Ad Astra :: Star Trek Fanfiction Archive ^{Beam me up, Scotty.}

Chapter Text

R.R.W Gallena

“I need to contact my superiors.” Kaidan said as he and V’lana stepped off the transporter pad.  “Let them know what’s going on here.”

“Who are your superiors?” V’lana asked as the two of them, accompanied by Satra, walked out of the transporter room towards the turbolift.

“Councilor Anderson is the human ambassador to the Citadel Council.” Kaidan explained.  “He’s the one who sent me.  He’ll probably notify Admiral Hackett—he’s the commander of Fifth Fleet.”

“And you’re under his command?” V’lana inquired.

“Yes…more or less.” Kaidan answered back.  “Since Shepard…died…I’ve been sorta working as Anderson’s troubleshooter.”

“This Shepard…she’s the one you served under, right?” V’lana asked as they entered the turbolift.  “Bridge.” The subcommander ordered.

“That’s right.” The human biotic replied, nodding his head.  “She was killed when our ship, the Normandy, was destroyed—we think by a Collector ship.”

“I see…” Turning to her science officer, V’lana inquired, “Satra? Is there any problem with us tapping into their communications systems?”

“No subcommander.” The Romulan officer shook her head.  “It was actually quite easy once we took care of a few interface problems.  You’ll have both audio and visual.”

“Good.” Turning back to Kaidan, the subcommander said, “You can contact your superior when we get to the bridge if you’d like or…if you prefer privacy…you can make your call from my ready room.”

“The bridge will be fine.” Kaidan replied, “Allies should trust each other—right?”

“Right.” V’lana inclined her head, pleased at the human’s answer.  As the door slid open to the bridge, V’lana took her chair as she ordered her science officer, “Satra? Hail Councilor Anderson on the Citadel.”

“Yes, Subcommander.” The science officer acknowledged as V’lana gestured for Kaidan to stand beside her.

The Citadel

“I have to meet the salarian councilor’s representative in the Commons, Councilor.” Ambassador Udina stated, all but spitting out the word ‘Councilor’.

“Go ahead.” Anderson replied, “I have some paperwork here to catch up on.” The Councilor sighed as he watched his aide depart.  “It never ends.  You want this job so bad that you can taste it, Donnel, and I want nothing more than to let you have it.” Shaking his head, humanity’s representative to the Council looked up as he addressed his next words, “Maybe that was your intention all along, Shepard.  You knew I didn’t want the job and Udina did and that would make us both concentrate on what was most important—representing humanity’s interests.” As he returned to his current problem—a request from the volus ambassador for possible trade concessions on Eden Prime in exchange for help in rebuilding the colony, the incoming communications light on his monitor lit up, soon followed by a chime.

“Yes.” Anderson rumbled as he activated the monitor.  Then, his eyes widened as he saw a woman sitting in a chair wearing a mesh silver and maroon miniskirt and thigh high boots with Staff Commander Alenko standing next to her.

“Councilor Anderson?” The woman inquired in almost flawless English.  Looking closer, Anderson saw that the woman had, besides long auburn hair and green eyes that so reminded him of Shepard, pointed ears and faint traces of brow ridges on her forehead.  “Councilor Anderson?  Can you hear me? Satra? Do we have a connection?”

“Yes, Subcommander.” Anderson heard another voice speak.

“Excuse me.” Anderson, regaining control of his wits, spoke, “I was just stunned…”

“I’m told I have that effect on men.” The woman replied with a slight smirk that quickly disappeared. “I am Subcommander V’lana Avesti, commanding the Romulan Republic Warbird Gallena.  I believe you already know Staff Commander Alenko?”

“Alenko? Would you care to explain what’s going on here?” Anderson asked as his eyes tried to take in the scene on the monitor.  Occasionally, he would spot a figure with pointed ears crossing the screen and once he spotted someone that appeared human.  “Where are you and who are these people?”

“They’re friends, Councilor.” Kaidan replied, “The Columbia was attacked by mercenaries and the subcommander destroyed their ship and rescued me.”

“Then I owe you my thanks, Subcommander.” The Councilor replied as V’lana inclined her head in acknowledgement.

“We also just came back from Freedom’s Progress, Councilor.” Kaidan reported.  “The colony is gone.”

“The entire colony?” Anderson rose to his feet in shocked surprise, “No one left behind.”

“No, Sir.” Kaidan replied grimly.  “Tali and some of her people were there when we arrived.”

“What were the quarians doing there?” The Councilor asked.

“They were looking for one of their people who had gone to Freedom’s Progress for his pilgrimage.” Kaidan answered.  “When they arrived, they found the colony deserted.  We got there a little after they did and after fighting through some mechs, managed to get to their missing quarian.  He recorded everything that happened.  I have it here.”

“Satra?” V’lana called out, “Can you transmit the information?”

“Yes, Subcommander.” The science officer responded.

“Councilor?” V’lana interrupted, “Would you like us to transmit the data to you?”

“Can you do that and be sure it stays secure?” Anderson asked.

Taking Satra’s single nod of her head as confirmation, V’lana replied, “Yes we can.”

“Then thank you, again.  I’m ready for your transmission.”

