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Turnabout-	By : Spiritwolf71 Category: +M through R > Mass Effect Views: 7688 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: This story takes place within Bioware's Mass Effect Universe, their creative property. I do not own any of Bioware's stories or characters or locations. The Author recieved no money from this story and is writing it purely for entertainment.

Chapter List
- 13
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- 15
The stench of human depravity was strong. It was something Liara was not used to. Even the poor and unfortunate Asari in Thessia were treated with some sort of respect. They gave their needy food and clothing and the necessities to survive. They even had education centers so that the children may have a chance to make something of themselves. Of course that was before the war. Now the children that were less fortunate had been placed in homes. It offered them food and education still but came with a price. When they were old enough, they would have to assist in the rebuilding efforts or join the Asari commandos.
In this same vein those families that had lost everything in the war were given a home but also had to assist in the rebuilding of Thessia. Buildings were replaced and wounds were healed and within twenty years, they predicted Thessia would be back to normal.
Earth was not the same. It was bad before the war and became even worse after it. It was sad because most parts of the Human home world were beautiful and they had a lot of open land and waterfalls and their conflicting seasons were marvellous. The biggest scars were the slums attached to most of the larger metropolitans. The rest of society tried to ignore them, aid was sparse and gangs took most of it. They gave it out as they saw fit, which left a lot of people to fend for themselves. The slums had the highest rates of birth as well as the highest rates of death.
Liara looked down to her foot as it pushed forward over the cracked and broken road beneath it. It was a good symbolization of the cracked and broken area she was about to enter. Shepard had been born here. She had never known her father and her mother had been killed when she was five. She had seen that when they had melded.
It was a memory that Liara had ever been able to truly cope with, nor had she even been able to get Cayle to talk about it. On occasion she had nightmares about the young Shepard, covered in her mother’s blood, holding her hand. The human had never screamed nor cried out; she had simply held her mother’s hand and asking her mama to wake up.
Cayle refused to talk about it, Liara had her memories but it was something Shepard had never come to terms with, she had never tried. Liara had never really had time to really talk to Shepard about her past. They never really had enough time together.
Now hopefully they would have that time to talk, to go over everything in both of their lives. They could have their own little blue children and maybe that would help Cayle come to terms with a past she wanted to forget.
She was confident that they would be able to help Shepard get her memories back. If they could not do it the normal way Liara could embrace her and meld again. Whatever walls Cerberus had built were already breaking down. She had felt that when they kissed.
“Humans stink,” Javik said as he walked beside Liara. He had met her as soon as she landed and advised her that there was a contact in the Toronto Slums that had been dealing with Kai Leng. The Bloods were the ruling gang in the slums but there were still territory wars with the Mongols. Since the fall of Cerberus the Bloods had lost quite a bit of territory but still held power. Cerberus had always supported the gang in return for test subjects and information. Now they were struggling, still the top dog in the area, but without constant supplies they had to rely on themselves for resources.
Liara smiled thinly at Javik. The Prothean always spoke what was on his mind and he was biased in every way. Not that she could blame him. He had seen the downfall of his people but not been allowed to participate in it. Instead he had been preserved, with an army for future domination. His army had not made it and Javik was alone.
When Liara was a child she used to dream about the Protheans. She had dedicated her entire life to studying them and learning all she could. She was the leading expert on the long dead race. At least she was, until Javik arrived. He had immediately disproved everything she had believed in. She had always had this wonderfully naïve vision of them. She had never imagined that they assimilated races, leaving those that refused to join them to die. At first she had blamed Javik for everything that was wrong with the Protheans. She had expected so much from him when he woke and had been bitterly disappointed.
It had had taken her a long time to forgive him, even though there was nothing to forgive. He was simply a warrior, much like Shepard. Javik, unlike Shepard, was not open minded. It wasn’t his fault that was just the way his culture was. Even he would admit that Shepard defeated the Reapers because the races learned to work together and bring their individual characteristics to the war. This did not allow the Reapers to learn their attack strategies; they had not been able to focus on the individuals that made up the whole.
Javik had not fared well after the war was over. He had taken the death of the Commander harder than Liara had expected. He had told her once that he had honestly believed that she would have made it out alive. With Shepard one always expected the impossible to be possible. He had started talking about death and joining his people. Liara had offered him a better choice and he had started to work for her.
He was not the most subtle information gatherer. Most people knew who he was and who he worked for. Instead, Liara used him as an enforcer. He ended up being very talented at extracting information for those that did not wish to part with it. He was also good at keeping some of her more elusive contacts in line. No one wanted a visit from the Prothean.
“Did you ever tell Shepard this?” Liara said with a slight smile. She would have taken offence to the words had she not have already found the woman she loved.
“Shepard did not smell, not like this,” he said simply, not looking to her. She had told him about Cayle and she wasn’t sure but she could have sworn that Prothean had grinned ever so slightly at the news.
Shepard always emanated a slight strawberry scent. She was not vain, in fact she wore very little make up and none when she was working, but she always smelt of strawberries. She also showered a lot, sometimes three times a day. Liara knew this was mostly psychological and linked to her youth. Liara never questioned this quirk as she sometimes she liked to join the beautiful human in the shower.
“This is where Shepard grew up, believe it or not,” Liara said and looked around.
“I can see why she left,” Javik looked to her. “This is a pathetic waste of life. The Humans have no idea of how to take care of their own. This should be a work camp and the people used to do useful things. Like what the Asari have done on Thessia.”
“Not everyone is perfect Javik. Thessia recovered fast but we forced labour on our people, paying them with food and little else.”
