"So Commander, remind me why we are flying out to the middle of nowhere instead of doing something more important?" Joker asked.
"This is important, Joker." Shepard insisted. "Wrex lost all contact from the scouts he sent through the Rachni Relay. We need to find out why before it becomes an issue."
"Yeah, I get that. But, like, the only thing out there should be the Rachni Queen you let go. And she hated the Reapers. I don't think she'd be jumping at the chance to work with them even if they did manage to find her."
"We can't assume she would have a choice. Even without Indoctrination, she might make another deal to avoid extinction or simply be forced to work for them." Shepard pointed out. "Besides, the Reapers could be hiding all other kinds of nasty surprises out here. I'd like to deal with them before they come to us, if we can."
"Right. Well, at least this time we have some backup. Between us and a company of Krogan Special Forces, even if the Rachni outnumbered us a thousand to one it wouldn't be a fair fight!"
"That is assuming the Rachni are the threat that prevented the scouts from reporting back." EDI commented from the co-pilot's chair. "There still has not been any report of Rachni activity in the area."
"What else could it be?"
"Husks, Reapers, Cerberus, mercenaries, Pirates, some undiscovered race that has really bad timing…" Shepard started counting off.
"Okay, I get it. Our luck sucks." Joker cut her off. "Good thing we can just chuck Revan at things if they get too hairy."
"I'll be sure to tell her you said that." Shepard smirked.
"Please don't. I'd like to live."
Shepard laughed and started moving for the cockpit door. Only to almost start laughing again when she heard EDI say, "Also Jeff, if the cause of the missing scouts is the Rachni - our forces would likely be outnumbered closer to one hundred thousand to one." and for the pilot to just groan.
-o-
There wasn't much for Shepard to actually do while the Normandy was in FTL travel. Even less so considering she had already checked in on most of her crew when they had been leaving the Citadel. And while there was nothing really stopping her from checking in on any of them again, she did have one newcomer on her ship that she hadn't really had a conversation with yet.
With that in mind, she made her way towards the fitness deck where Revan's newest teammate seemed to spend most of her time and was unsurprised to see the Asari calmly moving through the same set of martial arts forms she seemed to be set on doing whenever she had free time.
There was no one else on the deck at the moment, so Shepard was spotted almost instantly as she moved closer and patiently waited for the Asari to finish her forms.
"Can I help you with something, Commander?"
"Just wanted to introduce myself." Shepard said easily. "You're the Jedi Revan took on right? Lymrase?"
But the Asari shook her head. "After my Master took me on as an Acolyte I can no longer call myself a Jedi."
"What's the difference? Sorry if it seems obvious, but the one time I asked Revan I got a two hour history lesson that didn't clear things up much."
It also didn't help that Revan had been trying to cover thousands of years of history at the time. Shepard had picked up that the Jedi and Sith didn't like each other much and used different aspects of the Force, but there had been so many schisms, rebrandings, subfactions, sects, and arguments that the differences hadn't always been clear.
Case in point, one war Revan had briefly mentioned during her history lecture had actually been between a Jedi and Dark Jedi sect – but according to both sides, they were the actual Jedi and the others were Fallen. The war only ended when both sides had basically annihilated themselves and the survivors created a third faction and joined together after a Pirate Lord invaded the system.
Hopefully she could get a bit of a clearer picture just by focusing on Lymrase's take on the two.
"I can try and explain, although I doubt I can really communicate the difference if you don't have a decent understanding of the Force itself. According to my old Order, the Force – or rather the Light Side of the Force specifically – is the only true way to be at peace with the universe and your surroundings. Those that would use the Dark Side pervert this understanding and corrupt the Force to serve selfish interests that inevitably warp the user to madness and evil." Lymrase explained. "By harnessing the Dark Side as my Master has taught me, I no longer qualify for the title of Jedi."
"Okay, so that makes you a Sith now?" Shepard asked, only for the Asari to shake her head in denial again.
"To my old Order, perhaps – and admittedly if Master was a traditional Sith I would probably be considered that as well. But my Master barely considers me an Acolyte. I struggle to not damage myself when drawing on the Dark Side."
"Wait, using the Force hurts you?!"
"Not inherently. But drawing solely on the Light or Dark side causes issues. The Dark side is more obvious since it usually causes physical changes first, but the Light can cause a whole host of mental ones that aren't as obvious at first but just as problematic. Arrogance, unwavering confidence in one's own actions, dismissal of other beings' opinions or values… those are just some of the issues my Master showed me. Until I become sufficiently skilled with the Dark Side, it is just something I will have to deal with."
Shepard wasn't sure she liked that. Not only how eagerly Lymrase was using something that she knew was hurting her, but also something about how eagerly Lymrase was turning her back on her old Order and teachings to embrace Revan's way of doing things rubbed her the wrong way. She couldn't point out exactly why, though.
So she changed the subject for now. "You don't regret leaving your old Order then?"
"No. There are a few friends I occasionally miss, but my Master pointed out enough flaws that I couldn't stay."