Nodding her head at her science officer, V’lana signaled for Satra to begin transmitting.  “You should be getting the data now, Councilor.”

“I am.” Anderson replied, amazed at the speed of the download.

“Good.” V’lana stated, requesting further, “I think it would be in our best interests if we met.  We have much to discuss.” She then turned her head to Kaidan and nodded once, indicating that he was to speak.

“Councilor?  The Romulans have had colonies go missing too. They think that what’s happening could be related and they want to work together.  Sir, I’d strongly recommend taking them up on their offer.  They have resources that we just don’t have, and we have resources that can help them.”

“It would be a mutually beneficial relationship, Councilor.” V’lana added, “But the decision, of course, is yours.”

“I think a meeting would be a good idea.” Anderson agreed, further adding, “It would also be a advisable if the other councilors were informed.  Otherwise, they might think that we’re working against them.”

“Good to see that you’re one who sees the…how do you humans phrase it, the giant painting?”

“Big picture.” Anderson, along with Kaidan chuckled, “But yes, it would be better to let them know what’s going on.  They might even have some ideas we haven’t thought of yet.”

“Very well then.” V’lana nodded once, “I’ll bow to your discretion.  So…where do you wish this meeting to take place?”

“Would my office in the Citadel be acceptable.” Anderson suggested.

“It would.” V’lana indicated.

“We should inform Admiral Hackett.” Kaidan suggested.  “He could be very helpful.”

“I’d recommend that as well, Subcommander.” Anderson added.

“Very well, that is agreeable.” V’lana acceded.  “Also, we have prisoners from the ship that we destroyed in security confinement.  I’d rather they be in your cells than mine.  My security chief has been complaining constantly about the smell of the four-eyed one.”

“They captured a batarian, turian, and human, Councilor.” Kaidan explained.

Chuckling in spite of himself, Anderson replied, “We’ll take them off your hands, subcommander.  I’ll contact the admiral immediately after talking with you.  It should take a couple of days for him to get here.”

“That should work out for us as well.” V’lana responded.  “I look forward to meeting you in person, Councilor.”

“Likewise, Subcommander.” Anderson replied as he cut off the transmission.  Quickly punching in the code for Fifth Fleet, the Councilor sighed in relief as Admiral Hackett answered, “Admiral? We need to talk.”  Several minutes later, after finishing his conversation with the admiral, the councilor activated the holographic link connecting him with his fellow councilors.

“Excuse me.” The human councilor apologized as the holographic images of the turian, asari, and salarian delegates appeared, “But I must speak to you about a matter of great urgency.”

“What is it this time, Councilor Anderson?” The turian councilor grumbled.

“We have encountered a new space-faring species.” Anderson replied, immediately drawing the interest of the other councilors.  “They rescued an Alliance officer, Kaidan Alenko, when the ship he was on was attacked by pirates.  Their representative wishes to meet with us in forty-eight hours in my office.  I just thought you would like to be here when they arrive.”

“When did you first hear of this?” Valern, the salarian councilor inquired.

“Just now.” The human councilor replied.

“We need to prepare an appropriate greeting.” Tevos, the asari councilor, stated.

“I get the impression they want to keep this mission low-key, councilors.” Anderson advised.  “Perhaps it would be better if we all just met in my office a little before they arrived.  Then, once we hear from them again, we can proceed from there.”

“An astute suggestion, Councilor.” Valern blinked and nodded his head.  “Very well…” He stated as the other councilors nodded their heads in agreement, “We will meet in your office in forty-seven Earth hours.”

RRW Gallena

“Set course for the Citadel.” The subcommander ordered. “Remain cloaked until I say otherwise.”

“Understood.”

“Drop alert status to standard.  We’ve been on heightened and combat alerts for too long.  I don’t want the crew burning out.” V’lana ordered, “And open the Raptor’s Nest, the holodecks and the other recreational lounges for leisure activities.”

“Yes, Subcommander.” Tovan acknowledged.

“Join me for drinks in the Nest, Kaidan, after we change and clean up?” V’lana tempted.

“Sure.” The human biotic replied.  “Say…two hours?”

“Sounds good.  I’ll see you then.”  Turning to her executive officer, V’lana noted the raised eyebrow.  “What, Big Brother?”

“Nothing, Little Sister…” Her old friend said as he flashed a knowing grin.

“Right.” V’lana retorted with a smirk. “I want you taking some time off now too.  Satra?  That goes for you also.  Hivan? You have the chair.”

“Yes, Subcommander.” The burly science officer replied as he took his place in the chair vacated by his commanding officer.

After changing out of her uniform and into a comfortable dress and blouse with maroon belt, V’lana made her way down to the lounge where she waited until her date arrived.  Nodding in approval at the short-sleeved shirt and jeans the human chose to wear, the subcommander waved him towards her. “Not bad.” She purred as she took in his muscular physique.

“You’re looking beautiful yourself.” Kaidan smiled back.

“I just threw this on.” V’lana confessed. “Come…” She smiled as she took the human’s hand and led him to a booth.  “Sit. Someone should be coming by soon.” Almost on cue, a blue-skinned female with a bald pate and a small ridge running down the center of her skull and face down to her chest came over.

“What would you like?” The strange—to Kaidan—alien asked.

