Starlight’s teleportation spell completed, and her vessel appeared in a new location across the galaxy from the Citadel. On board, Beri suddenly stumbled as though she had almost been knocked off balance.

“What- -what was that?” she said, looking around disoriented.

“What’s the matter?” said Jack, who had been completely unfazed by the event. “Have you even been into space before, Berry?”

“Of course I have you human reject- -what the hell did we just do?”

“We moved,” said Starlight, her voice transmitted throughout her tech and biotic construct.

“What the hell does that even mean? Where are we? How did- -” Beri looked down through the floor, and the fact that she was standing in a spacecraft that had no solid components short of a unicorn fully occurred to her. “No- -this- -” She glared up at Jack. “This ship- -this isn’t a ship! This is just tech!”

“Sure is,” said Jack. “The only thing keeping you from the vacuum of space is Starlight Glimmer. I recommend that you don’t make her angry.”

“You’re both insane. Completely insane! This- -this violates several REGULATIONS!”

“Jack is clinically insane,” said Starlight. “Severe psychosis.”

“You’re joking.” Beri turned to Jack. “She’s joking, right?”

Jack just shrugged and leaned against a wall.

“Bloody hell…this…no. Just…no. I’m not going to concern myself with this. A proper Spectre is adaptable.” She took a deep breath into her cybernetic lungs. “Okay. So, Starlight Glimmer, where actually are we?”

“Look beneath your feet,” said Jack, pointing. They both looked down at the planet below.

“That’s- -that’s not in the Serpent Nebula,” said Beri. “Where did- -how did- -”

“I told you,” said Starlight. “I moved us. That planet? That’s Parnack.”

Beri cringed. “You can’t be serious. Please, please don’t be serious.”

Even Jack looked slightly surprised. “Parnack? Really?”

“You do realize that Parnack is under a level-three quarantine, right?” shouted Beri. “Look, I can literally see one of the warning beacons from here! Council races are not permitted to land on or approach this planet!”

“Neither I nor Starlight are members of Couoncil races,” noted Jack.

“Well, no, but normally no other races are dumb enough to even get near this planet!”

“Hey. If you want to stay on the ship, go ahead- -oh wait, you can’t. It disappears when Star lands. So I guess you’re going down there.”

“L…land?” squeaked Beri. “You actually want to land? On Parnack? You know that there are yahg down there, right?”

“Yahg on Parnack,” said Starlight. “No, I had no idea. The next thing you know, you’re going to tell me that there are lesbians on Thessia. Or that my diet consists largely of grass.”

“She does have a point, though,” said Jack. “Have you ever even seen a yahg, Star? They’re not fun to fight. They make krogan look like paper targets.”

“We have friends down there,” said Starlight. “And I need a crew. I would have hired Si’y at the Citadel, but he was working a job.”

“Si’y was at the Citadel? You saw him? Come on, Starlight! We could have had a drinking contest!”

“The last time we tried that, I woke up with my head in Aria T’Loak’s lap,” said Starlight. “Besides, he was busy. He had the Cain out.”

“On the Citadel? No wonder Garrus was so crusty.” She paused. “Wait, who the hell do we know who lives on Parnack?”

“You’ll see. Brace for freefall.”

Jack reached up toward the wall, and it shifted to produce a handle which she gripped tightly. “You might want to hold onto something,” she said.

“Why?” asked Beri.

The question was answered very quickly when Starlight suddenly dropped the ship through the atmosphere.

When the ship finally slowed, Starlight guided over the treetops in a rural forest. When she finally reached an appropriate clearing, she paused before dispelling the vessel. She and Jack dropped to the ground, Jack landing handily on her cybernetic legs and Starlight slowing her descent with a biotic field. Beri, meanwhile, was dropped into the thick snow below without warning and landed awkwardly.

“Ack!” she cried, flailing before standing up. “Why did you do that?”

“Don’t expect a landing ramp, Spectre,” said Jack.

“I didn’t, but I do expect at least a warning!” She stood up and looked around. The forest consisted of large, dark-trunked trees with thick, rough bark. The air was cold and windy; from what Starlight could tell, much of this side of the planet was this way.

Beri brushed herself off. “I can’t believe this…I’m on Parnack, breaking SO many laws, with a dirty human and a horse. I did not sign up for this.”

“And I didn’t want a Spectre who went into the business for a desk job,” said Starlight, starting through the snow. The armor she wore was comparatively protective against temperature extremes, but the large amount of metal in her back carried a great deal of the cold directly into her spine. She could deal with it, but it was uncomfortable.

Starlight summoned her omnitool and examined it for a moment, clicking at the buttons using the biotic energy of her horn, largely as a force of habit. “The signal is this way,” she said, pointing.

“What signal?” said Beri. She looked around at the trees nervously as a number of large, bird-like creatures jumped amongst the branches, watching the trio below with numerous hungry eyes. “What the hell are we tracking?”

“Doesn’t matter,” said Jack. “What matters is that we watch out for what’s tracking us. We’re not far from a city. I saw it on the way down while Beri was pissing herself.”

“I did not!”

Starlight started leading them toward the signal.

“Crap,” said Beri, pulling out an assault rifle from her back. She also removed a small band from her pocket and attached it to her head. It promptly produced a blue holographic square over her right eye. “I don’t like this…you know what they did to the Council delegation that came down here, right?”

“No,” said Starlight. “To be honest, I don’t care too much.”

“They killed them. Slaughtered them, even. To eat.”

“Makes sense,” said Jack. “Knowing the Council, they probably came down here armed with nothing but fancy words and fancier ultimatums.”

“And yet when Equestria sends something actually evil, they treat her like she’s the best thing they’ve ever seen,” muttered Starlight.