“You give them education and teach them a purpose,” Javik defended.
“But we took away their indivuality. We took away their choice and freedom. They can either be a builder or a commando. At least here people can be what they want to be.”
“Here people can be what the gangs want them to be or they can be dead. I do not see that has being better,” Javik looked to her. “I am reminded once again at how different you and I are.”
Liara smiled. “That is my point.”
Javik let out a grunt as they continued on. “We are being watched.”
Once upon a time these ‘slums’ were only populated with humans. Since the war there had been smatterings of Turians and Krogans that had not returned to their worlds, on occasion one would even find an Asari. Most of those that had stayed behind were suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and the human government had no way of helping them. They could barely help their own soldiers.
Liara and Javik still stood out, the Prothean more so than the Asari. “Most of these people have never seen the likes of you before,” Liara pointed out.
“Mouse’s contact better have good information because I do not know if I will be able to wash this stench out of my armour.”
“It was my contact that place Kai Leng heading to Earth,” this was more a caution then information. Javik was far too opinionated on everything. “We are almost there, this is Bellwood’s park and the rec center should be on its east side.”
“I see it.” Javik said looking at the small gray building. As they moved towards it Liara noticed a small group of children playing in some shallow pool, splashing water on each other. She could not help but smile as she heard their laughter and squeals of delight. It was the first she had heard since they had entered this area.
Mouse had told her the old community centre was merely a shelter for women and children. It was in Mongol territory but the gang left it alone for the most part. They used it for recruitment, when the children turned sixteen the gang would then begin to enticed them to join their folds. Because the centre was a good source of recruitment, it was protected.

That didn’t mean that there was not fear. Liara did not even need Javik’s sensory abilities to feel the fear. They were strangers and did not belong. These people knew that. They stopped when they reached the front of the building and looked around. The contact was supposed to meet them here it should have been easy to spot him. The only male humans were children. He should have stuck out. Javik looked to his omni tool.
“He is late.”
“We are late.” Liara pointed out. Before she could say more someone cleared their throat from behind. The pair turned.
“Can I help you?” The man asked. He was bigger than Liara had expected, almost as tall as Javik and built like James. His skin was pale and red rimmed glassed covered his eyes. He wore a jacket made of denim with a black shirt underneath and black pants that flipped down over the tongue of his shoes and then below the back of his heal. Liara looked to the torn and ripped cloth that was tucked slightly under his foot then back up to him. She wasn’t sure if she liked this man yet.
“Yes I am looking for Ringo.” She said. The man nodded and motioned for them to move inside the complex. They followed him.
“Our residents are to remain outside during the day. That gives us time to clean and prepare diner for them.” Ringo said admitting that they were basically alone. Liara had to admit, the place was cleaner then she expected. “We’re one of the better homes. There is a long waiting list for people who want to come here.”
“I can see that.” Liara said as Javik remained silent. She had not brought him with her to start beating a confession out the man. She needed him encase the man decided not to give her the information, that and she needed someone to watch her back.
“Where were you planning on opening the second shelter?” Liara asked. That had been the cost of the information. It was a price Liara had no problem paying. It got her the information she wanted and helped out those that needed it at the same time.
“There is a church on the other side of the park that has been abandoned; it has an old community hall attached to it as well. We would be purchasing that and then cleaning it out. We would be able to bring in at least fifty families. As promised we would name it after Shepard.” He said.
Liara nodded, “And your contact?”
“He told me that there was an auction already but that when most people had been out bidden, the remainders were to meet and it would continue there.” The man said.
Liara hated third party information, but she could understand what the Mongol would not want to be seen with them. “He said it was deep in Blood territory, some old apartment building on Spadina,” he handed them an envelope. “That is the passwords and the credit chit he used.”
“Very good, consider the church, yours. I will purchase it and have a representative come to you as soon as it is done. Thank you,” she bowed slightly as she spoke. “And keep up the good work,” she handed him a bigger envelope. “This is for the informant.”
Liara’s omni tool went off as she handed the man the money. She looked and the message was marked urgent, she looked to Javik then the contact. “Is there somewhere private I can talk?”
The man nodded and ushered her into his office. He closed the door to give her privacy while he stood with Javik. “So you are a Prothean?” the man asked as they walked away.
“So it would seem,” was all Liara heard Javik respond. She smiled slightly, and activated her Omni tool. She was slightly surprised to see Miranda. The surprise quickly turned to worry.
“Is Shepard ok?” she asked feeling a slight shake in the pit of her stomach.
“Well, she certainly recovered quickly,” Miranda answered but Liara could sense there was so much more.
“Miranda,” Liara growled.
“We were attacked by Cerberus, Liara and,” Miranda paused for a moment, “and I’m afraid Cayle escaped.”
Three days, Liara thought to herself. She had only been gone three days. Liara tried to get her emotions under control but anger began to boil. She almost could not talk. “How?” she barely choked out.
“We must have had a Cerberus spy, or they knew you would have brought her here or who knows. Liara, I’m sorry. There was nothing we could do, but we are tracking her now, I managed to get a tracer on her.”
“Find her.” Liara said between clenched teeth and deactivated the tool. She gripped the desk in front of her, her knuckles turning light blue as tears slowly made their way to her eyes. If Cerberus had Shepard they could reprogram her and Liara might never get her back. The table began to shake under her grasp. The door opened and Javik stood in the doorway. The Asari’s biotics were charging all around her.
“Is everything all right Liara?” He asked.
“No.” Liara barked out as she let go, her power unleashing from the very center of her sole. Her stomach was the ignition point for the bomb she had become as her power shattered the room and that sent Javik flying.
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