“I’ll have Saurian brandy.” V’lana replied.

“And you, sir?” The woman asked.

“Ummm…a beer…Earth beer.” He qualified.

“Coming right up.” The waitress replied.

“Ummm…” Kaidan stammered as V’lana chuckled softly.

“She’s a Bolian.” V’lana said, answering Kaidan’s stammered query.  “They’re members of the Federation.”

“So, she’s one of the exchange officers?” Kaidan queried.

“Yes.” V’lana shook her head, explaining, “She’s one of the Starfleet exchange officers, but we do have civilians working for us as well.  Unlike the ships controlled by Sela and the Tal Shiar or the Republic ships that have aligned with the Klingon Empire, those of us who have thrown in our lot with the Federation carry a few civilians on board.”

“Wait a minute!” Kaidan interjected as the waitress brought their drinks.  “You’re telling me that some of your ships are allied with the Federation and others with these Klingons?”

“Right.” V’lana nodded her head as she sipped her Saurian brandy.

“And the Klingons and the Federation are at war with each other.” A stupefied Kaidan exclaimed.

“Well...”V'lana drawled, "It's a bit complicated. While technically no longer in a state of open warfare, let's just say that sometimes...incidents...occur."

"I see." Kaidan responded in a somber tone, “That would mean…” 

“Yeah…sometimes.” V’lana nodded her head. “It sucks, and I think it’s stupid.”

“Why?” Kaidan asked. “I mean, why are your people doing this?”

“Because D’Tan’s a fucking idiot.” V’lana cursed and then explained after taking a big swig of brandy.  “I think he’s still got some of that old Empire way of thinking going on in his mind.  He must think he can play both ends against the middle and come out on top.  Well…that’s not going to happen here.” She said angrily as Kaidan just sat back and listened, just as he used to do when another redhead he knew needed to vent.  “We need to be building trust right now.  All D’Tan’s scheme is going to do is breed distrust.”

“So, what would you do if you were in his shoes?” Kaidan asked, again, treating her just as he would have treated Jane.

“I’d pick a side and stick with it.” V’lana flatly declared. “Do that and even the other side respects you—you’ve made a choice and you’re holding to it.  You’ve shown you can be trusted.”

“Good point.” Kaidan conceded, “So why do you think D’Tan did what he did?  And don’t tell me it’s because he’s a fucking idiot because I get the impression he’s not that.”

“You’re right.” V’lana sighed, “He’s not. I think he’s desperate and feels trapped and is falling back on the old ways of thinking because he doesn’t know how to do anything else. New Romulus is close to the Klingon border.  There’s no way we can hold on to it with what we have right now without the Klingons permitting us to do so.  We just don’t have the forces to take on both them and the Tal Shiar—even with Federation help.  The Federation, on the other hand, has the resources to help us develop New Romulus that the Klingons just don't possess.  Short-term, we need the Klingons as a shield.  Long-term, the Federation is the better choice.”

"I doubt either power is aligning with you out of the goodness of their hearts.”  Kaidan noted with a wry grin, getting an equal response from his companion.

“You’ve got that right.”  V’lana chuckled as she explained, “The one thing we have of value is our technology—namely our cloaking and singularity tech.  If we are going to continue as an independent entity, we have to improve those technologies and develop new ones.  To do that, we have to take a leaf from the Federation’s book and emphasize science and exploration while not ignoring our military and at the same time keeping an eye on everyone else.”

“Tall order.” Kaidan remarked as he sipped his beer.

“Now I think you can understand why the other races are wrong when they say we’re paranoid.  You’re not paranoid if they really are out to get you.  But enough about me and my universe.” V’lana smirked as the waitress brought the couple refills for their drinks. “I want to hear you talk for a while.  What’s it like to be a biotic?  To be able to do all those things?”

“Aside from the migraines.” Kaidan laughed, “It’s not bad.”

“Do you go to schools or training or anything like that?” V’lana inquired, then, seeing a dark look crossing Kaidan’s face, held up her hand, “Seems I’ve brought up bad memories.  You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”

“No…” Kaidan sighed as he took a swig of beer, “It’s ok.  When they found out I was biotic, I was sent to Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training or BAaT.  We called it Brain Camp.  It was a program set up by Conatix Industries backed by the Alliance located on Gagarin Station out beyond the orbit of Pluto—Jump Zero—it’s where they did all the FTL experiments before discovering the mass relay at Charon.”

“So…you were experimenting with alternative FTL!” V’lana exclaimed, further prompting, “But go on”

“Yeah.  Most of us were teenagers.  Problem was…no one knew what they were doing.  Biotics had only just begun appearing amongst humans, so Conatix hired turians as instructors.”

“They’re the ones you fought a war with earlier, right?” V’lana interrupted.

“That’s right.” Kaidan nodded his head, “But Conatix and the Alliance didn’t want to go through the Citadel—they thought it would make humanity look weak.”

Chuckling, V’lana commented, “That’s a pretty Romulan way of looking at things.  Never reveal weakness to your opponents.”

“Problem was…” Kaidan sighed, “Many of those turians were still nursing grudges from the war and took it out on us.  One in particular, Vyrnnus, had it in for me.  I put up with his BS until he injured Rahna, one of my class mates.  Something inside me snapped then.  I went after him with everything I had.”

