[The Forest at Night] an elcor and an asari were sitting under a tree...

“Oh yes, Ms, Arina, please come over here.” The very young asari waitress accompanied her to a booth on the lower floor or 'the Forest at Night' restaurant.

The usual round table had one side removed so there was ample space for an elcor. Arina had of course mentioned the fact that her company was of the dekuuna species and it seemed, the installation of the cushions and the semi foldable tables were already prepared for that.

She was a few minutes early and so she ordered a mulled wine for herself. The restaurant was its usual self, dimly lit with additional indirect lighting behind foliage in the booths, a few patrons scattered on tables, various species but mainly asari.

The Matron in the kitchen circle was commanding her two acolytes around with her firm but still affectionate tone which Arina knew so well by now. She leaned back and closed the eyes for a second, listening to the ambient sounds of birds calling, rustling leaves and the gentle sound of a shi’tari playing a melancholic thessian tune.

The Forest at Night. It was an elegant name, though somewhat foreboding. Like most Ghorsuulan elcor, Xuumo had been raised on stories of the night, cautionary tales that cast anything nocturnal as dangerous - old cultural memories of the predators that had once stalked primitive herds with the passing of the sun. Night was when one sought the protection of the huddle, and waited together, to endure until sunrise. Elegant but foreboding; the perfect place, then, for a meeting with a representative of the asari. Of all the Citadel's species, they were the race who knew his people the best. Not only had they pioneered the technologies that allowed for effective communication - sometimes more effective than he was comfortable with - but they also had that natural ability to meld with the most alien of beings. Who knew whether Arina Caenis had taken elcor mates? The asari had been his people's guides, the matriarchs of their interstellar herd, and in the end they had proven fallible. Yet compared with the crude, stupidly ambitious humans, the arrogant carnivorous turians and the barely self-controlled salarians, they were worthy of respect. At the very least, they were often sensible. This asari in particular had proven insightful; further encounters would be to his benefit.

Elcor formal wear consisted of slightly better cuffs and saddles; more important than the outward appearance was the chemical preparation. He had spent a fair amount of money ensuring that the right medicinal items had come through. At least he could rely on the embassy again, now that he could embrace, rather than shun, their attention. The only real issue this evening had been what to do about Alonso; he'd settled for simply leaving him in their paddock, ostensibly with literacy work to complete. To avoid another resentful challenge, he'd made it clear that he was going to be holding a conversation with an asari, and that there were few things that would drive a young human to greater distraction than having to endure an elcor-asari discussion. Alonso had seen the point.

Nonetheless, something had to be done on that front, and soon.

More pleasant matters. There had been pleasing news from the home system, at least; his people's efforts to become more involved in the exploration initiative had finally borne fruit. A new telescope array now graced Phontes. So we contribute passively, in a support role. He was torn between humour and distaste at the observation. The elcors' sensible outlook and famed steadiness was entirely why the galaxy could use more of their influence, but at the same time it was playing into the aliens' assumptions that his people lacked ambition.

"Surprisingly eager", the news piece had phrased it. Yes, why should we possibly wish to be more involved, after you all left us to die during the War?

He pulled his mind back to the present. He was here. Stepping inside, he was greeted by an asari, and directed to his table.

Elcor were hard to miss, and his approach was noted long before he arrived.

"Pleasantly: Good evening, Ms. Caenis".

Arina smiled at the entry of the elcor. She stood briefly to greet him.
“Good evening Mr. Xuumo.” Her implant projected several indicators for the elcor’s pheromone dress, she noticed that he wore, what asaroids would call an elegant, yet serious evening suit and seemed in good mood although a little concerned about the items he wanted to talk about. Not much of a surprise.

She wore a long Serrice style dress, the white front panel with several openings, showing skin at a still acceptable degree, sides and sleeves in sea-colors and shadow prints of stylized sea life.

“How are you doing? I hope my choice of location is acceptable.” She activated one of the two datapad menus the waitress had left at their table. By now she knew the standard meals but the dailies were always worth a look.

As soon as Xuumo had taken his position, the waitress hurried over again, asking for his choice of drink.

Arina thought she could see the eyes of the Matron owner behind the kitchen counter light up in anticipation to cater an elcor. Of course, the size of the servings meant an equally higher price.

As he took his place at the table, Xuumo felt genuine regard for Arina Caenis, from whom he sensed nothing but goodwill. For many people, offering to continue a discussion at another time and place would be polite formality at best, meaning nothing. She had meant it honestly, and there was something refreshing in that. He needed to clear his head and examine his options, and the opportunity to enlist the aid of someone without ulterior motive wasn't one he should squander.

