2184 CE

Matriarch Lismenea Tevos sighed as she stretched back in her chair. The life of a Citadel Councilor was never an easy one.

Even after three hundred years of serving on the Citadel, her job hadn't gotten any easier. There were always new problems to solve, new difficulties to overcome, new disputes to settle. . . .

And to be frank, Tevos liked it that way. It was the whole reason she had volunteered for the job in the first place.

Even as a young maiden she had never been content with the simple life. She'd longed for challenges, thirsted for knowledge and generally done everything in her power to improve herself as much as she could.

Which was why, at seven hundred and fifty, she was the youngest Matriarch to ever serve as the asari representative on the Citadel Council.

A life of leisure and boredom had never been one for her. Even as a child she had despised the casual manner in which her fellow asari spent their lives. They were the species with the longest life-span in the galaxy, and how did they spend their time? Almost all the maidens spent their first couple of centuries dancing in bars or playing mercenary. Even if such behavior could be dismissed as the frivolity of youth, it still didn't excuse that nearly all matrons spent their lives working in and around asari space. And the less said about the so-called 'wise' Matriarchs, the better.

Thinking about the Matriarchs brought a frown to her face. Her last conversation with the Thessian Council had not been a pleasant one.

She seethed inwardly at the arrogance of those fools. All she had requested was a posthumous award for the late Commander Shepard and a simple statement recognizing her contributions at the Battle of the Citadel. Was that really too much to ask!?

Shepard had sacrificed her own people in order to save the Destiny Ascension and its crew. Given that she could have just as easily left them to die, and the significance of the Ascension to asari history (it was the ship that discovered the Citadel, after all), the least they could do was acknowledge her efforts. If nothing else, this would get them the goodwill of the humans, who were doing a pretty excellent job of establishing themselves in the galaxy.

It was times like these that made her wish Matriarch Aethyta had not left Thessia. The laid-back, straightforward-to-a-fault Matriarch had always one of her favorites. She, Lidanya and herself had always been the most forward-thinking members of the Council. With her departure, it was only Lidanya and herself against the rest of them.

But Aethyta's personal problems coupled with the way she was openly shunned by the traditionalists had become too much to bear. Not that Tevos blamed her; anyone would have cracked under that kind of pressure. She was just surprised it hadn't happened sooner.

Aethyta's estrangement from the Council only served to make the situation worse. What little bit of restraint they'd had before was gone, and now they were passing one foolish resolution after another. Like the decision the confiscate the late Matriarch Benezia's estate, thereby depriving young Liara T'Soni of her heritage. Such a travesty would never have happened if Aethtya had still been around.

But that was neither here nor there. . .

Tevos exhaled softly. To be honest, she did have her own reasons for recommending Shepard for the honors. Apart from the fact that she was personally indebted to her for saving her life (unlike Sparatus and Valern, Tevos always repaid her debts), she'd had a soft spot for the young human female since the first time they'd met.

Whatever else she may have been, in her eyes Jane Shepard had always been a good woman. Shepard had been always been refreshingly honest in her dealings with the Council despite the deplorable way Sparatus insisted on treating her. Unlike other Spectres she had never allowed her power to go to her head, nor did she use her new status to demand concessions for the Systems Alliance, something Sparatus had warned that she might do.

Then there was her first mission for the Council: Tevos had observed Shepard very closely at every stage of her hunt for Saren, and was rather pleased by what she saw. Not only did Shepard complete her missions on Feros and Noveria successfully, she did so with minimum civilian casualties. While there were a few controversial decisions she had made, Tevos wasn't bothered much by them. She was actually glad for the destruction of the Prothean ruins on Therum (the Goddess-damned dig-site would have only led to more disputes between the Council races); and while the last Rachni Queen's freedom was a matter of some concern, she knew for a fact that the STG was keeping a close eye on the situation, and would respond quickly and decisively should they become a threat to Galactic stability. Not to mention she was rather curious to see how the Rachni would turn out.

All things considered, Tevos herself couldn't see a way Shepard could have done things any better. In spite of the severe lack of resources and support from the Council, she had managed to thwart Saren's plans and saved all of their lives.

And they rewarded the brave warrior by sending her to her death.