"Flaws? Like what?"
Lymrase made a general sweeping gesture around them. "You and your allies are going out and seeking aid against the Reapers. My Master is building her forces to resist them. Both of you are trying to protect our galaxy, which is the stated purpose of the Jedi. But instead of revealing themselves and leading the Asari against the force threatening all life, they are content to hide and attack my Master from the shadows."
"They would rather 'save' the galaxy from the Sith, only to see us damned for their actions. And that is why I cannot regret not being one of them anymore."
That Shepard could understand. Too many people seemed to be intent on holding onto old grudges while the galaxy was ending.
But still… "Is there no chance of them helping us?"
Lymrase chuckled darkly. "Very little. You should know that one of the ways the Order recruits new members is by taking Justicars with the appropriate gifts into the fold. They hold to their code just as fiercely as the one that accompanied you. Moreso in some cases."
"I see…" Shepard trailed off, hopes of finding a diplomatic solution going up in flames. Samara had been utterly unyielding in her adherence to her code and had only held off on attacking Revan because of her higher priority oath to Shepard. If the Order was more strict about their code, Shepard didn't see them offering to help without a major incident occurring.
"Were you recruited some other way then? One that doesn't focus on a code as much?"
"Oh no! I was brought up to be just as much a follower of the code as any of my then sisters." Lymrase denied. "It was only once my Master shattered my perspective that I was able to put aside the Code."
Shepard blinked. "She… shattered your… perspective?"
"Yes, a Force technique I'm not fully familiar with that prevented me from drawing on preconceived certainties. It allowed me to look past the things that blinded me and open myself to the path of true power."
"That… sounds an awful lot like she brainwashed you." Shepard said carefully.
"Without perspective it may look that way." Lymrase nodded. "Instead… think of it like this. I was always taught that the Sith were evil. It was a 'truth' that was as solid as a sun being bright or water being wet. My Master prevented me from instantly drawing on that 'truth' and to re-evaluate what I thought I knew, in this case the Jedi being good and the Code being absolute. Then she pointed out flaws that objectively I already knew, but suppressed because those 'truths' blinded me to them. That the Jedi weren't protecting the galaxy by focusing on things other than the Reapers, they were hiding because this was a threat they couldn't quietly remove from the shadows. The Dark Side wasn't a path to evil, it was just an aspect of the Force. A dangerous one that demanded respect, yes, but not what the Jedi claimed – otherwise my Master would be a twisted wretch of corruption incapable of working with others she hadn't dominated. And that is obviously not the case."
"Right." That still sounded like brainwashing to Shepard. She was going to have to talk to Revan about this, wasn't she?
"Besides, you yourself have had some experience with that technique."
"I have?" It was news to Shepard, but then again she hadn't known about Force powers until Revan had shown up.
"Yes, if you recall Sha'ira from your visits to the Presidium – she has a natural gift for this kind of ability."
It took her a moment but eventually Shepard remembered the name. "Sha'ira… she was the Consort, right? I thought she was just some kind of advisor. I had no idea she was connected to your Order."
"Oh, she was not one of the Order's." Lymrase denied. "Sha'ira just had a natural ability to connect to the Force. It happens occasionally when Asari reach a certain age. Usually it is mistaken for simply more powerful Biotics, but once in a while certain abilities do manifest. If they do, often they are recruited to the Order. Sha'ira was both weakly connected to the Force and kindhearted enough that the Jedi were content to leave her alone."
The Commander still shifted in place at the thought of someone messing with her mind, but from what she could recall of her brief talk with the Consort she never felt compelled to behave in a way she wouldn't normally have.
It really had just felt like looking at things with a new, unbiased perspective.
"I still can't say I like the sound of it, but I can see the benefits of a technique like that." Shepard admitted. "I don't suppose you or Revan could use it to convince the rest of the Jedi to help us against the Reapers?"
"My Master might, she's significantly more powerful than I am. But for myself it would be very risky. Normally that technique makes the user very vulnerable until a connection is formed. Even then it cannot command the recipient to do anything they do not wish to. I doubt many of my former Sisters would give me the opportunity to try."
That made Shepard want to ask how Revan had managed it, but before she could her Omnitool lit up with a call.
"We're arriving in-system pretty soon, Commander. Better get ready unless you want to miss the first transport down to the planet." Joker said.
"Be right there." She acknowledged before ending the call and looking back at the Acolyte. "I guess that's our cue."
"Indeed. And after the mission I'd be glad to continue our talks on the Force." Lymrase looked sheepish. "In the Order I was regarded as one of the more knowledgeable members, but next to my Master I feel like I know nothing at all. It's… reassuring… to teach again, even if it's just the basics."
"Thanks for the offer. I might take you up on that." Shepard nodded back.
—-------------------------------------------
AN: Just to be clear – the technique Lymrase is talking about is absolutely NOT what Revan used on her. She's just coming up with a justification as to why she finds nothing wrong with working for a Sith.
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