He bowed slightly in greeting.

"Amiable: This is more than acceptable, Ms. Caenis. With evident gratitude: It's been a while since I found myself gracing such a quality establishment. Explanatory: The last few years have been rough in places. As they have for many, of course".

He cast an appraising eye at the décor. It was reminiscent of a planetary surface, and the familiar longing stirred in him. If he wasn't counting Farish Vey - and he wasn't eager to, preferring to put that mudball out of mind - he hadn't seen a planet since the height of the War. The sounds were almost painful in their verisimilitude.

To the waitress, he gave his drink order.

"Polite expectation: I believe I will have gulkoph if you have any". The Dekuunan fruit, and the bitter juices derived from it, were common enough in the wider galaxy, and with the uplift in traffic from the Silean Nebula as his people helped rebuild Earth, he imagined there would be some around. He'd prefer his homeland's jihk-kot, but there was no chance of finding that here.

The waitress bowed and hurried away.

"How's the elcor embassy doing? I hear you have more space now after the makeover? Unfortunately I have so little business with your office I haven't entered it in months." That was also part to the fact that the elcor held less receptions, and truth be told, some of the established embassies were overdoing that. The other reason was her field of work which was currently more oriented towards the turian and salarian offices. Maybe this evening was a good opportunity to catch up on the elcor view on things.

Arina was browsing the dishes of the day and felt tempted by steam boiled mushroom heads on salty sauce for starters and dumplings that came wrapped in large leaves as the main. That or a fish soup, hm.

The waitress came back with Xuumo's drink, a sturdy cup and pitcher with a handle fitted for an elcor.
"Have you already decided?" She asked.

Arina put down the datapad and smiled at the young girl.
"I'd like your steamboiled mushrooms - don't hesitate with the sauce please. After that I would like to have the dumplings in the leaves.... oh and be a dear and get me some more wine."

"Wryly: There is never enough space for our liking, Ms. Caenis. The renovation certainly makes it more bearable, though".

He tasted the drink - pleasantly bitter, not at all bad.

"Bluntly: I appreciate your taking the time to meet with me. It has been a while since I've enjoyed the pleasure of company". He took another look around; the restaurant was an appealing setting, certainly.

"Good-humoured: Are we ordering already?"

“Oh, I am sorry. I was a bit ahead of myself. Take your time with the menu, I don’t know if you have a preference for seaweed, I could recommend the carpaccio.”

The waitress nodded and retreated since Xuumo obviously needed more time. Arina raised the glass and toasted the elcor. She should probably switch to tea some time during dinner. She sure didn’t want to sound tipsy towards an elcor and the warm wine was potent.

She leaned back and took a relaxed position.
“Maybe you should propose to have a park refurbished as the elcor embassies. It would be fitting in many ways. With all species now having embassies or consults, the quarter gets crowded.”

She finished her wine and in no time the waitress was at their table, putting another cup in front of Arina and remained standing, observing Xuumo.

“May I point out a special offer from the kitchen, Sir. We have a fresh delivery of orchard grass. It is available as a side dish or spiced with a variety of terran flowers as a main course.”

"Gratefully: Very well, then, I'll try the orchard grass with Terran flowers".

Dining formally was something he was sadly out of practice with. Usually it had been meagre elcor-appropriate vegetation in his own paddock - and the elcor population had been a strain on resources for the year in which the Sol system had been cut off from its neighbours. Pickings had been slim, and in his self-enforced isolation he had probably been underfed. More recently, it had been he and Alonso, and Alonso didn't eat leaves. The various culinary misadventures of the first few weeks had taken their toll, he thought darkly.

"Appreciative: The park idea is a good one. It can be hard to perform to the highest standard when the environment is so claustrophobic. Good-humoured: We are not a people who appreciate walls, as I'm sure you know".

He scrutinized his companion. Asari and elcor; two very different races who nonetheless had a lot in common. An equally measured perspective focused on long-term investments, and a strong sense of community.

"Conversationally: How are things your end, Ms. Caenis? News from the Republics has been less common of late. With interest: Dare I assume that this means things are settling down?"

He hadn't, to his regret, been paying much attention.

The waitressed bowed and hurried away.

Arina wondered how the restaurant would handle elcor plates. She had seen a great variety of how other species catered the somewhat unique dekuunians.

