they're still working out the details, but it's looking pretty good. They're keeping Admiral Daro'Xen for, uh, 'further questioning,' but it looks like they're going easy on Admiral Han'Gerrel because he's being so cooperative." She glanced at the text message again. "Tali came up with an idea to get the crew together with the geth and try to open a dialogue, rather than keep 'em locked up. Except Captain Vuto'Galon. They're leaving him in his cell because, let's face it, the dude seems to have popped a few of his rivets."

Lia nodded. "I was just thinking it might not be a good idea to turn him loose, after he tried to overload his own ship's reactors just to try to take the Normandy with it."

"Yep." Dakka tapped out a quick reply and her Tool's interface faded out. She reached out and slipped her hand into Quint's. "Let's hope everyone can make up for lost time, now that the Council seem to have pulled their heads out of their asses."

"I sure hope so." Lia glanced around and her gaze landed on a spot a few meters away. She'd been standing right there when Commander Shepard, Tali, and Legion passed by, back when she was stranded on the Citadel. A C-Sec agent and a volus merchant had been hassling her over a credit chit the merchant accused her of stealing. Shepard had found the chit in a store on the far end of the corridor, where the merchant had placed it on the counter and then forgotten it. Neither the merchant nor the C-Sec officer had apologized to her, and the latter had even threatened to arrest her anyway, just because she was there.

She was far better off now than she'd been a few months ago, yet it seemed the improvements in her life had only started just before she'd found herself in the middle of this business with the Reapers. If things had started to get better only for her to be swept up in events that could end with the extinction of every advanced civilization in the galaxy …

That would certainly fit the pattern of my life during the past few years. She laughed to herself and glanced over her shoulder into the C-Sec office. Judging by Captain Bailey's body language, he appeared to be lecturing his son about stowing away on the Sulaco and nearly being killed when Daro'Xen gave the order to fire. Scott bore the brunt without backing down, but trembled slightly from fear or anger. Sixpack grasped his hand and held it, having never left his side.

Well, all we can do is keep moving forward and face whatever's coming, even if it's the Reapers. Kids like Scott and Sixpack deserve a chance at a future.

"Huh." A baritone voice jolted Lia out of her thoughts and she turned to find a krogan lumbering over to Dakka and Quint. He stumbled and swayed a couple of times, as if he'd been drinking enough to get a good buzz started. "A female, eh? Why aren't you on Tuchanka?"

Dakka narrowed her eyes at him, but shrugged. "I'm infertile, so there's no point in staying home."

"Uh-huh." He smirked and tried to saunter over to her. "Maybe you just need someone who's man enough to --"

"Already have one." She nodded at Quint, and the other krogan burst out laughing.

"You can't be serious!" He leaned over Quint, and Quint recoiled.

"Ugh, maybe you should sober up first. The ryncol on your breath would strip the varnish off a foot-locker."

"Almost as bad as my grandpa's farts." Dakka laughed and turned away, trying to guide Quint away from the krogan.

"Well, she's awfully young." The krogan glared at Quint. "No wonder she thinks you're all she needs."

"Fuck off," Dakka growled.

"Uh-oh." Bailey's voice drew Lia's attention. She glanced over her shoulder to find him rising from his desk and heading for the door. "Hey! How about you move on before I arrest you for causing a public disturbance?"

The krogan ignored him and prodded Quint's chest. "You like 'em young, do ya?"

"Says the guy who just tried to hit on her." Quint's Omni-Tool interface appeared around his arm and he loaded the neural-shock app.

Aw, hell. Lia took a few steps forward and prepared to deploy her Omni-Blade before she even realized she was going to move. For all she knew, this guy could be a merc with a thousand years of combat and countless kills under his belt, so he could be a handful even for trained security officers.

Shit. Shit! What the hell am I doing? She glanced over her shoulder again and noticed the worried expressions on the four officers staring out of C-Sec headquarters. Well … if this guy goes into a blood rage, they'll need all the help they can get.

"Step aside, human." The krogan shoved Quint away and reached for Dakka. "You're coming to my quarters whether you like it or --"

She clamped her hand around his wrist, yanked him off-balance, twisted his arm, and spun him toward the wall beside Lia. Lia jumped out of her way a split-second before Dakka braced her arm on the krogan's shoulder and slammed him face-first into the wall.

"Are you ready to listen now?" she snarled.

"Bitch!"

Dakka twisted his arm and bent it backward, and he let out a roar.

"Stop!"

"Do I have your full, undivided attention?"

"Yes! Just -- argh -- stop!"

"Shut up." She ground his face into the wall. "Okay, candyass, listen to me very carefully. The closest you'll ever get to my pussy is if you suck my boyfriend's dick after he's done fucking me." The krogan grunted and tried to slip away, and she twisted his arm a little more. "Have I made myself clear?"

"I'll kill both of --"

Dakka pulled him back from the wall and rammed him back into it, the thump of the impact followed a split-second later by the crack of bone fracturing. He howled and fell to his knees.

"Have I made myself clear? Or do I need to make an example of you right in front of everyone?"

Lia glanced around and only now noticed the crowd of passersby who'd stopped to gawk at the spectacle.

"Alright, alright!" The krogan waved his free hand. "Alright! Just let me go!"

She released him, braced a foot on his shoulder, and gave him a shove that sprawled him on the floor. He shook his head, growled as he picked himself up -- and his hand darted toward his hip as if reaching for a weapon.

In the corner of Lia's eye, Sixpack plucked the assault rifle from her back and aimed it at the krogan's head before Bailey or any of his officers could draw their weapons. The nearby onlookers scattered in a sudden panic. The C-Sec agents pulled their guns out and Lia triggered her Omni-Tool. A silicon-carbide blade sprang from its fabricator unit and her heart pounded.

Oh, now I've stepped in it. Somehow she managed to keep her voice steady. "You weren't about to point a gun at my friend, were you?"

Scott rushed over to Sixpack and reached toward her, but was careful not to touch her. "Garusha, take it easy. Just …"

"Stay behind me, Scott. Father, I'll keep him covered while you disarm him."

"Yes, ma'am." Chuckling, Borek ambled over to the krogan, patted him down, and returned with a pistol and four knives. He handed them over to Bailey.

"Nice." Bailey smirked. "Sergeant Haron, take Candyass here and stick him in one of our cells."

"With pleasure." The turian officer locked a set of restraints on the krogan and shoved him through C-Sec headquarters to the door leading to the cells. Another officer followed him.

"We'll give him a thorough scan to be sure we didn't miss any weapons," she said before they stepped through the door.

Bailey glanced around as everyone put their guns away, sighed, and returned to his desk. "Looks like things are back to normal already."