Returning to the Cradle
2173-Q2
[X] Write-in: Do a background check. A few minutes with an omni-tool is not a comprehensive search. Get your security chief, Goto, to dig up more info, particularly whatever it was that got him fired time and again. Forewarned is forearmed. Try to get it done before you land on Earth, but if that is not possible, arrange to keep in contact with him, promising nothing, but you've got the entire time you're on Earth to make the decision.
-[X] Crappy ship or not those things cost big money, no one writes one off like that. Something stinks. See if it's possible to link to the computers remotely and strip them bare. Try and recover deleted files too.
-[X] Ask if the captain to take it under tow anyway as a 'good will gesture' without telling Laurence. During the trip have a couple of your security search it top to bottom, especially the cargo to see if it's legit. If he was writing that off as well.....
Watch your back
"Miss Shepard," the leader of your investigative branch greets you with a smile as his face appears on the screen in your room, "I had not though to hear from you so soon. How may I be of assistance?"
"We ran across a ship near the Shanxi-Theta relay in need of assistance. Its engine blew up some hours prior to our arrival, and it was floating dead in space. We came to its aid and rescued the lone occupant, one Laurence Freeman." You are unable to keep from frowning as the man's story flashes through your mind once more. "He seems to have a colorful past, could you look into it?"
"Of course, Miss Shepard," Mr. Goto replies with a slight bow of his head. You blink, is something moving behind him? Or is it your screen flickering? "Is there anything else you can tell me about this particular Laurene Freeman?" He asks. There's nothing moving now, probably just your imagination.
"He's a political analyst who's apparently been labeled persona non grata by the entire community in the business of hiring political analysts. He worked on Eden Prime some 15 years ago, and after that he's been unable to hold down a position." There it was again, a flicker, or some kind of movement. You frown slightly, and then shake your head. This paranoia thing is getting a bit too much. "His ship is the MSV Machiavelli, you should be able to take it from there."
"Certainly Miss Shepard," he says, giving another light bow. As he speaks, there is a soft beep from your omnitool, and you spare a glance to look at it. There is a reminder that you'll be getting your next status update from Liara tomorrow evening, but why does that make a sound?
"Sorry about that," you say as you return your gaze to Mr. Goto, and a for a moment, you are frozen in shock.
"Nothing to worry about, Miss Shepard," he says, smiling as if nothing in the world is amiss, "I will get right on it. Happy birthday." And at that, you are unable to keep from laughing, and quite naturally, he shifts his head in surprise, causing the source of your amusement to tumble from his head. While you were looking away someone had placed a furry rabbit plushie dressed up as a ninja holding a chainsaw katana in one hand and an over-sized present in the other on his head.
A high, joyful laughter joins yours from behind Mr. Goto and you hear Kasumi adding a "happy birthday, Revy," of her own before the connection is cut.
Flotsam
"I'm sorry, Miss Shepard," the pilot says when you ask him to tow the Machiavelli, "we can tow it, sure, but we can't take it through the Relay. If you want to save the man's ship, you'll have to tow it at sub-light to Shanxi on the other side of the star, which will take at least a day."
You frown, that'll make you late for the contest, saving Freeman has already cut away most of the time you had to spare if you want to get set up decently before the competition starts. "Fine," you say with a sigh, "let's go then. It's probably nothing."
After a moment's hesitation, a thought occurs to you, "could you ask a towing service to bring back the ship and look it over carefully?"
"Not a problem, Miss," he says with a nod and returns his attention to the controls, plotting your course back to the Relay.
At least you had had Cortana start copying the contents of the ship's computer systems before you did anything else. You'll have all his records available in short order.
The first thing you look for is, quite naturally, anything looking like private information, journals, logs, manifestos or the like, but he doesn't really have that. Well, there is the ship's log detailing trips, jumps, cargoes, encounters and so on, but it doesn't tell you much about him.
You take one, very brief, look at his deleted files. You may be of legal age as of today, but that does not mean you have to take full advantage of your new status, you reflect with a suppressed shudder.
His Extranet history confirms his off hand reference to spending most of his time reading news and background information. His daily routine seems to involve every major news agency in the Alliance, and quite a few you've never heard of before. Based on the fact that he does not seem to have an automatic translator program turned on, you deduce that he is most likely conversant if not fluent, in the dominant Asari, Salarian and Turian languages.
However, the sheer lack of files outlining his thoughts and analyses is more than conspicuous. You are not sure exactly what it means, but it is more than fishy. With a frown you consider the possibility that he could be old fashioned enough (well, more ancient fashioned) to write these things on paper, but surely that can't be.
Whatever the details are, his computer seems to corroborate his story, or at least not speak against it.
Cradle of humanity
The last time you were here, you approached Earth in a rather cramped Dromedary class shuttle with your mother and boxes full of power armor for company. This time, you're riding in style. Your room on the ship has a large window that is entirely superfluous, but offers a great view of the little blue-green planet your race came from. It also has a very nice bed that doubles as a couch upon which you and Brian are currently snuggled up, enjoy the view and each other's presence.
"It's beautiful," Brian says from behind you, his arm held against your belly. "Gonna be weird living there when I join up, though," he says with a hint of melancholy entering his voice. "But it's what we're fighting for, isn't it. The Cradle of Humanity," he makes sure to make his tone as pompous as his words, and you can't help but chuckle, despite the reminder that this stage of your relationship is coming to an end. It's been nice. Very nice.
"Yeah," you agree, but some part of you can't help thinking of Liara and the other aliens out there. Is it really Earth you're fighting for, or is it something more? "I didn't get a proper look at it when I was here two years ago, but this is one great-looking planet." As you speak, the ship moves around Earth, and you look down upon the sparkling dark side where only the light of the cities is visible.
"What's the plan when we get there?" Brian asks, moving away from the kinda-touchy subject of his signing up, "got time for sight-seeing, or is it soldiers and salesmen from here on?"
"Nah," you say, putting some mirth in your voice, "there'll be politicians and photographers too."
He snorts, "won't that be fun?" He asks deadpan, and you chuckle in return. "Seriously, though," he continues, "we've come hundreds of light years, we have an obligation to play tourist a little. Even if it's only in Moscow. It's where they invented tank-biathlon, you know," he adds, sounding amused, but you're not entirely sure if he's at all serious or not.
"Mmm," you agree, "I guess we should do something. I'm sure Miranda won't mind if we keep the ship another day or two." He snorts back laughter, but doesn't comment. You'd think he'd gotten over the whole 'my girlfriend is a billionaire' thing by now, but apparently it can still surprise him. That does still leave the question of what you should do with your social program.
Tourism
[ ] Look at me still looking when there's Science to do. Take the ship back as soon as the competition is over.
[ ] Sight-see Moscow with Brian. The city is over a thousand years old and has housed both the one of richest empires, one of the vilest murderers in the history of the world. There's gotta be a lot of interesting stuff.
[ ] Meet new people. Last time you met Conrad and the other Berkeley students, who knows what this competition will bring. Maybe someone as smart, but less annoying.
[ ] It's who you know. There will be politicians and business men at the competition, and making friends and connections will be useful in the long term.
[ ] Meet old people. Captain Anderson, Major Navarre, and possibly even general Decroix will be there, reinforcing your good relationship with the Alliance is important. Plus, Brian would love to meet them.
[ ] Write-In.
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A/N: Once more, I apologize for my tardiness, and regret to say that it probably won't be better with the next update. I'm going to St. Petersburg on Sunday for another conference, and defend my PhD thesis the following Tuesday, so an update before then is probably unlikely. But we'll see.