“Yes, I know,” she replied to his remark about the walls. “The Citadel is not the most natural place for your kind but still… some of your species even dwell on Omega, where the surrounding is even more confined. You are probably more adaptive as a species than you realize.”

She took a sip of her wine while Xuumo offered her another topic.
“Well, generally speaking it is a mixed bag of course. There are ups and downs and speaking of Thessia herself, while going upwards, it is never happening fast enough. And that’s coming from us, the supposedly slowest of species according to some. But it is definitely an upward trend overall. The colonies not hit so hard are helping out where they can, in fact it strengthens their economy in the long run.

If you refer to CDN and news there, you just never know what the news aggregator picks up and when it will post something at all, it’s kind of a spotty picture.”

She remembered her trip or more adventure in the Nimbus cluster not long ago and involuntarily touched her temple. The scar was completely gone, thanks to medigel and all that but the memory of the pain was quite real.

“We are a thorough species and all the plans to rebuild are following a pattern. Maybe it seems slow to some of the fast lived species but they are aimed towards sustainability instead of a quick but shaky success.”

That was true and unfortunately it made the asari often look weak to others, humans especially. Turians not so much surprisingly but they had generations of time to get used to asari ways of doing things for themselves. Not emphasizing on looking dangerous or intimidating was confusing to many newcomers. Generations of interspecies marriage and living together would cure this; the humans just did not know that yet.

In fact, the elcor were similar in that regard, not being taken seriously because intimidation was not a natural behavior.

Xuumo shifted his body mass in the elcor approximation of a smile. "Pleasantly: We can agree, then, to toast the steady and sensible rate of progress". He raised his cup to his companion.

His 'smile' dropped away to something more business-like, but still friendly.

"Matter-of-fact: I was hoping you might assist me in making progress tonight. Sincerely: I found our conversation at the dinner, truncated though it was, very worthwhile. In particular I appreciated your insight into my current confusion. I didn't express it clearly".

For non-elcor to be so sensitive to the cues of his species, even with the technology they employed, was impressive. Perhaps it had been the press of the crowd - something soothing to his people's instincts - but he had found the conversation welcome rather than unduly provocative.

"Rhetorical: What was it you told me? Expect not to be prepared for the unexpected? Slight jocularity: There was a time when I would perhaps have scoffed. We elcor pride ourselves on preparing for the expected and unexpected both. Our legal precedents are so often constructed on hypotheticals. Solemn: I believe, though, that you are right. I was not prepared for the unexpected. Now I find myself entangled in something I can't easily see a means of disentangling from".

He tried to find the right words. Words were such a small part of elcor communication, but being among aliens had led to him relying on their nuances.

"Slight embarrassment: It is easy to become detached from yourself out here. The gravity is so light, you understand; my kind experience such strength and power - in more ways than one we're no longer 'down to earth'".

With something like reflective habit, yet not devoid of meaning, he added silently a benediction; gheskhan hul'dekuu, 'thanks to the earth'.

"Solemn: It leaves you thinking that you and the present environment - let us say the station - are disconnected. That you leave nothing behind as you pass through, and that you acquire nothing. It has no permanent pull on you. There is no weight to your footsteps. Curious: Does this make sense, Ms. Caenis?

Explanatory: We come to feel that we can simply walk through life and remain above such concerns. Reflective: Then you find that you've been leaving impressions after all, that you've tied yourself to your experiences here in a way that may have changed you. Unexpectedly.

Mildly self-deprecating: Hence the problem.

Concerned: The Citadel can grow on you; you come to accept the role you placed yourself in while relating to it".

He took another taste of the drink. With each sip, he appreciated it more. Genuinely good Dekuunan fare. Ah, it had been too long.

Arina listed to the elcor talk and noted his non-verbal spike in signals through her HUD implant.

"The question is can you truly feel at home anywhere like on the Citadel if you're not born here." she had no idea if that made sense.

"I've spent all my adult life on all kinds of planets and always knew this wasn't the place I was going to be staying at for long. Well, even a century is not long in the way I mean it. It all wasn't like Thessia but now... even Thessia is not like my Thessia anymore. Don't get me wrong, this I mean only in a personal way. All the neighborhoods I new, the whole region got plowed over. While it'S still the same soil and the same planet, something is lost forever." She mused for a moment.

"I never minded the floating feeling. The whole galaxy as a whole is the same to me now as the place I was born. yet I admit, the difference is the close company of my kind while I traveled the Republics. Even now on the Citadel."


