ME: Pilgrimage - Chapter 38

Chapter 38 – Treatment
When Tali'Zorah eventually regained consciousness there was no sign of the red-haired human she thought she had glimpsed in her fever dreams, no sign of anyone at all in fact. It was clear that she'd ended up somewhere though, even if recalling exactly where was information her brain refused to divulge. The quarian's reawakening was slow, her body's reluctance to comply battling an instinctual willing from deep within. Silvery eyes eventually flickered open, the owner moaning and squinting at the harsh white light that awaited her. Blinking furiously as her eyes attempted to adjust to the brightness of the room Tali slowly began to form a picture of her surroundings. She lay atop a narrow bed, her body all but hidden under soft white sheets. Her left arm was the only exception, instead supported on a small, upraised rail that ran the length of the bed. That side of the room contained little more than a blank wall but to her right was a small divider that connected with the supporting column at the foot of the bed. Tali could make out little more than that without trying to move, though a sixth sense told her that whatever space lay behind her was off somehow. She couldn't summon the urge to investigate and not even the strange, unfamiliar scent being borne on the breeze could convince her wracked body to move unless it had to.

A sudden flicker of movement caught her attention instead and Tali looked up to see the red-haired woman from her dreams walking around the support column. Her attention seemed fixated on the datapad in her hand and it was only as she drew closer that her striking green eyes opened wide with surprised as she took in the faint reflections of Tali's eyes against her visor. A relieved smile immediately appeared, abruptly making the woman look far younger than she had just seconds ago. "Good, you're awake! How are you feeling?"
"Weak," replied Tali with a tongue that felt swollen, "how long was I-?"
"Just under a day." The human replied, crossing to the bedside and consulting the nest of medical machinery there. "You've been sleeping for most of it."
"I've been asleep for an entire day?" Tali said in horror.
"It's only natural," explained the doctor, misinterpreting the quarian's concerns, "your body has been through a lot of trauma in the last few hours, the rest gave it time to repair some of the damage."
"No you don't understand," muttered Tali as she made to get up out of the bed, "I can't stay here, they're looking for me."
Suddenly a pair of hands arrested her ascent and she found herself being gently but firmly being pushed back down onto the medical bed. "Wait," warned the human as Tali briefly fought to rise but abruptly collapsed when what little strength she had failed her almost immediately, "your fever might have broken but your body's got a lot of work to do to repair all the damage. If I let you go now you wouldn't make it to the end of the street outside."
Tali remained still for a moment as she contemplated the human's words and eventually sank back against the flat pillows reluctantly. "There are people looking for me," she tried to explain, "they want to kill me."
"The people who shot you?" The memory suddenly came flooding back and Tali's eyes fell to her arm though she couldn't see anything under the protective suit. "Don't worry," comforted the woman standing above her, "I got you into the cleanest environment I have while I patched it back up. The medi-gel you applied helped save your life and I repaired the suit as best I could. It's not pretty, but your seals should be intact."

Tali wasn't sure how to respond at first. The human had trespassed so severely she probably wasn't aware of it. Being invited to touch the skin of another quarian was amongst the most intimate of rituals her people had and the fact that this strange human had dared do so without permission felt like an intrusion beyond measure. But rationally Tali understood that there was no way the woman could have known this and given that the surgery had likely saved her life, she decided it was best not to mention it. "I...thank you. I didn't think anyone would know how to repair an envirosuit breach."
A faint smile crossed the woman's lips. "You're not the first quarian I've treated. My name is Chloe by the way, Dr. Chloe Michel."
"Tali'Zorah." Replied her patient. "Am...am I in a hospital?"
"No," said Chloe with a faint tang of bitterness, "this is only a small clinic, most of the hospitals are either on the Presidium or much further along the Ward arms. In fact, you're the only patient I have just now."
Tali's eyes followed the motion of the doctor's arm as she swept her Omni-Tool across the quarian's body, a shaft of orange light following the movement. "Does anyone else know I'm here?"
"Just my assistant, Jerit. He was here when you first arrived but he usually just covers the night shift for me." Seemingly satisfied with the machine's prognosis, Chloe shut down the Omni-Tool and crossed her arms around her torso. "So, what's this all about?"
Tali remained silent for a moment before responding, unsure as to how much she could trust the doctor. She's gone out of her way to save my life and she's only asked for this in return so far, but by now there's probably some kind of reward out on my head, maybe even from C-Sec after what happened in the embassies. What if she learns about it and turns me in? The quarian thought hard about what she'd heard when she'd first stumbled into the clinic, the fragmented conversation seeming distant and dreamlike now. Something about not being able to pay for the meds? That means she probably needs the credits too. Yet somehow, despite all the doubts Tali felt obligated to give her a reply of some kind.