“Well, to be honest,” said Jack. “You ponies are a lot cuddlier than a yahg.”

Starlight could not argue with that, especially since she had no idea what yahg actually looked like.

They continued walking for the better part of an hour, mostly trying to stay quiet. In all that time, Beri had seemingly not noticed that the birds had stopped following them and that the forest had gone completely silent.

“That last tree we passed,” said Jack, quietly. “The one that looked like it had a face in the bark?”

“And circling back across that large rock that looks like a krogan.”

“You saw them too?”

“My sensor array picked them up within a few minutes after our arrival. For their size, they’re creepy silent.”

“What are you talking about?” said Beri, clearly catching the tone of the conversation even if she could not hear its content.

“Berry,” said Jack, her hand going toward the oversized Spectre pistol that she carried on her belt. “What’s the most powerful gun you’ve got?”

“What? Oh,” Beri reached for her own belt and produced an oddly-shaped pistol emanating blue light. “This one. A zetan Mark 44.”

“Zetan? Seriously?”

“Say what you want about the zetans, they make good guns.”

“They better,” said Starlight, “because you’re about to need it.”

There was a sudden sound of rushing underbrush, and for the first time Beri became aware of the pair of yahg hunters that were following them. She turned just in time to see one of them sprinting toward her at ridiculous speed.

Starlight had not known exactly what to expect, but seeing a yahg up close was a terrifying sight, even for her. They had wide, armored heads with eight glaring eyes and trilobal mouths filled with numerous sharp teeth. Starlight was not entirely sure, but she thought she also saw a pair of spiraling horns emerging from the back of its head- -it was difficult to see, though, because the creature stood nearly ten feet tall.

Beri, suddenly realizing that close to two metric tons of muscle and organic armor was sprinting toward her, reacted quickly. Instead of trying to dodge, she planted her feet in the ground and struck the creature in the gut with her fist. The force was so great that Starlight could actually hear the impact, and the yahg stopped in its tracks.

At the same time, the other yahg opened fire from a distance. The bullets were apparently ballistic, and they moved slow enough that Starlight could surround herself in a dome of protective energy to deflect them. Both she and Jack moved quickly toward cover, with Jack sending a trio of biotic bolts at the sniper.

Behind them, the yahg that had attacked Beri took a step back. Despite the impact, he seemed mostly undamaged. This time he struck Beri with a powerful uppercut. She blocked the blow, but despite her cybernetic strength she was still comparatively light. She was sent flying into the air until she slammed into the trunk of a tree.

The yahg charged, and Beri drew her zetan pistol. She fired, but the yahg’s reflexes were faster than hers. It dodged the sudden orb of blue light, and Starlight watched as the energy beam cut into the trunk of an enormous tree, vaporizing away half of the four-meter diameter trunk. The remaining wood snapped and splintered, unable to bear the force, and the tree came thundering down to the ground.

Jack managed to leap out of the way, but Starlight was forced to teleport to behind the tree to avoid being crushed or trapped beneath it. Almost as soon as she emerged, however, felt something large approach her. She turned just in time to see a third yahg racing toward her, and before she could react he slammed the butt of his rifle into her forehead. The shock to her horn almost knocked her unconscious, and what little of a biotic shield she had managed to produce was instantly dissipated.

“Star!” cried Jack. Starlight was confused and disoriented, and she could not find where her friend was standing. She tried to walk, but the vertigo caused by having her horn struck overtook her and caused her to drop into the cold snow. She was able to look up and see a hail of bullets rebounding off the yahg’s armor as it nonchalantly defended its face with one of its ridiculously over muscular arms.

“Beri, I need support over- -” There was another loud explosion from one of the yahg’s rifles firing, and Jack cried out in pain and anger. Starlight tried to turn her head, but then had the wind knocked out of her as she was kicked across the snowy ground.

As she came to a stop, the first yahg to have attacked pushed his way out of the tree branches that had landed on him. The two of them converged on her as the sniper kept Beri in cover behind a nearby rock.

Then, suddenly, Starlight saw something take a flying leap over the fallen tree. In her disoriented state, she did not see it clearly beyond the fact that it was much smaller than a yahg and appeared to be made of metal.

One of the yahg turned, but not quickly enough. Two claws on the ends of a pair of digitigrade feet grabbed his shoulders. With a twist of her body, the figure pulled him to the ground. His feet lost traction in the wet snow and branches and he landed face-down in front of Starlight.

The figure landed beside Starlight, crouching and prepared for attack. Starlight looked up at her, and, oddly enough recognized her. Her body was different than it had been, now consisting of a somewhat thin, semi-humanoid cybernetic construct, but her head was still that of a teal unicorn, her white and green hair blowing in the wind behind her.

“Starlight,” said Lyra, as though this was an ordinary greeting. She looked down with her one functional eye and smiled. “You should have called ahead.”

With a yell, the second yahg charged. Lyra did not hesitate; one of her three-fingered robotic hands glowed with orange biotic light. Instead of striking the yahg in the stomach as Beri had, she instead opted for its knee. With its short arms, it had no way to block, and the joint shattered, immediately bending the wrong way. The yahg screamed in agony and collapsed, unable to walk.

By this time, the larger of the two yahg was back on his feet. Lyra turned easily and charged her horn, firing a bolt of energy directly through the yahg’s shoulder. He stepped back, barely phased by the blow- -until the orange energy began to expand through his shoulder, corroding away a large wound in his flesh.

Now that he was distracted, Lyra delivered a powerful blow to his gut, and then another and another before he could react. Behind her, the wounded yahg raised his rifle- -and it was suddenly surrounded with an orange glow as Lyra took control of it, using it to fire several rounds into the yahg’s comrade. She then turned it on the sniper yahg, who was approaching and already badly burned from one of Beri’s rounds.

