I admit some confusion about how the Lystheni thought killing Mira "and her puppet master matriarch" would completely cripple Virmire. Oh sure, it would cause some major damage to lose their most beloved prime minister and exceptional military commander, but it wouldn't completely cripple Virmire (except for punching the questers in the gut, the face, then between the legs).
Ok maybe I'm being unfair in my judgement since it might not be public knowledge what happens if the PM is unable to continue their duties, but you'd think spies could figure out the most basic of contingency plans the enemy has in place; like the chain of command! I mean c'mon, do they think our people can't make independent decisions or something? Sure, if our people had the brainpower of the Lystheni then it'd make sense that their leader thought killing Mira would completely cripple our republic, but they couldn't possibly think we're that stupid...
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Could they?
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Holy shit, they actually thought we were that stupid! Those damn fools must've gained a bloody huge ego boost from looting those ancient ruins! Idiots must not have realised that their secret behaviour wasn't actually so secret. Bloody morons didn't even understand how completely dead they would be if Virmire fell at all! What the actual frak was their plan anyway!?
Unless we find proof of diplomatic communications between the Lystheni and other nutjobs, or even the Rachni, then I don't understand how they expected to survive any sort of Virminian breakdown. I mean surely they didn't expect to absorb our population into their crazy cult, right? Let alone believe they have the capacity to fight off the Rachni themselves.
E: I'm also curious; they understand the stereotypical dynamic between asari maiden and matriarch, but they did not understand that Mira is an asari (aka a biotic) commando that is very skilled and talented? Her background (at least part of it) should be public record, and spies should've found at least one thing that wasn't public record. Lystheni, did you fellows remove your brains? Or did you just use your nuclear power generators to radiate your brains?