"Ambassador... Captain."
While I only gave Udina a careless nod, my nod to David Anderson was very polite.
"Spectre..."
David Anderson looked at me with a slight question.
"Captain, may I speak with you in private? The matter I need to discuss does not concern politics, so the Ambassador's presence during the discussion is unnecessary."
Even though I said his presence was unnecessary, in fact, it sounded like it was undesirable, and everyone present understood that perfectly.
"Of course..."
David Anderson nodded to me.
"...let's go to a private office; there are meeting rooms for rent just down the hall."
"Thank you for your understanding."
"I insist on being present!"
"Ambassador Udina, I wish to point out that I am a Spectre, and it is for me alone to determine who will be present during my conversation with anyone and who will not. So I ask you not to interfere in matters that do not concern you."
From the Ambassador's eyes, it was clear he was very angry. But I was outside his jurisdiction. No, he could, of course, try to pressure me through the Systems Alliance, but I had already filed the paperwork and would soon retire, though I doubted he knew about that.
"So..."
When we were in the private office, I turned to David Anderson.
"Here is the data. Cerberus has shown itself again..."
As soon as I said that, David Anderson tensed up significantly.
"...in short, an emergency beacon was activated in Thresher Maw territory."
My interlocutor flinched.
"We, of course, dealt with the Thresher Maw and also blew up the beacon, but..."
I grimaced.
"Captain, may I speak frankly?"
"Yes."
"Rein in The Illusive Man. I'm not talking specifically about you now, or about Kohaku, or other honest military men. Но, we both understand that without support from within the system, an organization that screams about being outside the system could not exist. It would have been destroyed long ago."
"John..."
"Captain, really, there's no need to deny the obvious. Right here..."
I handed David Anderson a copy of the conversation with Matriarch Elysia.
"...is a recording of a conversation with Saren Arterius's accomplice. And she is certain that a massive war awaits us, I would say a war the likes of which no race has ever seen. Even the Rachni Wars will likely seem like a light stroll to everyone. And if The Illusive Man doesn't stop messing around, I will use my Spectre status and begin a targeted hunt for any sentients connected to him."
"Ahem... I cannot promise that this information will reach The Illusive Man, but I will try to spread this information among the military so that those who sympathize with his organization pass these details to The Illusive Man."
"Thank you."
I nodded gratefully to David Anderson, after which silence hung in the room for a while.
"So, things are bad?"
"Very... my allies and I, even before all this..."
I made a vague, general gesture with my hand.
"...were preparing for something bad, but now... Now we have an understanding that our preparation is absolutely insufficient."
"I see..."
David Anderson didn't like my words, or rather, he didn't like the fact that we think the war really is coming. But he understood perfectly well that it was inevitable.
"...I hope... ahem... in general, I hope that your colonies will help everyone else during the war?"
"Depends on what..."
I shrugged with some doubt. Neither saying yes nor no.
"...understand me correctly, as a soldier and a Spectre, I will, of course, rush around the galaxy, the part of it known to us, and try to stop the Reapers. However, as a ruler, I have no right to excessively risk my subjects. So... food, weapons, some materials—as long as we can produce them, we will supply them, however..."
I shook my head.
"...I doubt that will last long. So..."
"I understand. Thank you for your honesty."
"Don't worry, if everything goes well, we'll still have time to prepare for a very serious war. And if not... well, in that case, we'll all be unprepared..."
And I would lose Eden Prime, as nothing has been built on it yet. No underground bunker, no proper defensive structures on the planet or in space... basically, everything is still bleak there.
"Alright, let's hope everything goes well... and we have time to prepare."
"Yeah... and now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go..."
I left David Anderson, then hurried to Councilor Tevos, who, when I entered her office, was sitting in her chair with a look of shock on her face.
"Councilor?"
"She really is sentient..."
In her gaze, which she focused on me, there was clear disbelief. And not just disbelief, but a refusal to accept it. But Tevos wasn't a politician for nothing; she was extremely experienced and had no intention of brushing off the facts.
"...we always believed that if the Rachni had intelligence, it was... extremely primitive. Something like advanced instincts, a VI that would never become an AI, but... the Queen turned out to be more than sentient. Yes, some concepts she used were out of place, but that's likely because she simply doesn't know what concepts we use to denote such things."
"I would put it somewhat differently."
"Differently?"
A flash of interest appeared in Tevos's eyes.
"Yes... she uses the knowledge of the late Matriarch Elysia to communicate with us, but she doesn't mention the word 'Song' constantly for nothing; most likely, in their language, everything is tied to intonation, sounds, tonality... so one word with different tonality will mean completely different concepts."
"Hmm... and she simply couldn't understand that and... uses an intermediate style of conversation? Like she uses our words, but at the same time... terminology from her own language? Interesting..."
"As I understand it, you didn't destroy her?"
"No..."
Tevos shook her head tiredly.
"...I didn't destroy her, though I suspect Sparatus would have argued for outright destruction, and Valern for vivisection. However... I couldn't do that. Hah... probably funny to hear that from a politician?"
"Why so? No, not funny... by the way..."
I paused, giving Tevos a chance to compose herself a bit.