Most of Lyra’s force seemed to concentrate on the lead yahg, though, and when he was finally down Lyra struck him in the head sharply enough to disorient him. Badly wounded, bleeding, and still burning from the biotic attack, the yahg was no longer able to resist.

Lyra picked him up by one of his horns. “This is MY land,” she said. “Who gave you permission to hunt here?”

“We do not…need your permission,” said the yahg, speaking with a heavy accent and great difficulty, partly because of his alien vocal structure but mostly because of the amount of blood that was pouring into his mouth from his mostly broken teeth.

Lyra grimaced, and then jammed one of her fingers into one of the yahg’s eye sockets. He roared in pain as his eye was destroyed and lifted one of his arms to strike Lyra. She struck it with enough force to shatter the bone within, rendering the lower part of the limb useless and hanging.

“Lyra!” cried Starlight. “Stop!”

Lyra ignored Starlight. “You think you can challenge ME? However strong you THINK you are, I AM STRONGER!” She took another eye, and the yahg screamed.

“Offworlder scum,” he chocked.

At this, Lyra smiled. She grabbed one of the yahg’s horns, gripping it tightly as her hand glowed with biotic energy. “The next thing that’s coming off is this. And I know how to do it so it won’t grow back. Recognize me, or I will pull it out.”

“You wouln’t- -offworlder not have the- -” His words devolved into screaming as Lyra began to pull. “No! NO! Mercy!”

“Recognize me!” demanded Lyra, still pulling the horn.

“You are superior! I am subordinate! I am subordinate!”

Lyra immediately released him, letting his head fall back into the snow. She turned her attention toward the yahg with the broken knee and his badly burned comrade.

“No, please!” said the burned one. “We are his subordinates! We are now your subordinates! We do not wish to challenge you offworlder.” They both bowed, and their leader sat up slowly. Lyra did not seem bothered by this, and allowed him to catch his breath and slowly rise.

“Indeed,” he said, wiping away the blood from his mouth and then clutching his broken arm. “I had not believed, but the stories are true. I concede with pride.” He looked down at Starlight. “And them?”

“They are my subordinates also,” said Lyra. She looked up at the group of yahg. “All of you are injured. Go. Find my husband. Or my stepdaughter, if you are brave.”

“Yes, master,” said the lead yahg. He and his friend helped the third with the knee injury stand, and they walked off into the snow.

Lyra watched them go, and then helped Starlight up. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” said Starlight, rubbing her now throbbing head. “I don’t know what happened. I- -I couldn’t use my biotics…”

“Of course you couldn’t. You need to protect your horn.” Lyra pointed at her own. “You can’t use magic if your horn gets hit.”

“But how did they know that?”

“They must have seen you use it at some point. Trust me, the yahg look big and dumb, but they are incredibly perceptive.”

Jack approached them. One of her arms was hanging limply at her side, and she was trailing blood through the snow.

“Jack!” cried Starlight.

“Goddamn it,” said Jack. “What the hell are they shooting?”

Lyra separated two of her fingers about an inch apart. “About this big, and square.”

“Square?”

“Yeah. They yahg really like it to hurt.”

“I have some medigel,” said Starlight, opening her omnitool and remotely administering the mixture. Jack seemed to respond well, and her vital-sign telemetry improved.

“You’re going to need more than that,” said Beri, approaching from behind them. Despite appearing concerned with Jack, she could not take her eyes off Lyra.

“I know a doctor,” said Lyra, smiling. “I’d fix you yourself, but, well…” she lifted one of her robotic hands and flexed the fingers. “We all know how that went.”

Lyra led the group through the forest to an area where the species of trees changed from enormous ferny conifers to shorter, spinier trees. It was clearly evident that she knew exactly where she was going.

They eventually came to a large building. Its appearance was somewhat sudden; there was no clearing of trees around it; rather, the tree line simply seemed to end where the building started. Starlight was actually somewhat surprised by the building’s appearance. Despite the yahg’s imposing presence, their architecture was actually not as aesthetically displeasing as their bodies were. From outside, the building seemed to be winding and complicated but actually rather architecturally balanced with an appearance that matched well with the forest surrounding it. The construction was, of course, sturdy, but it was of far greater caliber than the utilitarian prefabs that Starlight had become all too familiar with.

“Watch your head,” said Lyra, pointing to a frame that was almost six feet over her own head as they passed through a wide door.

“That’s a big door,” said Starlight.

“I’ve seen bigger,” muttered Beri.

“The high ceilings are actually great in the summer,” said Lyra as she led them down the long and mildly dark hallway. “It’s cold right now, but the planet has close to a thirty-five degree axial tilt. The summers get real hot. It’s really annoying when the only part of you that can sweat is your head.”

“You mean this is a yahg building?” said Beri, suddenly concerned. “With yahg in it?”

“No, it’s a yahg building with all the yahg standing outside.” Lyra sighed. “Who is the turian, Starlight? He’s not very bright.”

“I’m a ‘she’.”

“Oh. How am I supposed to be able to tell?”

“She’s a Spectre,” sighed Starlight.

“Clearly not a very good one if she couldn’t take down a group of poachers.”

“Well, I’m ready for a rematch,” said Beri, drawing her glowing pistol.

“Put that away!” said Lyra. “This is a hospital! Our job is fixing injuries, not making new ones.”

“Yes. Clearly. You’re one to talk,” said Starlight.

“Quiet you,” said Lyra, flicking the end of Starlight’s horn.