“Good!” V’lana nodded her head approvingly.  “The veruul got what was coming to him.”

“He ended up with a broken neck and eventually died.” Kaidan somberly retorted, “Probably would have survived if they’d have gotten him medical aid in time.”

“Sounds like a whole bunch of people didn’t like him.” V’lana commented.  Seeing the distressed look on Kaidan’s face, V’lana softened her voice as she placed the palm of her hand on the top of his.  Feeling the refreshing coolness of his touch, The Romulan woman’s lips turned up in a slight smile, “You have to understand one thing about my people, Kaidan—and me. Contrary to what the Klingons and some in the Federation say, we Romulans are not amoral backstabbers and schemers.  While Romulans don’t believe in the Klingons’ warrior code which is really all too often an excuse for petty revenge or get mired in the ethical and…to be honest…often self-righteous…moralizing of humans...no offense..."

"None taken." Alenko responded with a smile, "Continue."

Returning her date's smile with one of her own, V'lana picked up where she had left off. "We do possess a sense of…I guess you could call it honor.  We call it menhei’sahe.  It’s our ruling passion.  It might be different from what the others see as honor, but it’s no less real.  To defend a loved one is expected.  Someone you cared about was being attacked and you came to her aid.”  Her eyes taking on a fiery cast, she said, “Heavens help whoever attempts to hurt those I love. I will hunt them to the end of the universe—Hells, I’ve hunted them through two universes already.” Laughing, she shook her head, “And here I am dominating the conversation again.  I’m sorry, Kaidan…go on.”

“Well…there’s not a whole lot more to say.” Kaidan replied, still chewing over the words just recently spoken by the lovely and fiery woman sitting across from him.

“Is it your abilities that cause your headaches?” V’lana asked.

“No.” Kaidan shook his head, “It’s the L2 implants I’m fitted with. The implants are necessary for us to use and control our abilities. They’re more powerful than the L3s and not as versatile as the L5s…but they have side effects that vary.  In some cases, mental disorders, in other cases such as mine, headaches.”

“Well…you let us know if you’re having any problems.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any human doctors on board, but Aven does his best.” V’lana remarked apologetically, “Now…talk to me.” The subcommander smiled as she sipped her brandy, “I like hearing you talk.”

Ilium

“Tali!” Liara smiled as her quarian friend entered her office, “Thank you for coming.”

“We need to speak.” The quarian engineer declared, “Privately.”

“Of course.” Liara nodded her head, “Nyxeris? Take a few hours off—with pay.”

“Thank you, Dr. T’Soni.” The secretary replied as she left her employer’s office, activating her recording bug before she left.

“Come with me.” Tali said in a flat tone.  “I want to make sure we’re not overheard by listeners.”

“I scan my office constantly.” Liara protested only to be silenced by her quarian friend’s raised hand.

“This is too important to take chances.  Where can we talk in absolute security?”

“Come.” Liara replied as she escorted her friend out of her office.  “There’s an isolated park I’ve found that’s as secure as anywhere else on this planet.”

“Good.” Tali responded, “Let’s go.”  Minutes later, the skycar carrying the two friends touched down next to a small glade.

“Here” Liara said as she guided Tali to an outdoor table.  “We can talk safely.”

Tali then placed a small disc shaped object down on the table and touched it.  As she touched it, it exhibited a flashing green light. “Scrambling and detection device.” The quarian explained.  "Besides scrambling our words, it will alert us to any electronic listening devices.”

“So…what is this about, Tali?” Liara asked, getting straight to the point.

“As I said in my message to you, Kaidan is alive and healthy.” The quarian answered with more than a tiny note of pleasure in her voice.

“I remember.” Liara recalled, “You said you saw him on Freedom’s Progress.”  The information broker noted, “I read where the entire colony had vanished—apparently taken by the Collectors.    Over nine hundred thousand souls…”

“It was…what was the human word…spooky.” Tali said as she recalled, “Walking down the quiet streets and peering into the empty buildings where the occupants seemed to have just picked up and walked away.”

“Was Kaidan there to check up on the colony?” Liara inquired.

“Yes.’ Tali nodded her head, “And he brought friends…not Alliance and not from any race I know of.  Although…a human was with them, but she was definitely not Alliance.”

“What do you mean?” Liara asked as her heart began to race, already anticipating her quarian friend’s answer.

“There’s a new race in the picture.  Advanced…very advanced.” Tali announced. “They have brow ridges and pointed ears, but otherwise look human and call themselves ‘Romulans’.”

“I’ve never heard of such a race.” Liara replied, taking careful mental notes.

“They seem to prefer to use directed energy weapons.”  Tali recalled, “And they do use armor and shields—although both are very advanced.  Their armor is apparently worn underneath their clothing and they seem to be capable of making it transparent as their commander wore a short skirt and didn’t appear to have any armor at all.”

“Transparent?” Liara repeated, disbelieving.  Are you sure she was wearing armor?”

“I believe so.’ Tali replied with a nod of her head.  “Her and her people took on an Ymir.  They lost the other human who was with them and one of them said that the mech’s weapons tore through both shield and armor.”