Tevos still couldn't believe the sheer arrogance of the other two Councilors, sometimes. First those two had rail-roaded her into forcing Shepard to return to the Citadel, and when things started going badly they insisted on being evacuated on the Destiny Ascension, leaving the Citadel behind to burn! And after everything Shepard did to save them, those two didn't even have the courtesy to tender a formal apology to the human Spectre!

Valern she could understand. The old salarian was notorious even during his STG days for being a merciless back-stabber, but Sparatus had surprised her. What happened to the famous turian concept of honor and loyalty? When had the man, who in his younger days had been the most idealistic of them all, become so bitter and cynical?

Then again, she mused, he had lost his wife to the Relay 314 incident. That certainly explained why he was always so eager to jump the gun on any matter that involved humans.

Looks like Saren wasn't the only turian with an irrational hatred towards our new friends in the galaxy. . . .

Tevos sighed softly. Sometimes she wished she could be more ruthless and controlling like her cousin, Matriarch Irissa. It certainly would have helped in dealing with the Saren problem.

All this brought back memories of Commander Shepard's final report on Saren and his allies.

The Reapers. . . .

When Tevos had first heard the mention of the Reapers in Shepard's reports, she had dismissed it as a fairy-tale. For indeed that is what the tales of Reapers had always been to the asari: bedtime stories.

And not just the asari either. Every single civilization in the galaxy had their own stories about the prophesised 'end-of-days'. Fables of ancient gods who returned to eradicate all life when the cycle was at its end. The Reapers no doubt had similar significance to the Geth's culture (assuming AI even had a culture); something which Saren blatantly exploited to get them on his side.

That had been her theory back then. The lack of any evidence to support the existence of these Reapers had pretty much convinced her that it was another one of those conspiracy theories their Intelligence teams frequently ran afoul of.

But now. . . . now she wasn't so sure.

Shepard's death barely a month after the Battle of the Citadel forced her to see the whole situation in a whole new light. Tevos had been a politician long enough to know an assassination when she saw one. Someone wanted to silence the human, or perhaps they thought she was getting too powerful for her own good. . . . either way it didn't change the fact that someone had dearly wanted, and succeeded, in getting rid of Commander Jane Shepard.

Then there was the manner in which she was killed. The Alliance report speculation that the unprovoked attack on the Normandy might have been an act of vengeance by Batarian slavers for Balak's death.

But the STG report was a completely different story. The emission signature made them suspect that the enemy ship had been a cruiser of unknown origins, which was disturbing when one considered that they had records of heat emission signatures of every kind of ship in the galaxy. Then there was the technology involved: the ship was undoubtedly sophisticated enough to sneak up on the Normandy (which itself was a one-of-its-kind Stealth spacecraft). Its cannons were supposedly powerful enough to rip clean through the Normandy's armor with two shots. Tevos knew that no two-bit slavers could possibly have a ship like that and the Hegemony simply did not have the resources to send their best ships out to hunt the first Human Spectre; and if the Normandy's pilot's testimony was to be believed, it most certainly was not a Geth ship either.

Tevos herself knew of only one ship that could annihilate the Normandy like that: Sovereign. Except that Sovereign was in pieces and its main gun (which she knew the turians stole from the wreckage) couldn't possibly have been reverse-engineered within a single month.

Then what in the name of the Goddess killed Commander Shepard?

Her musings were cut short when her aide walked into the room. "Excuse me, Councilor? You have an incoming call."

"Not now, Naeezya."

She fidgeted slightly. "Councilor, it's a code 669."

Tevos felt her brows lift slightly. A code 669 message indicated the caller was pretty high up on her priority list.

"Very well, patch it through."

Her console lit up and Tevos absentmindedly typed a few commands. She looked at the encryption on the call and froze.

What in the name of the Goddess!?

"Naeezya!" she called into the intercom.

"Yes, Councilor?"

"Is the room secure?"

There was a pause. "It is now, Councilor."

"Thank you. And please see to it that I am not disturbed for the next hour or so."

"Understood, Councilor."

Tevos waited until the intercom went dead to activate her omni-tool. She swept it across the room, and after satisfying herself that the STG bugs were not responding, she typed in a few more commands. Her omni-tool gave a soft ping as its final security feature activated, ensuring that any stray listening devices would pick up only static for the next few hours.