Indeed, it was a hospital. After Lyra led them past what was apparently an auxiliary entrance, more yahg became visible. They looked not unlike the others, except they wore several different sorts of uniforms and were color and symbol-coded by the paint that they wore on their faces. Many of them were pushing equipment, but others were walking through the corridors on their way elsewhere. All of them looked at the group of aliens suspiciously, but upon noticing Lyra, they inevitably turned away gruffly and went about their business.

They were more than a little intimidating, and walking among them was nerve wracking, especially for Starlight. Her back was already knee-high on most bipedal races, and compared to the yahg she was tiny. Despite their size, though, the yahg moved with surprising grace and silence and Starlight doubted that she would be crushed too badly beneath their feet.

Lyra eventually stopped. In front of her stood a large crowd of yahg, all of them wearing long white coats. They seemed to be congregated around a cloth-partitioned area of what Starlight took to be an emergency room.

“Well, look at this,” said a deep but distinctively non-yahg voice from the other side of them. Starlight recognized it immediately. “You’re all in for a treat today.”

Starlight pushed past Lyra and between the feet of the group of yahg. They barely seemed to notice her, instead focusing with rapt attention on the speaker. When Starlight finally managed to reach the other side, she found herself looking up at a white-coated krogan standing before a seated yahg holding a bloody cloth against his eyes and with a glowing orange hole in his shoulder.

Fenok grabbed the shoulder of the yahg firmly and adjusted him to show the wound to his students. The patient growled loudly and bared his teeth, but Fenok ignored it. “This isn’t something you’ll almost never encounter on Parnack. A biotic injury with full penetration and residual reave effect. Considering the patient’s other injuries, how would we treat?”

“Clean the wound and apply antibiotic,” said one of the yahg.

“Incorrect!” bellowed Fenok. “The effect is progressive. If the fundamental process is not addressed, the patient’s going to lose half his torso by the time he wakes up in the morning.”

“What?” said the patient, his remaining eyes widening.

“Debridement of the wound,” suggested another student. “Remove the affected tissue and a wide margin of healthy material. Treatment is then standard course for a large wound.”

“Yes,” said Fenok, hesitantly. “That would work if this were in a minor location, but at the shoulder that would lead to amputation of the arm. Incorrect.”

“Amputation?” said the patient, his voice increasing in octave.

“No,” said the student who had just spoken. He bristled, and the other yahg stepped away from him. “That is NOT incorrect. That is the necessary treatment. His loss of arm is acceptable.”

Fenok glared at the yahg, and then approached him, staring him right in his multiple eyes. The yahg actually took a step back. “What did you just say to me?”

“I- -I said nothing,” said the yahg. “Nothing at all, Professor.”

“That’s what I thought,” said Fenok, lumbering back over to the patient. “I wouldn’t have asked the question if I didn’t know the answer. Not to you. Not yet. It is increasingly clear that not one of you is ready.”

Another voice from the crowd spoke up. This one was clearly not a yahg either. Starlight leaned forward and looked past one of the yahg to see a much shorter figure, an asari in a white coat that was a smaller version of the others. Her face was badly scarred and both of her eyes were artificial, but she addressed Fenok with absolute confidence and a smile on her lips. “You would need to apply an energy stabilization matrix over the wound to neutralize the residual energy, followed by IV capacitive chelation. From then on, it’s up to the patient to heal.” She looked up at the wounded yahg. “To disguise the injury, I would recommend that you appear with one hand on the hilt of a sword.”

“That is correct,” said Fenok, almost reluctantly. “But tell me, Zedok, what type of anesthetic would one use for the procedure?”

“For this type of surgery? None. It would be a sign of weakness for the patient.”

The patient suddenly became very pale, but the other students murmured amongst themselves in approval. One even clapped.

“Correct,” said Fenok. He pointed at the second yahg who had gotten the question wrong. “My daughter just told you how to do it. It wouldn’t be fair for me not to give you a second chance, so you complete the procedure. You’re the second-ranked student in the group, it should be easy. Don’t mess up, though. If that arm comes off, I’m sending you all the way back down to the bottom. You’ve got that?”

“Yes, Professor.”

Fenok’s eyes drifted over the group, and then suddenly settled on Starlight. “You get to that. I have something to attend to.”

He stepped toward Starlight, and the yahg moved out of his way. It was almost comical to see a group of beings that made a full-grown krogan look small, and Starlight could not help but smile.

“Starlight Glimmer,” said Fenok. “It’s good to see you!”

“Starlight?” said a voice from the other side of the crowd. There was some pushing and some swearing in several languages, and Zedok emerged from the group. “STARLIGHT!”

She swooped down and picked Starlight off the ground, wrapping her in a tight hug.

“Zedok,” said Starlight. “It’s so good to see you!”

“I know, right? Star, where have you been? I haven’t seen you in years!”

“It’s been too long,” said Starlight, letting Zedok set her back down. She looked up at the grinning asari. “Your scars are looking better.”

“I know, right? Almost two percent healed! In another sixty, eighty years tops I’ll be as blue and smooth as every other asari out there. Then I guess I’ll have to get a new set.”

“No,” said Fenok, firmly. “That’s not how scars are supposed to work.” He turned to Starlight. “Starlight, what are you doing here? Parnack isn’t exactly a good place for prey species like us.”

“I found them wandering outside,” said Lyra, stepping past Starlight. She leaned toward Fenock and kissed him on the lips.

Starlight felt her eyes widen drastically. “You- -you two? You didn’t.”

“We did,” said Lyra, proudly.

“And you didn’t invite me to the wedding?”

“We tried,” said Fenok, “but you’re not exactly easy to find. That, and we didn’t feel that asking you to come to Parnack would have been wise.”