“I’ll make some inquiries and see if I can find out anything more about this new race.” Liara said.  “Do you know why they decided to come to Freedom’s Progress?”

“They said they were helping Kaidan in his investigation.” Tali recollected, “And Kaidan seemed to trust them.  Although…” She hesitated, unsure as to whether to continue or not.

“Go ahead, Tali.” Liara encouraged, “I need to know as much as I can about this new player before deciding what to do.”

“I’m not sure what to say about them.  They’re curious…and fierce.  Another thing…their commander—the rank they called her was subcommander.” Tali continued, “Seemed quite a bit interested in Kaidan and it looked to me like Kaidan was returning that interest.  So…that would imply that they have emotions such as love and friendship.”

“If these people are potential allies, then that might be good.” Liara sighed, “It’s been two years since…Shepard…It’s time he moved on.  It’s time we all did.  Do you know anything else about these people?” Liara asked.

“No.” Tali shook her head, “Except that they most likely possess a stealth system even more effective than the old Normandy’s.  After returning to our ship and leaving the planet…” Tali explained, “We scanned for their ship.  We couldn’t find any sign they were even there.  No static electric discharges…no apparent use of a mass effect drive.  The only answer I could come up with is that they must have found some means of duplicating an infiltrator’s cloak on a large scale.”

“You mean making an entire ship invisible?” Liara gasped.

“Yes.” Tali nodded her head. “It’s theoretically possible, but it would take a tremendous amount of power—more power than even our largest dreadnoughts could generate.  However, it’s the lack of traces of the use of a mass effect drive that has me most curious.  They might have a means of FTL travel other than mass effect.”

“That’s impossible.” Liara shook her head.

“Why?” Tali countered, “The only reason we all use mass effect drives is because each of our civilizations either discovered the tech in their home systems or nearby or were contacted by a culture that was already using it.  It was just easier to abandon our own FTL research and go with mass effect drives and the mass relays.” The quarian engineer then posed the question, “What if there was a society living in isolated space.  No close-by mass relays or neighbors with mass effect technology.  No Prothean caches or anything like that.  Why couldn’t they develop a means of FTL travel different from mass effect?”

“That makes sense.” Liara conceded, further prompting, “Go on.”

“Added to that…” Tali continued, “There are the weapons they used and their armor and shielding.  Directed energy weapons—not mass accelerated projectiles.  Their shields and armor were not derived from mass effect technology either, but from something else entirely.  These people have gone off in a totally uncharted direction.” Pausing for a moment to catch her breath, Tali declared, “We need them as allies and can’t afford to have them as enemies.”

“Then we better do what we can to make sure they are our allies.” Liara responded as the two friends got up.

R.R.W. Gallena

“We are in the Serpent Nebula.” Tovan reported as the Gallena exited the mass relay.

“Is the nebula interfering with our cloak?” V’lana asked as she sat in the center chair of the warbird.

“Negative, Subcommander.” Tovan replied.  “Cloak holding, all systems at optimal.”

“Good. Open communications channel with Councilor Anderson.  Let’s see if he and this council are ready to meet face-to-face.”

Human Embassy—The Citadel

“Are you sure about these people, David?” Admiral Hackett asked as the two men talked in the Councilor’s office.

“We are taking a chance.” The turian councilor, Sparatus stated, echoing the admiral’s concern.

“I don’t know.” The Councilor answered honestly, “But Commander Alenko seems to trust them.”

“I guess that’ll have to do for now.” Hackett said as the incoming transmission light flickered on Anderson’s console, “Maybe that’s them.”

Activating the console, Councilor Anderson again saw the youthful Romulan subcommander sitting in a chair, Kaidan Alenko on one side of her and another Romulan, a male, on the other.  “Is that her?” Admiral Hackett whispered.

“Yes.” Anderson whispered back and then, turning his attention back to the subcommander, smiled, “Greetings, Subcommander.  This is Admiral Hackett, Commander of Fifth Fleet, and the Galactic Council.”

“Admiral. Councilors” Kaidan came to attention and saluted as the subcommander inclined her head once in respect.

“Admiral. Councilors. Greetings from the Romulan Republic.” V’lana formally stated.

“Subcommander.” Admiral Hackett returned the greeting and Kaidan’s salute, “Staff Commander.”

“We look forward to our meeting and learning more about your people, Subcommander.” Councilor Tevos politely replied.

“We are ready to meet whenever you wish, Subcommander.” Councilor Anderson said.

“Would thirty minutes be acceptable?” V’lana inquired.

“That would be fine, but wouldn’t you like more time to clear docking?” Tevos asked, “We can also arrange an appropriate greeting if you’d prefer.”

“Thank you, Councilor, but I would prefer that we make this initial contact as the humans say, low-key.” V’lana smiled, “Also, don’t worry about docking.  We’ll have no problem making the meeting on time.”

“I can vouch for that, Admiral…Councilors.” Kaidan interjected.

“Very well.” Anderson replied, “We’ll meet you in my office in half an hour.”

“We look forward to meeting you.”  Councilor Tevos said.  “Until then.” With that, the transmission cut out.