"What about Alonso, what about his surroundings? His friends? Does he have any on the Citadel? The phase he is going through is essential, yet short. He is growing to be independent as a human being. It is desirable that he may do so in a stable environment where he can make friends and stick with them for a bit. How does he like live on the Citadel?"

From little she knew the boy had a troubled past on the station, maybe he would rather be elsewhere and not be reminded of that constantly. If the choice was salarian space in these days or a 4g world though... The common grounds for some species was so small, being it environmental issues or lifetime.

While it's still the same soil and the same planet, something is lost forever. Things changed, is what she was saying, and it could leave anyone slightly adrift. All of them - every being who had come through the war - found themselves in the same position. It was, he thought, a very asari way of speaking; appealing to commonality, firm in its implied conclusions while nurturing to the recipient.

I *have* changed, yes. The real issue was how one particular part of him had changed - the part he had thought was driving him these last two-and-a-half years. How far was he willing to let his ambition take him, and what was he bringing with him on the journey? Here was his confusion: he could return to Dekuuna, but step away from the path of opportunity, or he could follow that path through to foreign worlds. In addition, how was he going to extract himself from what he'd become involved in here on the Citadel? Did he even want to?

He told her about Alonso's gang in the ducts, the close relationships he had built there; a necessity in such a trying situation. "Hint of pride: He has long been loyal, fiercely so, to his former companions. Unwilling to break ties. Cautious: I have been reluctant to raise the issue of relocation with him. There's been less contact with his fellows of late, it's true, which is partially what I wanted. Justification: I thought it best to wean him away from dependency on that life".

He sighed, a long and heavy movement in an elcor.

"With weighted recognition: To speak the obvious, Ms. Caenis, elcor and human are not immediately compatible. As you say, Alonso is at an age where his transition from childhood to adolescence is now beginning. Ideally he should be in a stable environment. Firmly: Things are not ideal, though, and haven't been for some time. He was without any guidance or care. With conviction: I am not particularly appropriate for him, but I am here. That has to count for something".

He found himself experiencing a surge of sentiment, which came over him with surprising swiftness. "Fondly: He likes to cultivate what I've heard Rondor call a "devil-may-care" attitude - I think I place the reference - but he's vulnerable. Slight amusement: Also small. By our standards, most everyone is..."

In the meantime, the waitress had arrived with Arina’s starters and Xuumo’s grass. A large container, made of some vintage looking bronze, was rolled to the table and an assortment of flowers was arranged on a plate in front of the elcor. Some of the grass, which was mixed with petals of various colors, was served on the plate; the rest remained in the bowl for later

“What does Alonso see in you? I am sure the human boy see’s the anchor of stability, the literal rock in the current that you are – as an elcor in comparison but also as a responsible person.

From what little I know about asari having children with humans, they are also not comparable. Our lifetime and the resulting mental stability and long investment thinking are alien to them. The children develop totally different then what the human parent knows for themselves. They rely much more on guidance of their asari partners. In fact it is interesting how differently humans approach this, uncomparabel with, say, turians who experience the same basic problems. But in turian society, asari children are much more present for centuries now. Humanity is completely new to all of this. The asari parent although always has the advantage of always having an asari child. They need to adapt to their partners much more than to the kid. In your case that means you would probably be more like the human parent than the asari. Have you ever talked to someone who has fathered an asari child? There are some on CDN, but I don’t know how acquainted you are with them.”

She sipped her drink and started to munch on her mushrooms… delicious!

“How long is this phase in his life going to last anyway… five years, ten years?” Arina was trying to remember what she knew about humans growing up. “By then he should be an independent young individual. Maybe you can delay big changes until then? As a parent – I assume you would like to define yourself as that? – the best for the child is what is to be prioritized. But then, now may be the last possible time to cut all ties to his former life if you both move away from the Citadel. If you think, his past is a possible bad influence then this should be considered. You will have to judge his stability as a person.”

Xuumo sniffed unobtrusively at the grass and flowers. It smelled good, and he took an experimental "bite", shredding the food between his facial sheaths. Very nice.

"Shamed admittance: Long term consequences were not what I had in mind. I acted as much on impulse as anything. To my people, that is more than suspect; it is dangerous".

That was probably overstating his case. Then again, the cultural tradition to which he belonged was conservative even by elcor standards.

"Cautious: It was, I maintain, a correct impulse". She would surely agree with that.