“I can handle myself. You know that.”

“Yes. It is not you I was worried about. I’d rather not have fighting at a wedding.”

“But isn’t that the norm for krogan weddings? And how do you to even…”

Lyra pointed at her crotch plate. “Well, I networked the primary sensory system into- -”

“NO NO NO!” said Zedok, covering her ears. “I don’t need to know the mechanics of it!”

“Neither do I,” said Jack. “Honestly, this is cute and all, but I can’t help but feel a little ill.”

“Buck you, Jack,” said Lyra.

Fenok and Zedok seemed to not have initially noticed Jack, and when they turned their attention to her Zedok gasped.

“Jack! You’re here- -and you’re hurt!”

“Hold on,” said Fenok. “I have some medical supplies- -”

“Don’t worry, dad,” said Zedok. “Let me handle this one.”

“Are you sure?”

“You can trust me,” said Zedok, smiling. “Besides…” She pointed toward one of the other patient slots where a yahg was waiting with one of his knees bending the wrong way. “I know how much you love orthopedic surgery.”

Fenok grumbled and turned toward the yahg patient. “If one more of these yahg punches me in the face…I’ll punch back this time, I swear.”

“No you woudn’t,” said Zedok.

“No, but I sure would want to,” retorted Fenok, loud enough that the yahg could hear.

Zedok smiled and led Jack into a small side room. “Oh wow, I can’t believe I’m actually going to get to work on you,” she said. “I know I went through that whole teenage fangirl phase, but to tell you the truth, I never actually got over it. I mean, how could I? You’re Jack!”

“Worshiping a criminal?” said Beri. “Not exactly a wise choice.”

Zedok’s robotic pupils narrowed and her expression hardened. “Now, I don’t know who you are, turian, but I don’t like your tone. Am I going to have to administer medicine to your face?”

“How about you administer some of it to your own, asari?”

“Stop,” said Starlight. “Zedok, this is Berry. She’s a Spectre that I have to deal with now.”

“A Spectre? Wow, the quality sure has dropped since Shepard left.”

“Oh please. You’re seriously going to compare me to that human traitor?”

Jack’s fists clenched. She spoke in a voice that must have seemed calm and measured to anyone except Starlight. “You’re not going to want to continue this conversation, Berry.”

“She’s right,” said Starlight. “Seriously. Don’t.”

“Fine,” said Beri. “I’ll stop, but PLEASE stop calling me ‘Berry’. My name is Tyros. I am not a drupe.”

“You could have fooled me.” Zedok sat Jack down on a comically oversized chair and opened her omnitool. She began scanning the wound on Jack’s shoulder, and then reached to a package on her belt which contained asari-sized surgical tools.

“So,” said Jack. “You’re actually a doctor now?”

“Kind of.”

“That’s not normally what you want to tell your patients, Zed,” said Starlight.

“There isn’t really formal medical training on Parnack,” explained Zedock while she removed a piece of shrapnel from Jack’s arm. “It’s more like an apprenticeship system. But yes. I am qualified to do this, even if I don’t have approval on a galactic setting.”

“Good to know,” said Jack.

“So you aren’t a real doctor,” said Beri. “Are you even trained with anything that’s not a yahg?”

“Not really,” admitted Zedok. “But dad is constantly drilling me on xenomedicine. It’s actually way easier to do surgery on something that doesn’t have the armor of a tank….damn, Jack, what did you do?”

“I got shot.”

“Hold on, I’ll get some general anesthetic.”

“Don’t forget to tune the dose down,” said Lyra, pulling up a chair and slouching deeply. “The yahg stuff will probably kill her.”

“Doubtful,” said Jack. “I have a pretty high tolerance for narcotics. But don’t bother.”

“Are you sure?”

“It’s not the first time I’ve been shot.” Jack’s silver eyes shifted toward Starlight. “The last time was when someone forgot to check her aim.”

“I can’t help it,” said Starlight. “I’m no good with guns. There’s just no way to hold them with magic and still brace them properly. And I’m sure as hell not going to use my hooves.”

“Tell me about it,” said Lyra. “I couldn’t shoot a fish in a barrel with my last body. As soon as I actually had shoulders, though, it was like somepony opened a door.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask you about that,” said Jack. “That’s a nice body you’ve got there.”

“I’m the sexiest pony you’ve ever seen,” said Lyra, pointing. She laughed. “Of course, Fenok took some time to get used to it. He really liked my pony version. A lot.”

Zedok cringed, and Starlight shuddered. Lyra’s body had been fully robotic as long as Starlight had known her, so it had some leeway when it came to certain activities, but the thoughts that were running through Starlight’s head were not things she wanted to imagine.

“I don’t recognize your parts,” said Beri, suddenly far more interested in the conversation. “Is it something baterian?”

“Baterian? That crap? Of course not. I built this all myself.”

Beri’s eyes widened. “You mean all of that is custom? Even the internal life support?”

“You don’t need a lot of life support when you’re just a head and part of a spine. Of course I built it myself. Although, Fenok did help me fine-tune the neural feedback system. If you know what I mean.”

“Please stop,” groaned Zedok.

“Oh, yeah, you’re one to talk.”

“What about the reactor?” said Beri, now completely ignoring Zedok.

“Reactor? Why would I waste my time on something so…primitive?”

Beri blinked. “What?”

Lyra raised one of her hands and flexed the complex combination of robotic joints. “This isn’t your primitive alien crap. This is Equestrian technology. I animate it with my own magic.”

“I don’t understand.”

“It means,” said Starlight, “that she’s powering it with her biotics.”

Beri looked down at Starlight, and then up at Lyra. “I see.”