Heart thumping wildly in her chest, she pressed a button on her console, causing her entire screen to become black, only a symbol glowing at the center.

The symbol of the Shadow Broker.

"Thank you for taking the time to speak with me, Councilor Tevos," a heavily synthesized voice said.

"What do you want?" Tevos asked brusquely.

"Straight to business then. I have been reliably informed that you suspect foul play in the unfortunate death of Commander Shepard."

Tevos felt her heart skip a beat. "I am afraid that I do not know what you're talking about."

"Please, Councilor! Did you honestly think that I would not notice your less than subtle attempts at accessing the Alliance's case files regarding the attack on the Normandy SR1?" There was a hint of smugness in the voice.

Tevos sighed. She really should have known better than to assume that no one would notice her hacking into the Systems Alliance databases. Even if her aides were smart enough to evade detection from the STG, there was no way they could hope to escape the Broker's attention. He had eyes everywhere.

"What do you want?" she repeated testily.

"I merely wish to inform you that you're trying too hard. The information you seek is right under your nose, as the human saying goes."

Tevos frowned. "What are you talking about?"

A pause. "You're looking for evidence about the Reapers, aren't you Councilor?"

"Yes. . ." she said slowly.

"Then would it not be prudent of you to start with the species believed to have been eradicated them so many years ago? The Protheans?"

"You think I do not know that?" she snapped. The Broker's condescending tone was beginning to get on her nerves, especially since she'd spent the last year searching desperately for the smallest scraps of information.

"You know we already sent teams out to Ilos to verify Shepard's claims. We found the ruins exactly as she described them but the VI. . ."

"Was not responding," the Broker finished. "Yes, I am aware. What you are not aware of, my dear Councilor, is that there is another Prothean VI similar to the one on Ilos. And the good news: it still functions to this day."

It took all of Tevos' willpower to not gape at the monitor. "There is another Prothean VI?"

"A fully functioning one," the Broker confirmed. "And to my knowledge, it possesses all the data you need to confirm the existence of these Reapers."

"Where is it?" she demanded.

"Do you really not know, Councilor?" the amusement was back in the Broker's voice. "Can you really not think of anyone who would hold onto such secrets, such sophisticated Prothean technology merely to maintain their supremacy in the galaxy?"

Tevos frowned in thought for a few moments, and realization dawned upon her. "It cannot be. . ." she whispered.

"I see you figured it out," the Broker's voice was laced with approval.

"That is impossible! You are lying. . ."

"Am I? We both know what really lies in the Temple of Athame, Councilor."

Tevos paled. The true nature of the Temple of Athame was the Thessian government's greatest secret. No one, except for the Matriarch Council and the highest leaders of the government were aware of it, and each and every one of them would die before willingly giving up such confidential information.

Then how could the Broker possibly know. . . ?

She shook her head slightly. No, she couldn't dwell on that right now. There were more pressing concerns.

"There are only Prothean artifacts inside the Temple. There is no VI. . ."

"Oh, but there is," the Broker insisted. "The artifacts are the triggers to activate the central beacon, which is where the VI is housed."

"And you say that it contains information about the Reapers?"

"It does."

"Bu that is. . . that is impossible!" Tevos exclaimed. "Those artifacts have been studied for the last thousands of years. If there was a VI with information on the Reapers, there is no way the Matriarch Council would not have known about it!"

There was another pregnant pause. "Exactly my point, Councilor."

Tevos reeled backwards as the implications of that statement hit her. "Are you saying," she whispered slowly. "That the Matriarchs. . . . have always known?"

"Indeed."

Tevos felt the whole world spin around her. This couldn't possibly be happening. . .

All this time she had searched so desperately, grasping at the smallest scraps of information to verify Shepard's claims; and all this time her own government had had everything she needed. Information of such magnitude, data of such critical importance . . . and they hid this from the galaxy all this time!?

And for what? To maintain the vaunted superiority of the asari? Tevos understood the importance of guarding your advantage thoroughly. She could even understand, even if she didn't necessarily accept, the manner in which the Asari government regulated the handling of Prothean technology to ensure that no other species would be able to unlock its potential like they had thousands of years ago.