He considered her question; what did Alonso see in him? Much the same that he had seen in the boy, he supposed - a means to get back on track, a way to continue where he'd left off after disaster had struck - and a comfort during a trying time.

"Faint bemusement: It would seem odd, wouldn't it, that delaying changes would seem such a difficult option for me?"

There was definitely something to her suggestion that haste might be sensible here. A clean severance, while there was still time.

And there I go again. He made the elcor equivalent of a scowl.

Arina took another bite, her slow munching pace a mirror of the elcor. Dining with elcor was a time consuming affair usually.

“You see, it looks like you at least have reached a decision to change something, get off the Citadel. At least that is the odor I am getting.

May be indeed the best if he has friends in circles he should turn away from. What would Dekuuna offer both of you? What would be your position there, do you have herd there, maybe even distantly related? What would be his options?

I know there are first class asari schools. If he gets along well with my kind then he will like it there. I unfortunately have no idea how large the human colony on Dekuuna is. Quite small I would think; mostly diplomats and their family and maybe one or another corporate representative. What was that again… you got a job offer for Dekuuna as well, right? “

She was trying to give her angle of view on the options. While she did not really care on an emotional level – she just did not know the people involved close enough – she still wanted to figure this out. Curiosity and learning something about decision making processes was part of her job. It wasn’t that much different from a systems analysis.

There was a distant creature calling in the dark forest and the Shi’tari had changed its tune to a more playful theme.

The change in tune, along with the chattering of the unseen animals, provided a depth to the conversation that Xuumo had been missing. Speaking over so few channels felt constraining, just like the Citadel itself. The choice of venue was a good one. Why then, was he being so airy all of a sudden?

Xuumo scolded himself, irritated. He had been meandering, trying not to give things away, in contrast to his purpose here. He had good food - and it's been long enough since I did - a perceptive dining companion, and as much time as he needed. He should stop being cagey and work this through.

"Confirmatory: I am very eager to leave, almost unseemly so. As you say, the issue is Alonso's readiness, and what it would mean for us".

He paused to consider the ramifications of "us".

"Thoughtfully: Were I to take an assignment elsewhere, I believe it would be readily accepted by the appropriate people here on the station - it is with my government, after all - but I'm not sure which potential destination is in our best interests. If I return to Dekuuna, it will be as a private citizen. Unconcerned: I have enough reputation on which to build a future - my recovery of the Embalhoth Collection will have earned me friends in the Twin Cities. Casual confidence: I doubt there will be any difficulty, though I won't be in a position to pursue my long-term projects. With foreboding: That, of course, is the point. I have plans that were disrupted by the War, as did we all. I have a chance to further them by taking the offered assignment. Troubled: Yet my life has become more complex than I had imagined.

Quietly reflective: Perhaps I should know when to quit".

It had dawned on him earlier in the week that perhaps his common self-admonishment regarding haste was mirrored by the perceptions of his fellows. That perhaps he was seen as rather fast-paced, and so a good fit for the Union - so far as the elcor square could ever fit the salarian circle. Perhaps he should accept the assignment as fitting punishment. For all his attempts at tutoring Alonso, it was probable that he himself could use some schooling in patience.

He took another mouthful.

Arina chuckled as she slowly and carefully cut a piece of her mushrooms and chewed, just as slowly. She swallowed and took a sip of her drink.

"Don't just quit over such ponderings. I would not say this is the time to quit. In fact, tell me a bit more about this possible assignment in the Union. From a safety perspective, yes, there is unrest and uncertainty but the situation has cooled down significantly." That was what was visible to the general public but underneath the salarians were going on with their salarian secret concealed business. It didn't involve blowing up civilian facilities anymore at least.

"Non-salarians have not been targeted, Union sympathizers or not. What are your concerns and did you talk with Alonso about his idea of a future, his dreams and plans? I mean, at his age I assume finding appropriate schooling is essential. I am sure that is guaranteed on the Citadel and can also be found on Dekuuna or any of the larger salarian worlds. Well, I am looking at this from an asari perspective, maybe the learning speed at a salariasari school would be more to a human's liking."

She was cutting another piece, then hesitated, looking at him.
"When was the last time you visited Dekuuna? Maybe you should just use the upcoming Citadel school holidays and take Alonso for an extended visit there. It will probably good for both of you."

She put the bite in her mouth and started munching.

Now, how did he explain that the only real plans Alonso had were to be his partner, to be brought fully into his confidence? Because, of course, that was what he had promised the boy.