Starlight failed to admit that Beri, like Lyra, was almost entirely machine as well. It did not seem to be relevant, and unlike Lyra Beri actually seemed to hide the majority of her modifications beneath her armor and long sleeves. Jack had apparently not noticed, and as a non-Core unicorn, Lyra did not have the capacity to scan Beri as closely as Starlight could.

“There you go,” said Zedok, finishing her treatment. “You should be good to go.”

Jack flexed her arm. “Thanks. You’re pretty good at this.”

“I haven’t killed a patient yet,” said Zedok, proudly. “Well, not from a routine surgery. You’re just lucky you had your shield, or I would have had to…well…” She straightened one hand and pounded it lightly against her other palm, making a chopping sound with her mouth.

“I didn’t have a sheild,” said Jack.

“What?” said Starlight and Zedok at once.

“It makes my head all…buzzy, I guess. Something about the feedback with the implants.” Jack pointed to the hole in her armor. “I just used a biotic barrier.”

“Really?” said Zedok. She seemed as concerned as Starlight was angry. “That’s not normal…” She shook her head. “Well, you ARE Jack, aren’t you? Just as awesome as ever.” She helped Jack off the chair and led them out of the room.

“Jack,” said Starlight, falling back behind the others. “What the buck? No shields?”

Jack just shrugged. “Sometimes it’s better without protection.”

“You could have at least told me! I could have reconfigured the shield harmonics, or even fixed your implant!”

“I don’t like people poking around in my head. Not even you, Star. Besides…I don’t think I need the shields anymore.”

Before Starlight could continue, a yahg approached them from down the hallway. Unlike the others, he was not dressed in a uniform but rather in partially furry outfit that Starlight could only guess was supposed to be rustic. Also unlike the others, he had no face paint, and his horns were small and almost bovine in nature. He was holding a large sack.

“Darien!” cried Zedok. She rushed toward him, and with a small flash of blue light from her feet jumped into his arms. He caught her handily, cradling her in his arms as she wrapped hers around his neck.

“Hello, Zedok,” he said. He motioned toward the bag he was holding, which appeared to be dripping slightly. “I brought you lunch. Very fresh. Just slaughtered.”

“Aww!” Zedok turned toward her friends and Beri. “Guys, you have to try this stuff! I know it’s weird, and it totally grossed me out at first that its prepared raw, but it’s SO good. Especially in the winter when they’re extra fat! The flavor is…well, there’s nothing like it in the whole galaxy!”

“I’m an obligatory herbivore,” said Starlight.

“And I don’t eat,” said Beri.

“Sure,” said Jack, shrugging. “Um…what is it, exactly?”

“How to describe them…like fish, kind of? Except hairy. And with a lot sharper teeth. Darien’s family farms them, whatever they are.”

“We have for seventeen generations,” he said, proudly.

“Your name is Darien?” said Jack. “That doesn’t sound very yahg.”

“It isn’t,” admitted Darien. “But actual name is very, very difficult for offworlders to pronounce correctly. So I chose different name, one easier to say.”

“Oh, yeah,” said Zedok. “Darien, this is Jack and Starlight…and a turian, I guess. Guys, this is Darien.”

A thought suddenly occurred to Starlight. “Zedok, he isn’t…”

“Oh, trust me,” said Lyra, “he is.”

Starlight shivered and felt mildly nauseous. Darien seemed slightly embarrassed.

“Dating, you mean? Well, the yahg equivalent to it, yes,” said Zedok.

“That seems appropriately fitting for an asari,” muttered Beri.

“Hey, at least I’m not one of those weirdo asari who goes for turians!”

“And you don’t have any urge to attack us?” asked Starlight. “Not even a little?”

“Heavens no,” said Darien. “Zedok has told great many stories concerning you. I recognize you as superiors, and have no desire to challenge you. I am loyal to Zedok, but will help you in any way I can if she wills it.”

“I don’t know,” said Jack. “I always pictured yahg to be, you know…violent.”

“We are, but not always.”

“Not really,” said Lyra. “It’s just a cultural difference. For yahg, every party entering a social interaction needs to know the place of all the others involved. If you leave it ambiguous, they get agitated.”

“Indeed,” said Darien. “It is our sacred duty to uphold the tiers of the hierarchy.”

“And yet you slaughtered an entire Council delegation when they came here,” said Beri.

“Not myself,” said Darien. “That was long before me.”

“That’s not the way you hear it from the yahg,” said Lyra. “As they tell it, a bunch of aliens with a history of abducting and experimenting on them showed up and refused to show any semblance of tact or respect for the culture.” Lyra paused. “You should have seen it when we came here. I did NOT adjust well. Fenok, though, he basically bent over backward for them. Then, as they realized he was actually a great doctor, his rank increased. No fighting, just by reputation.”

“The honorable doctor Fenok has improved the art of medicine on Parnack greatly,” said Darien, “and has brought great benefit to our community and faction. That, and his daughter is an equal benefit, both in terms of beauty and potential.”

“Oh you,” said Zedok, hugging Darien’s neck. He hugged back, although very carefully. His hands were almost the size of her torso.

“Please don’t kiss,” said Beri. “I don’t know if I can handle it.”

“Neither could I,” said Fenok, approaching from behind Darien.

Darien immediately stiffened, dropping Zedok onto the ground. “Honorable Doctor Vuhlig,” he said. “Hello.”

“And why exactly are you here?” growled Fenok, wiping the yahg blood form his hands. His face looked slightly bruised. Apparently, the yahg actually had punched him.

“I brought Zedok- -I mean, the younger-Doctor Vuhlig- -lunch.” He held out the bag as an offering. “Although considering comparative size, there is amount to share with you and the pony Lyra as well.”