Turning to Admiral Hackett and his fellow councilors, Anderson inquired, “Well…what do you think”

“I’m not sure.” The admiral replied, “She seemed awful young to be commanding any sort of warship.  Hell, David…I’ve got a granddaughter her age…apparent age…attending college!”

“Don’t let her apparent youth fool you.” Councilor Tevos advised.  “Her species could be long-lived like mine. We generally do not like to discuss this…” The asari matriarch said hesitatingly, “But we asari tend not to show our age until very late into the matriarch stage and when we do show it, it proceeds rapidly.  Her species could be similar.”

“Possibly.” Anderson replied, pondering over Tevos’ remarks.

“What I am curious about.” Valern interjected, “Is their ship.  Where is it?  Citadel Control has not reported any unknown or unidentified traffic.”

“May I?” Admiral Hackett asked, inclining his head at the communications console.

“Be my guest.” Anderson responded.

Activating the console, Hackett made contact with his ship.  “Hannah?”

“Sir?”

“Are you detecting any unidentified ships in the area?”

“No sir.” Captain Hannah Shepard replied.  “Just the usual Citadel traffic—busy—but nothing out of the ordinary.”

Shaking his head, Hackett declared in a gruff voice, “David…Councilors…either we’re the victims of the most elaborate practical joke I’ve ever seen pulled, or these people have one helluva stealth system and I’m not sure which I’m hoping for the most.”

“Well, Admiral…” Anderson replied, “We’ll find out soon.  The half hour is almost up.”

As the half hour ended, the councilors and Admiral Hackett faced towards the door, expecting it to open only to remain disappointed as first one, then two, then three minutes passed.  “It looks like we’ve been…”

Before the admiral could finish his words, everyone in the room heard a noise coming from behind them.  Turning around, they saw two columns of green light coalesce into flesh and blood beings.  “Admiral Hackett…Councilor Anderson…Councilors.”  Kaiden Alenko snapped to attention and rendered a crisp salute.

“Councilors.” A young woman, with pointed ears and slight brow ridges, and wearing a short mesh skirt with maroon trim and boots, brought her fist up to her heart and then down.  “I am Subcommander V’lana Avesti, commanding the Romulan Republic Warbird Gallena.”

“What the?” Anderson exclaimed.

“How?” Tevos started.

“Where did…” Hackett shook his head

“Who?” Sparatus gulped.

“Matter dematerialization and rematerialization.” Valern blinked rapidly as he exclaimed excitedly, “Teleportation. While theoretically possible, it’s very difficult.  Requires tremendous amount of energy.  You’ve apparently solved that problem.”

“Wait…” Hackett stammered, “You’re saying that these people are able to teleport…”

“Teleport from one location to another.” Valern nodded his head, “Yes.”

“This is…” Tevos gasped in awe.

“Astonishing.” Anderson finished.

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” Kaidan whispered to V’lana.

“Yeah…a little…” Seeing the doubting look the human biotic gave her, she confessed, “All right…A lot.”

“Gentlemen…madam.” V’lana inclined her head at the councilors and Admiral Hackett.  “We have much to discuss.”

“Indeed we do.” Anderson replied, addressing his next remarks to Kaidan, “You’ve been to Freedom’s Progress.”

“Yes, Sir.” Kaidan replied, “When we arrived, the entire colony had vanished.  We encountered Tali and some quarians who were searching for a quarian who was on pilgrimage.  We found the quarian, Veetor, who recorded everything that happened.  I’ll sync my omnitool with your console.” The Alliance officer said.  Soon, the entire Council watched a replay of the taking of the colonists.

“Collectors?” Tevos inquired.

“That’s our guess.” Kaidan replied.

“What’s your interest in this, Subcommander?” Sparatus inquired.

“My people’s colonies are also being attacked—apparently by a race we call the Elachi.” Pausing for a moment, V’lana activated her communicator, “Tovan? Play the recording from the freighter.” The subcommander explained, “We boarded a Cardassian freighter we suspected was transporting as prisoners people taken from one of our merchant ships.  This is what we took from the freighter’s logs.”  The councilors then looked on in rapt interest as strange humanoid aliens were being literally fed into a black anomaly.

As his eyes fell on the feet of one of the aliens feeding the humanoids into the anomaly, Admiral Hackett gasped, “Those feet and legs look almost salarian.”

“Are you accusing my people of participating in this?” Valern exclaimed angrily.

“No one’s accusing anyone of anything Councilor.” Hackett quickly backpedaled.  Turning to the subcommander, Hackett asked, “Were you able to record any entries showing these aliens’ upper bodies.”

“Unfortunately, no.” V’lana shook her head.  “We have not been able to attain any evidence of what an Elachi looks like.  From the attack on my home colony of Virinat, we know that they use cybernetic constructs—like spiders—to grasp their prey and take them away.”

“Your home colony was attacked?” Tevos asked.

“I originally came from Nimbus III, but, yes, I considered Virinat my home.” V’lana affirmed, “I was…you could say I was a junior security officer. Virinat was a pleasant place.” The subcommander’s lips turned up in a sad smile, “We were farmers mostly.  A few of us, like myself, did go out into space—mostly to find other refugees who had scattered after our home planet was destroyed by a supernova.”