"I have something that someone wants," Tali began, choosing her words carefully, "something that they're willing to kill me to get."
"Something about the geth?" Michel shook her head knowingly at Tali's surprise. "You were muttering about it when we brought you in."
So much for keeping it to myself. "Then I guess you already know the basics." Tali paused to adjust her posture, thinking again how best to proceed. The last thing she wanted was to make Ren'Gerrel a target as well. "To make a long story short I'm on my Pilgrimage, a rite of passage for my people, and came across a geth patrol on an uncharted planet a few days ago. When I landed to investigate I managed to isolate one of the geth units and extract it's memory core. It had a recording inside, a turian talking about..." Tali paused to think, "Eden Prime being a major victory, and something about finding a Conduit."
Her words seemed to strike the doctor like a physical blow and she took a step back, her already pale face suddenly ashen. "Eden Prime? My God..."
"What is it?" Asked Tali, realising even in her sluggish state that something was terribly wrong.
"You don't know?" Chloe asked, voice muffled by the hand over her mouth.
The quarian shook her head gently, wincing at the slight but persistent headache.
"Eden Prime..." Dr. Michel stopped and pulled up a nearby chair before starting again. "It's one of the first colonies humanity founded, an icon of hope and peace for my people, our first real claim to the stars. I've never been but it's got a reputation for being one of the most beautiful worlds of its kind, or...it used to."
"What do you mean?"
Michel swallowed, visibly steeling herself before continuing. "It was attacked a few days ago by the geth, they killed so many...They even laid explosive charges to demolish the entire colony and it was only because the Alliance had a special forces team in the area that it's still standing now."
"The geth attacked an Alliance colony world?" Tali's mouth was agape at the notion. "So far from the Perseus veil?"
Michel nodded soberly. "At first we could hardly believe the news reports either but then the footage starting coming in, what little there was of it. It was the geth, there's no doubt about it."

Tali's head swam. She had known the geth were outside of the Perseus Veil already but not in sufficient numbers to launch an attack, and on an Alliance colony no less. The implications were beyond measure; one thing she was certain of, it could only have terrible repercussions for her people.
Dr. Michel seemed lost in thoughts of her own and it was some time before she spoke again. "Whatever that data you have is, you can be sure the council will want to know about it."
"They don't." Said Tali quietly, drawing a surprised look from her saviour. "I already tried, right after I got shot. The man at the desk didn't believe me, said he'd have me thrown off the station."
Michel shook her head, incredulous. "Did you show him the recording?"
"I...didn't have time, they were coming for me."
"Who was?"
"I don't know," replied Tali slowly, aware that even talking was taking up most of her energy at this point, "they've been hunting me ever since I found the memory core. They finally caught up with me on the Presidium within hours of my ship arriving...I thought I'd lost them."
The doctor seemed to recognize that her patient was struggling to remain conscious. Biting her lip and holding her remaining questions for another time, Chloe reluctantly moved away. "We can continue this another time, when you're feeling up to it. Get some rest for now Tali'Zorah, I'll make sure no one finds you here."
The wounded engineer was already slipping back into sleep's embrace but as the human stepped around the chest-high divider a soft voice touched her ears.
"Thank you."

---

The next time Tali awoke Dr. Michel was busy ordering a prescription for a volus client and after performing a brief check to be sure Tali's condition hadn't worsened, promised she would return as soon as she could. For her part the quarian used the few moments of peace to form her own verdict on her body's condition. She felt infinitely better than the last time she'd been conscious, the persistent headache and strain of keeping her eyes open all but gone now. A bit of experimenting proved that the weary muscles had also begun to return to normal though an insistent soreness seemed to permeate her entire body. It took a little extra motivation for Tali to convince herself to gently flex the damaged muscles in her left bicep though when she eventually did, the engineer was surprised to feel little trace of the injury beyond a few sharp pangs. Pleased but unwilling to push her luck Tali laid the arm back down and brought up the interface for her suit VI, navigating the menus until she had a 3-D scan of her arm up on the inside of her visor. There's barely a mark left to show I was ever shot in the first place. Thought the quarian in wonderment as she gazed at the visual representation of her flesh and muscle tissue. I remember the stories about what Medi-Gel could do but to see it in action...

"I'm sorry about that," said a familiar voice, immediately prompting Tali to discreetly close down her interface, "I came as soon as I could."
"It's fine," replied Tali as Dr. Michel crossed over to her, "you've already done more than enough for me."
"Well you're not quite 100% so as far as I'm concerned my job isn't done just yet." Chloe answered. "Now, how are you feeling this morning, better?"
"Much," said Tali, pleased that her voice no longer sounded quite so stuffed up, "I think my fever broke in the night."
"It did," Chloe confirmed, "another day and I think you'll be back on your feet again."
"Another day? I feel like I could manage myself right now."
"Better to be sure than to push yourself and wind up back here in a few hours." Michel replied, taking readings from the medical scanners with practised efficiency. "And if you're thinking what I think you are, an extra day won't hurt."