Fenok glared at him, and then grumbled as he walked past.

“You’re clan Vuhlig?” snickered Beri. “Seriously?”

“Don’t make me have to punch you,” said Zedok.

“Don’t punch the turian,” sighed Fenok. “I don’t want to have to clean up another mess today. And turian blood stinks horribly.”

“I don’t smell anything,” said Darien. “And I can smell all of your blood. It smells good. Especially that of pony.”

“Um…thank you?” said Starlight.

“You remind me of little animals that grandmother and I used to hunt. Which is good, those are good memories. Although the screaming was terrible.”

“Darien!” laughed Zedok, playfully punching him in his hip, which was roughly level with her shoulder. “Don’t scare Starlight!”

“Who said I was scared?”

“There will be no eating of anyone today,” said Fenok. “That would just be…unfortunate.” He turned to Lyra. “I’m done for the day. Why don’t we have a talk with our friends at home? It would certainly be more suitable than this place.”

“Can Darien come?” asked Zedok. “He did bring meat.”

“Sure,” said Lyra before her husband could refuse. “I want to see if Jack can actually keep this stuff down.” She smiled at Starlight. “I’ll bet you fifty credits she can’t.”

“You don’t know Jack like I know Jack. Deal.”

Fenok and Lyra’s house was not far from the hospital, stationed less than half a mile out into the woods. From what Starlight had come to understand, the yahg had a strong aversion to clearing forest; as such, the house was not unlike the hospital in that it was built nearly into the trees that surrounded it. The building itself resembled a pleasant cottage, although built on an enormous scale to accommodate yahg visitors.

When the group entered, Starlight noticed that the air was actually somewhat warmer. Fenok took off his outer coat and hung it on a hook near the door, as did Zedok. She was wearing a sleeveless garment beneath it, and the extensive surgical scars on her arms were immediately apparent. After some encouragement by Lyra, Darien did the same. He was wearing a similar garment to Zedok’s, but scaled up to his massive proportions.

“You don’t need to wear your armor in here,” said Lyra. “I’d take mine off too, but it doesn’t work that way.”

“Finally,” said Jack, immediately pulling off her shirt and revealing the extensive tattoos and scarring beneath.

“Star?”

“Yeah, sure,” said Starlight after a moment. She reached out with her magic and removed her armor, stepping out of it easily. Zedok’s eyes immediately flicked to Starlight’s flank.

“I didn’t pick you as one for tattoos, Star,” she said.

Starlight looked back at the pair of symmetrical equals signs on her flanks. “It’s a reminder,” she said, solemnly. Her eyes drifted to the extensive set of metal implants jutting out of her back, a part of her that she could not remove. “Of what I need to do.”

“Deep,” said Zedok. “I’ve tried getting tattoos myself, but asari skin just doesn’t hold ink at all.”

“You’re using the wrong type,” said Jack. “You would need to- -”

“Please don’t tell her,” sighed Fenok.

“Tell me later,” whispered Zedok, very loudly.

Fenok led the group out of the house’s main room and to what appeared to be a dining room with a table sized adequately for a krogan. Darien was relegated to the kitchen to prepare the meat, something he did exorbitantly quickly. Yahg, apparently, did not cook their food but simply divided it into pieces.

After nearly an hour of talking, Starlight was out fifty credits but felt happier than she had in a long time. Fenok and Lyra regailed Jack and Starlight with various tales from their time on Parnack, with Fenok mostly mentioning the trials and reward of working with yahg and Lyra explaining often gruesome fights she had gotten into and won. Zedok would occasionally chime in with her own parts of the stories, generally bringing a level of humor to them that would cause Starlight to burst out laughing periodically. Jack and Starlight, meanwhile, talked about their journey over the last few years and the things they had seen and done. Some were at least as funny as Zedok’s stories, but some were sad.

The whole time, Darien sat silently, his many eyes shifting from speaker to speaker as he waited patiently. Beri sat next to him and had quite obviously gone to sleep only minutes after the conversation had started.

“So,” said Lyra. “What I’m wondering is how did you find us? We’ve been out of contact for years. And it’s not exactly common knowledge that we’re down here.”

“I tracked you,” said Starlight.

“Well, I know that- -”

“No. You don’t understand. I tracked YOU.”

“Me? What do you mean ‘me’?”

“I scanned the area for another pony. Specifically, another unicorn. There’s only five of us in the galaxy right now, so it wasn’t hard.”

“Wait. You scanned the galaxy? As in the whole galaxy?”

“I am a Core. We can do that.”

“No, no you can’t,” said Lyra. “Normal Cores don’t have that good of resolution, especially not without an exogenous scanning platform. You can just do that by default?”

Starlight shrugged, not admitting the fact that she had actually been tracking Lyra for months. She had always maintained an idea of reconnecting with her friends, and she had assumed that she would do it one day- -but five years had passed so quickly, she just had not had the time.

“Wait,” said Zedok. “I only count two unicorns. Star, did you have kids or something?”

Beri snorted herself awake. “Huh? What?”

Starlight blushed. “No! Of course not! What I meant was, there’s three unicorns on the citadel right now.” Starlight’s tone darkened. “Or two, I guess. An Equestrian ambassador, another unicorn, and their Core.”

“Equestrians?” said Lyra, simultaneously concerned and interested. “What are they doing here? They aren’t going back on their promise, are they?”

Starlight shook her head. “No. Some diplomat. Does the name Rarity mean anything to you?”

“The fashion mogul? Yeah, I know her. Or of her.”

“I didn’t think of you as one for fashion,” said Jack, reclining shirtless in her oversized chair. Starlight almost burst into laughter looking at how ridiculous she looked.