“Your home world is…gone?”  Anderson interrupted; his voice filled with sympathy.

“Yes, and with it the Romulan Star Empire.  My people are scattered.  Some of us have come back together…founded a new home on New Romulus and are rebuilding.  Charting a new course as the Republic.” V’lana replied, “But I’m drifting. I was sent to the caverns to investigate what was going on with the Khellid, an insect species whose product we use to make Khellid nectar.”

“Like honey for mead.” Hackett noted.

“Correct.” V’lana affirmed, “While investigating, I found an Elachi device controlling cybernetic spiders that were making the Khellid violent. I deactivated it after taking out its protector and then the colony was attacked.  I and Tovan got as many people on to the shuttles as possible and we made it to an old warbird where I took command and we escaped.  We were rescued by a couple of Republic warbirds and after that, I was confirmed in command of the Pharos and have commanded ever since.”

“An interesting story.” Sparatus interjected, his voice filled with doubt, “But…difficult to believe.”

Her eyes flashing anger, V’lana responded, her voice low and dangerous, “Do you doubt my word?”

At once recognizing the warning signs given off by his Romulan friend, Kaidan moved quickly to intervene, “V’lana…I’m sure the councilor did not mean any slight on your honor—right, Councilor Sparatus?”

‘Right.” The turian councilor, clearly seeing that he had overstepped his bounds, quickly apologized.

“No one is impugning your honesty.” Tevos quickly intervened, “It’s just that you have given us a lot of information very quickly.  It’s very difficult to process it all.  If I may…my species is telepathic…”

“I think I see where this is going.” V’lana sighed, “I’m a limited telepath myself.” Chuckling a little at the surprised look on Kaidan’s face, V’lana whispered, “I didn’t want to scare you.”

“I’m not scared.” Kaidan whispered back.

“Then that makes this easier.” Tevos replied, “I promise I will not go deeply.”

“Very well.” V’lana reluctantly agreed, “In the interests of full disclosure and to promote good relations.”

“Thank you.” Coming closer, Tevos instructed, “Relax and embrace eternity.” Images flooded through the asari’s mind: A childhood and adolescence spent on the streets and in the bars of a dingy, dangerous, desert world.

“Nimbus III.”  V’lana appeared next to Tevos.  “Not a very pleasant time in my life.  We should go now.”

“I am sorry, young one.”  Tevos apologized.  “Please show me your true home.”

“Very well.”

Tevos then saw a peaceful farming colony with men and women and children all like V’lana, going through their routines.  A festival…laughter…people talking and drinking. V’lana helping one of the farmers fix his pipes and, in the process, drive off a strange insect species.

“Khellid.  This is Virinat.”

“It’s lovely.”

“It was.” Then the images changed.  V’lana destroying strange, metallic, spider-beings with an energy weapon.  Fighting a larger and more powerful creature.  Returning home and then explosions.  Romulans similar to her transporting down using that strange teleportation system and attacking the colonists while the metallic things literally snatched colonists away.

“Your own people?” Tevos asked.

“Tal Shiar.” V’lana responded. “They want to rebuild the old Empire.”

“Are they in league with the metal things.”

“I don’t know.” V’lana replied. “The Tal Shiar seek power for the sake of power.”

Tevos then saw other colonies attacked, strange ships fighting, V’lana ordering her ship through one of the anomalies.

“Why?” Tevos asked.

“I got tired of being on the defensive.” The Romulan replied, “I wanted to track down these invaders—find out where they were from.”

Tevos then saw even more fantastic images, strange aliens, blue-skinned, white haired aliens with antennae, reptilian aliens, feline, and, much to her astonishment…humans.  But not like the humans of the Alliance.  These humans were open to aliens…were part of something much bigger.

“The Federation.” V’lana explained.

“You’re from another universe.” Tevos concluded.

“Correct.” V’lana confirmed.

“This is…remarkable…fabulous…and…” Tevos admitted, “Frightening.”

“Yes, it is.” V’lana agreed.

“And you’re trapped here.” Tevos concluded, an aura of sadness emanating from her.

“For now.” V’lana agreed. “My mission is still the same.  To find out who has been taking our people and stop them.  I would like your help.” V’lana declared, “But with it or without it, I will continue my mission.”

“Our goals might be similar.” Tevos opined. “I think we can work together.”

“Good.” V’lana replied, “Perhaps we should get back to the others.”

As the pair broke from their brief meld, Kaidan turned to V’lana, “You ok?”

“I’m fine.” The Romulan smiled back.  “I think Tevos was a bit more shaken up than me.”

“You are correct, young one.” The asari councilor smiled.  Turning to the others in the room, she announced, “I think we should help the subcommander and I think the subcommander can help us.”

“I and my ship will help investigate what happened to the missing colonists at Freedom’s Progress and elsewhere.” V’lana declared.  “I have a feeling our investigations into that will aid in my efforts to find out what happened to our colonists.”

“How do you think we should proceed?” Anderson inquired.

“I think first, we should try to figure out who these Collectors are and what their goals are.  Then, once we’ve gained enough intelligence, we move on them.”

“Just like the hunt for Saren.” Hackett observed.

“You’ll need assistance.” Tevos pointed out, “You’re in…unfamiliar…territory.”