But this? This was beyond ridiculous! If Shepard's description was to be believed, they were talking about an entire race of sentient machines which have been purging their galaxy of organic life for millions of years. Even the mighty Protheans, who controlled the entire galaxy at the height of the power, were completely eradicated by them!

And the Matriarchs wanted to keep their existence hidden from the other races!? Tevos would have laughed if the situation wasn't so serious.

"How do you know all this?" Tevos asked the Broker quietly.

"I have my ways. Suffice to say that we have similar goals. . . for now."

"What goals?"

"I wish to prevent the annihilation of all organic life in our galaxy, just like you. Don't act so surprised, Councilor," the Broker continued as Tevos widened her eyes. "We both know what truly awaits us when, not if, the Reapers arrive."

"But Shepard stopped them!" she protested. "She said she stopped them from using the Citadel. . ."

"Commander Shepard did not stop the Reapers, she merely delayed their arrival," the Broker stated. "Make no mistake, Councilor. An ancient race of beings as powerful as them will not be stopped simply by closing a door."

"You seem strangely convinced about the Reapers' existence," Tevos said suspiciously. "How do you know so much about them?"

"My sources are my own; and in time. . . in time I will share them with you."

"You will?" she asked in surprise. It was completely unheard of for the Shadow Broker to be so accommodating.

"As long as you work towards saving our galaxy, then yes, I will. Understand this, Councilor: the unavoidable war with the Reapers will be the greatest trial this galaxy has ever faced, and if we do not learn to put aside our differences and fight together, there won't be a galaxy left for us to squabble over."

"Surely you exaggerate. . ."

"If anything I am actually understating things. You saw what Sovereign alone did to the Citadel fleet, Councilor. Imagine what an army of them can do."

Tevos shuddered violently in her chair. "Why are you telling me all this?"

"Because you are a leader," the Broker said bluntly. "You are a leader of your people, and thus obligated to do what you can to prepare them for the greatest threat to their existence."

"But I cannot go against the other Matriarchs," Tevos pointed out.

"You can and you will. You have done so before, and for less important reasons."

"You don't understand," Tevos said tersely. "This is different! Besides, for all I know the Matriarchs have made plans of their own. . ."

"And you are willing to wager the fate of the entire galaxy on that assumption?"

Tevos pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

Athame damn him! He's right!

She took a deep breath. "I will. . . see what I can do. But I make no promises."

"That is all I ask for, Councilor," the Broker said approvingly. "In the meantime I shall endeavour to share with you whatever information I manage to uncover. Expect to be contacted my agents in the future."

"Very well. And I assume you are not doing this out of the goodness of your heart?"

"You assume correctly." The Broker's synthesized voice sounded slightly amused. "But payment can be discussed later. For now, consider this a toast to the beginning of a new relationship."

"I shall keep in touch. Goodbye, Councilor."

And the call went dead before Tevos could say a single word.

Tevos planted her elbows on the desk and buried her head into her hands.

What was that human saying again: something about being careful what you wish for?

She had set out to validate her suspicions of criminal intent behind Shepard's death, and ended up stumbling head-first into a conspiracy by her own people.

Goddess help me. . .

But this was no time to sit and feel sorry for herself. There was work to be done.

She clasped her fingers together in thought. The first thing she had to do was conduct her own investigations. She didn't trust the Shadow Broker at all, especially not when the information was given out for free. For all she knew she was being led into a trap of some sort.

No, she had to be absolutely certain.

So yes, she would assign this job to one of her most trustworthy Spectres. In the meantime she would discuss the Broker's infromation with Lidanya, who was the only Matriarch she trusted at this point. Perhaps together they could also try finding Aethyta; an asari of action like her was exactly what they needed right now.

She disabled her jamming programs and activated the intercom. "Naeezya?"

"Yes, Councilor?"

"Send word to Tela Vasir to meet me in my chambers at the earliest. Classify it as a code 664."

"Understood, Councilor."

Tevos sighed and whirled around in her chair to look out the window, at the Presidium.

Now all she could do was wait.

AN: So what do you think, people? Like the premise so far?

The fun starts with the next chapter :)