You can't keep avoiding this.

"Firmly: You're quite correct, Ms Caenis. I need to speak with him. Graciously: You've been nudging me in that direction from the start of this conversation. Slyly: I can be stubborn, as I'm sure you've noticed.

Matter-of-fact: I suppose you must be wondering why I'm being so difficult". His eyes moved downwards, perhaps in shame. "Uncomfortable: I've been reluctant to begin the conversation, because my own thoughts are so unsteady". He met her gaze again. "With evident pride: Your idea about my serving as a 'rock' in his perceptions might be accurate. Especially since I've been trying to impress upon him the importance of patience and stoicism".

He considered her suggestion that they take a trip to Dekuuna, and quietly rejected it. The problem with taking a trip home was that he knew he wouldn't leave again. The act of testing the waters would become a full immersion, so to speak, and that would defeat the purpose. He needed to be disciplined here. He had survived a blow he didn't think he'd recover from, and he needed to stand firm. He wouldn't tempt himself unduly.

He took a long drink from his juice, before continuing.

"Rhetorical: I should tell you more about the offer, shouldn't I? Casually informative: My background is largely in transportation. I would be overseeing the logistics for our diplomatic mission on Nasurn, reporting to the venerable Rossnok. Bluntly: It is, I gather, a form of "reward" for my recovery of the Collection, which would have been a larger story were it not for the Sur'kesh attack".

It became pretty obvious how reluctant Xuumo was to return to Dekuuna and that he was evading a discussion about Alonso’s ideas beyond the simplest ones for the fear of being undecided himself. But what good was it if you were already decided, the discussion and the boy entrusted to Xuumo was an integral part of the decision itself.

“That sounds like an impressive job offer.” She knew how elcor as herd people had very fine sensory equipment for rank within the group.
“You know, all of this is just my opinion, idle thoughts based on the little information I have. I haven’t talked much to your boy, he seemed very nice and educated the one occasion I met him. So take all I say as my train of thoughts. I am sorry if I appear prying in any way, it is mere curiosity to fill the voids.” Was she intruding? She didn’t think so since it had been Xuumo who wanted the exchange of minds so she provided the outside view, bouncing what he handed her.

“It’s an offer hard to refuse and in all seriousness, it provides many positive angles. You will get more in touch with your kind as part of the diplomatic corps. As I see, your duties will be mostly directed at the consul, isn’t that great? As a diplomat’s kid, Alonso will have the best opportunities to visit the best schools – may I suggest you look for a mixes salarasari school, should you take the offer? I would be most beneficial for him. The world, as far as I know it, is a beautiful garden world, isn’t it? I have never served there. Oh, I may not have mentioned it before but my father was salarian so I have spent considerable time on Sur’Kesh and another colony.”

She shrugged, while handling the last piece of her dish.
“Don’t let the current situation in the Union discourage you. I do not think open civil war is imminent and Nasurn isn’t at the epicentre.” Which could mean ‘boring’ if you wouldn’t be advertising it to an elcor.

"How's that food, by the way? I told you love these mushrooms, didn_t I?"

"Affirmative: It is very good. I appreciate the serving size as well.

Explanatory: All too often foreign restaurants give us too little. With humour: I believe they hold back for fear that they're giving us too much, perhaps comically so, and might be causing offence. Really, that would be the appropriate amount.

Slight dismissal: They underestimate us".

After all - compared to that of an alien, any alien, the elcor gut was... well, the only appropriate word was probably mighty.

He took another mouthful, enjoying the taste as he shredded the vegetation between his sheaths. So Arina Caenis had a salarian father? Interesting. He hadn't known that. She had apparently made it through the experience unscathed. It also made her an even better choice as a sounding board. Working things through alone wasn't much of a plan - yes, you should be talking with Alonso for one - and he had been right to follow through on this.

"Solemn: Alonso's education has been a hard and unconventional one, but perhaps that will stand him in good stead in future. It is, of course, a rough galaxy, even more so these days. With gratitude: I feel I should reassure you that you are not, as you put it, prying. Archly: I am a private being, for the most part. I rarely have much in the way of opportunity to discuss personal matters with outsiders. I appreciate your willingness to assist me".

He let loose a friendly rumble, which seemed to startle a diner at a nearby table.

"Warmly: I understand that you yourself had business with the Tayseri duct rats. You mentioned at the... previous dinner... that your embassy had been in contact with Leaving the Ducts? A recruitment drive?"