Tali eyed the human for a moment, debating whether or not to say what she was thinking before abruptly deciding that she was already in the woman's debt. "Actually I was thinking how surprised I am that you haven't called C-Sec by now." She stated, watching carefully for the response.
Michel paused. Her head fell with a quiet sigh and she turned to make eye contact with her patient. "Honestly the thought had crossed my mind. Not long after we first patched you up an alert went around the local clinics and hospitals on this Ward, a notice that if anyone had a quarian matching your description coming in for treatment we were to alert the authorities at once. Apparently you are wanted for questioning about an incident on council property."
Tali absorbed the information without comment, having already expected to hear revelations of this kind. "So why didn't you?"
Michel smiled wanly. "I was half-way through placing the call when a thought struck me; even if C-Sec had been chasing you they couldn't possibly have been the ones to have shot you. I know people there, there's no way the Council would sanction them using polonium rounds."
Tali's brow furrowed slightly. "Using what?"
"Polonium rounds. They are toxic bullets designed to weaken the victim to infection and debilitating diseases." Explained the doctor. "The effect amplifies with each subsequent wound and given that you are a quarian, any more hits would likely have killed you before you got here. Even with just one wound, you making it to my clinic in the first place was nothing short of a miracle."
Tali sank back against the pillows again, suddenly very acutely aware of her own mortality. She listened with only half an ear as Chloe continued.
"Once I put two and two together then I guessed that even if C-Sec did want you for questioning any call I placed would probably alert the people who did shoot you, I couldn't chance it without better understanding the situation. And when I spoke to you yesterday about what had happened I decided we had both been very fortunate."

Her confession over Chloe rubbed her left arm awkwardly and gradually turned her gaze back on the monitoring station but though she stared directly at the readouts her mind was clearly elsewhere. Finally, Tali broke the spell. "Then I owe you twice for saving my life."
"This is my job," replied Michel with a weak smile, "you don't owe me anything except to stay alive once you leave."
Tali's wry look was evident in her body language alone. "Given all that's happened I can't really make promises."
"There's always a way out." Replied the doctor confidently. "Humans have a saying, 'never say never'."
"Quarians have one too, 'surviving doesn't have the same definition as winning'."
"Perhaps," conceded Michel, "but I think all we need is to find you a way out."
"I've been thinking about it nonstop all the time I've been awake," replied Tali, "and I still haven't thought of anything."
Dr. Michel suddenly snapped her fingers, the unfamiliar gesture catching the quarian off-guard. "What about the Shadow Broker?"
"Who?"
"The Shadow Broker, he's an information trader, the most infamous in all the galaxy. The volus who came in for his prescription this morning mentioned him, I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner."
"And what makes you think he can help?"
"The Shadow Broker is known to pay highly for information he thinks is valuable and after what happened to Eden Prime data like yours will likely be worth a great deal."
"If he's as infamous as you say he might already know I have the data," Tali pointed out, "he might even be the one who sent these assassins after me in the first place. I can't see how dealing with him will help."
Michel appeared deep in thought and when she spoke again her words were hesitant, carefully weighed. "The Broker has a reputation to keep, if it's true that he sent assassins after you then he risks word getting out, especially if you present yourself as a client looking to trade. People will find out, hopefully perceive it as a betrayal and they won't want to do business with him any longer; damage like that can take a long time to repair, even for the Broker."
Tali'Zorah eyed the human warily. "You really believe it will work?"
Chloe smiled. "What have you got to lose by trying?"
Tali was silent as she thought it over but eventually she looked up at the green eyes above her and nodded. "You're right," she agreed, "it's the best option I have right now. The only question is how to contact him."
"Leave that to me," replied Chloe, "I know a few people."

---

"We have it." Dr. Michel finally declared, pushing herself away from her terminal with a contented smile.
Tali looked up from across the room, body still bent over from re-strapping the freshly sharpened combat knife to her calf. "We do?"
Chloe nodded. "There's a bar down in the Wards, Chora's Den. It's not the safest of places, as a matter of fact the owner is a local crime lord, but Fist is also employed by the Shadow Broker. If you can contact him, he'll be able to arrange a meeting."
Tali flexed her arm for the umpteenth time that day, testing the strength of the repaired muscles beneath. Michel watched with a professional eye, happy that she had succeeded in her work. "So this Fist runs Chora's Den?"
"Yes," replied Chloe, "I've never had the urge to visit myself but it's a pretty seedy place from what I hear. It's what we humans might call a 'gentleman's club', though the definition never made much sense to me."
Tali nodded, though she kept her thoughts to herself. A bar with a reputation run by a known criminal? And I'm supposed to just walk in there and demand an audience with the data core in my pocket? I don't think so. Sealing the last of her extraneous pouches and affixing her pistol and shotgun back into place, the added weight making the quarian infinitely more comfortable, Tali turned to offer the doctor her hand. "Thank you, Dr. Michel, for everything. It's rare that my people get to thank another species for saving their life."
Chloe rose from her chair and shook the outstretched hand warmly, the oddness of five digits against three ever apparent. "You are welcome. As I said before, I'm only doing my job. So long as I don't see you back here in a few days, I will be happy."
"Hopefully it won't come to that." Said Tali as she moved to the door, pausing at the threshold to look about the small, empty clinic. "Are you sure you're going to be able to cope when I leave, with all these patients to take care of?"
The thin smile ringed with tired wrinkles and stress lines appeared once more. "I think I'll be able to cope Tali'Zorah, though I'm sure it won't be long before someone comes to cause me trouble again." The doctor stood, her outline framed by the window full of pink trees behind. "Good luck."
"Keelah Se'lai doctor."