"...the Queen mentioned that she remembers the last war, and I have a suspicion she wasn't talking about the war with humans, but specifically about the war with the enemy that..."
"Enough..."
She waved me off.
"...I already know that your information about the Reapers is true. A certain race, which the Protheans called that, really did fight a war of annihilation with them for a very long time. This information came to me from Thessia. So you don't have to worry, I'm on your side... and the Asari have already begun to reactivate old ships and build new ones. I brought this same information to the rest of the Council, though they weren't happy that we, the Asari, were able to confirm this information somewhere. And while Sparatus is just a soldier to the bone, and he likely just wasn't informed of such information from his homeworld, Valern..."
She shook her head, frowning.
"...the lying bastard, he was definitely given the information, but he chose to play the role of offended innocence."
"I see, so Citadel Space is gradually starting to prepare for war?"
"Yes... but we don't have time for it. And it's being done very cautiously for now, so as not to cause panic, because that could kill significantly more sentients."
"Understood."
I closed my eyes in agreement.
"By the way, you are, relatively speaking, the ruler of several colonies? Which do not belong to the Systems Alliance?"
"Suppose so..."
I looked at Tevos with some apprehension.
"Don't worry, no one is going to infringe on your power, it's just..."
She grimaced.
"...anyway, I was asked to talk to you about one topic... The Asari have... a dark page that we hide from everyone. With a certain probability, two pureblood Asari can have... a child with a genetic disorder. We call them Ardat-Yakshi."
"Heard of them."
I nodded, letting her know she could keep the details to herself, as I understood exactly what was being discussed.
"Well, yes... you do communicate with Aria T'Loak quite closely... and not just with her, I assume?"
At Tevos's questioning look, I nodded in agreement.
"Fine, it's none of my business, and you're on our side for now. Anyway, it so happens that among the Ardat-Yakshi are many children of quite famous Asari. No, they aren't born often, but given our numbers and lifespan... you must understand that one way or another, a certain number of Asari with such a genetic disorder does accumulate. And they accumulate in special temples on remote planets."
"And you want..."
"For you to take them in on your colonies."
"That is... a very costly request..."
I raised a hand, stopping Tevos, as I intended to develop my own thought.
"...and dangerous. I won't be able and won't want to keep them in isolation, even if I build a separate large building like your temple... and just that alone will cost quite a lot..."
"They have all received a very good education. And when I say very good, I mean one of the best educations in the galaxy. And you will be able to involve them in work."
"Fine..."
I closed my eyes.
"...suppose so. However, with their education, they only cover their own maintenance. There must be..."
"Justicars. The strongest and most experienced Asari biotics, and a certain number will be sent to your colonies to watch over the Ardat-Yakshi."
"..."
I didn't know what to say to that, but something had to be said.
"...a week."
"Huh?"
"Give me a week to think. In a week, I will contact you and give a final answer about the Ardat-Yakshi."
"Thank you."
Tevos nodded to me and gestured that the conversation was over.
"And yes, Shepard..."
Already at the door, I turned back to Tevos.
"...rumors have reached me, basically, permission to speak with the press has been granted to you. Don't disappoint me."
I only closed my eyes in despair, because now it would be harder to avoid journalists. However, I still have a few more ways to do it. And I'm not going to obediently answer their questions.
"By the way, did you check the data I sent?"
"Yes."
Tevos nodded.
"But we have no additional information. Except that an STG specialist squad was sent to Virmire, but they haven't been in contact for some time."
"I see... thank you, then I'll decide what to do next myself."
"Please be so kind."
A hint of sarcasm could be heard in Tevos's voice.
Leaving Tevos's office, I headed to the branch of my corporation, where business awaited me.
"Boss... you have a visitor."
I sighed and looked up at Alexey.
"Who?"
"Nassana Dantius, an Asari diplomatic emissary."
"Well, let her in, I guess..."
I shook my head with some bewilderment.
"Let's hear what she wants."
"Shepard..."
Entering the office where I worked, the Asari looked at me somewhat patronizingly.
"Miss Dantius, what brings you here?"
"I have a delicate request for you..."
"Miss..."
I showed with my whole appearance that her theatrical silence, during which she wanted to achieve something or other, had no effect on me.
"...I am a Spectre, I don't have time for your theatrics. So you either tell me what you want or leave the office. I don't have much time for my own affairs to waste it on outsiders."
"Ahem..."
She grimaced.
"The thing is, pirates have captured my sister and are demanding a ransom from me."
The voice, as well as the appearance, were a ten out of ten; I really wanted to pity her, but I reminded myself that she is an Asari politician, which means she knows how to present herself in the right light. Thanks to Aria T'Loak and Matriarch Benezia for building up my resistance to such tricks.
"And?"
"Please... help me save my little sister. I've already sent mercenaries with the ransom, but... but they didn't return her. I beg of you..."
She even acted out the tears.
"Where?"
"Tau Artemis..."
"All the details to my Omni-tool. I can't promise you that I'll take this case, simply because I have no business there, but... if I get the chance to stop by..."
"Thank you!"
After her thanks, a single thought appeared in my head: "She's overacting after all..."
***
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