“Agreed.” V’lana acknowledged. “I would like to ask that Commander Alenko remain on board the Gallena as my liaison.  We’ve worked together and have already built up a good rapport—provided the commander is willing, that is.”

“I’m happy to volunteer, Admiral.”

“Very good.” Admiral Hackett nodded his head, “I hereby assign Staff Commander Kaidan Alenko as liaison to the RRW Gallena.  Anything else, Subcommander?”

“Yes…it might be a good idea if I had a doctor assigned familiar with the races in this…sector.  My doctor is a good doctor…but for the most part, his experience has been limited to Romulan and Reman patients.”

“Dr. Chakwas.” Anderson proposed as Hackett nodded his head.  “You might also want a helmsman who’s familiar with the local space and mass effect relays.  I know the perfect man if you’re interested.  He’s a crackerjack pilot—the best—but he does have a bit of an attitude.”

“I have an adequate helmsman, but it wouldn’t hurt to have someone familiar with this area of space.” V’lana replied, adding with a smirk, “And don’t worry about him having an attitude, as you’ve seen, I have one myself.”   Pausing for a moment, she added, “I do have those Blue Suns prisoners we took…”

“We can take them off your hands.” Hackett beamed, “Also, we can supply you with an Alliance shuttle and other personnel to help you…a couple of marines for ground missions and I’ve heard mention of an up and coming communications specialist you might find of assistance.  She’s currently in R and D, but her marks are high, and I’ve read only good reviews from her commanding officers.”

“Thank you, Admiral.” V’lana nodded her head, “We did take losses before coming here…not many, but some, and my science officer has been doubling as communications officer, I’d like to have her focus on her science duties.  Please do make sure that they understand that as humans, they will be a minority on my ship.  They will be treated with respect and courtesy, make no mistake about that.” The subcommander made abundantly clear, “But my ship is Romulan and we have our way of doing things and they will have to adapt to it.”

“Understood.” Hackett nodded his head.

“There are others that you also might want to consider bringing in to help you.” Anderson suggested, “They were a part of Shepard’s team along with Alenko…”

“We’ve already met Tali and she’s a no-go—at least for now.” Kaidan interjected.

“That’s too bad.” Anderson shook his head, “But we have a lead on where Garrus might be as well as Dr. T’Soni—if you could get either or both of those to assist you, it would be most helpful.”

Kaidan nodded his head, whispering, “You can depend on both of them.”

“All right.” V’lana agreed, “Give me their locations and I’ll seek them out.”

“There is someone else you should try to contact.” Valern, the salarian councilor, spoke.  “Mordin Solus.  A genius. His specialty is xenobiology.  He was also in the STG…Special Tasks Group.  His skills could come in handy. He is currently on Omega running a clinic”

Chuckling, V’lana replied, “I happen to be short a xenobiologist and I have a feeling one will come in very handy in this. Give me his coordinates. Now, if you’d like…I’d suggest we make ourselves comfortable.  We have a great deal to discuss before we all get to work.”

Ilium

Matriarch Aethyta watched mournfully from behind the bar she tended as she observed the asari maiden sitting alone at a table, quietly making notes on her omnitool.  “Darling…” She whispered under her breath, “You have no idea how much this hurts—me having to watch you when I’d rather give you a great big hug.” Shaking her head sadly as the asari left the bar, Aethyta called out to her assistant, a chipper young human, “Ali…take over for a bit.  I’m going on break.”

“Right.” The dark-haired human responded as she took the asari matriarch’s place behind the bar.  “See you in fifteen.”

Going back into her office, Aethyta activated her omnitool and punched up a coded sequence.  The omnitool then began to display all of the day’s correspondence and communications sent and received by Liara T’Soni.  One word, in particular, seemed to figure prominently in much of these communications. Aethyta pressed a button and began to record a message. “I want a search on all databases and communications for anything having to do with Romulan or Romulans.”

Project Rebirth—Secret Cerberus Base—Undisclosed Location

“The project is ready for activation.” The head scientist announced as the Illusive Man and his bodyguard entered the lab.

“Excellent.” The Illusive Man responded, “And the safeguards?”

“The control chip and backup implants are all in place and working properly.” The scientist responded.

“You’ve done well, Henry.” The Illusive Man stated as another man entered the lab. “Our project seems to be a success.  And don’t worry…Cerberus will assist you in your efforts to recover Oriana.  And as for Miranda…”

“A failure.” Dr. Henry Lawson replied, adding, “We can only hope that her interference has not damaged Oriana’s potential.”

“And if it has?” The Illusive Man asked, his eyes gauging the scientist’s reaction.

“Then we terminate and try again.” Lawson replied in an emotionless tone.  “We are seeking nothing less than the perfection of humanity.  We cannot allow feelings or emotions to hinder our efforts—would you not agree, Jack?”

“I agree wholeheartedly, Henry.” The Illusive Man responded.  “Now…” He said as the last of the nutrient fluid that had sustained their prize had drained out of the tube containing her, “Let us see our project.”

The two men watched as the glass tube opened, revealing a redheaded woman with freckles and green eyes. As the woman opened her eyes, The Illusive Man smiled, “Welcome back, Commander Shepard.”