“I wasn’t. Well, I was when I was younger. Back with…nevermind. Clothing doesn’t fit well over a robotic body. And with a face like this…” She pointed at her one dead, blank eye and the scars surrounding it. “They don’t make clothes that can make this look pretty.”

“Oh, Lyra,” said Fenock. He leaned over and hugged her lightly. She smiled.

“Yeah, come on, Lyra,” said Zedok. “Remember, scars are sexy.”

“Agreed,” said Darien, only to be immediately silenced by a devastating glare from Fenok.

“That does bring up the question we came here to ask,” said Beri. “About…wait, how long was I out?”

“Two hours and seventeen minutes,” said Darien.

“What?!” Beri glared at Starlight. “You were just talking? For that long? And you didn’t even ask them?”

“At least she wasn’t sleeping,” said Jack.

“Ask us what?” said Fenok.

Starlight sighed. “I came here to ask for help.”

“With what?” said Fenok, suddenly concerned. “What did you do?”

“It’s nothing serious,” said Starlight. “In fact, it’s optional. The Council assigned us a mission.”

“The Council?” asked Zedok. “Since when do you work for those shlubs?”

“It’s a business proposition.”

“Oh,” said Lyra, leaning forward and picking up a glass of water. “Finally getting into the mercenary business, Starlight?”

“You could say that. I’m trying to assemble a crew. Just some basic members to help out. I already have Jack, of course, and…her…”

“What kind of mission?” asked Zedok, excitedly. “Is something going to get blown up?”

“Hopefully not. It’s just a survey mission, basically. We’re supposed to go to the Crystal Galaxy- -”

Starlight was interrupted by the sound of violently shattering glass. She looked across the table to where Lyra was staring at her with her one orange iris narrowed and her robotic hand filled with broken glass.

“What did you just say?” she whispered.

“Well, apparently, a crystal pony asked the Council for assistance. They didn’t want to send, you know, actual soldiers. So Vakarian asked us.”

“A crystal pony? That- -that’s not possible.”

“Um…yes it is,” said Starlight. “I saw him. I even talked to him. He was definitely a pony, and defiantly crystal- -”

“Don’t joke about this!” snapped Lyra. She was on the verge of shouting, and the mood of the entire room changed.

“Lyra?” said Zedok.

“If they’ve learned to talk now, don’t believe a word it said,” said Lyra, ignoring her step-daughter. “They may look like ponies, but they’re not. Trust me on this, Starlight. I don’t care what they asked you to do, or who they are- -you are NOT going to that Celestia-forsaken hellhole.”

“I don’t see why it should be that much of a problem- -”

“A problem? A PROBLEM?” Lyra stood up sharply, sending her chair falling backward. She gestured toward her cybernetic body. “Look at me, Starlight! Do you know who did this to me? THEY did! Seventy years. That’s how long I spent fighting them, and in the end, they did THIS to me! They took everything from me! My career, my position, my body, my Bon Bon…”

Lyra turned away quickly, trying to disguise the tears that were forming in her eyes. Fenok stood up and held out his arms. “It’s okay, Lyra. It’s okay.” She fell into his arms and buried her head in his chest.

“I’ve been briefed on the situation,” said Beri. “From what I have been told, Equestria and the Crystal Empire have been in an armistice for over a decade now. The war is over.”

“Do you think that’s any comfort to the countless millions of ponies that the crystals killed?” said Lyra, darkly. “To my friends and comrades that couldn’t even get a proper burial? To…to Bon Bon…?”

“Do you think refusing to accept the armistice bothers the dead? Because I have news for you. They’re DEAD. They don’t care.”

“Berry…”

“It’s not as though the mission will not be dangerous, but we accept that. At least I do. And I will complete it.” She turned to Starlight. “I don’t know why you bothered to contact the civilians. I don’t even know why Vakarian didn’t just give the mission to me.” She stood up. “This is a waste of time.”

“I’ll go,” said Zedok.

The whole room suddenly went silent.

“What?” said Fenok. “I said I’ll go.”

“Zedok, you don’t know what you’re saying,” said Lyra. “The crystals- -”

“Are dangerous? I get that. But come on, Lyra. I grew up inside a geth starship.” She lifted her scarred arms. “Cerberus blew me up when I was fifteen- -and then three days later, I was on the front lines when the Harmony tried to take down the Citadel. Danger isn’t new to me.”

“Not to mention the fact that I may have sort of accidentally gutted you at one point,” added Starlight.

“Zedok,” said Lyra, “you don’t understand what the crystals are capable of, what they did in the war- -”

“No,” admitted Zedok. “I don’t. But I want to. Because it’s important to you, and who you are. I’m nineteen, Lyra. Most asari my age are out dancing naked on poles. I think wanting to explore a distant galaxy with one of my best friends and my childhood hero is a bit more noble than that, at least.”

“Um, no,” said Fenok. “Most asari you’re age are considered children and under constant parental supervision. You’re not even really considered an asari maiden until you hit at least fifty.”

“Well, then, it’s a good thing I’m half krogan.”

“That doesn’t mean you’re indestructible. And what about your medical training?”

“It’s mostly done,” said Zedok. “And besides. Regardless of what you say, at this point, it looks like I’m probably going to practice on Parnack for the foreseeable future. Even then, I want to have at least one more chance to look at the galaxy.”

Fenok grumbled. Starlight knew that he was trying to form an argument, but that what Zedok was describing was almost exactly what Fenok had done in his youth as well, and it was not something he regretted.

“You can come with us too,” said Starlight. “You really helped me a lot when Sjdath first found me. Remember that? You were the one who pulled me out of that abandoned ship, and who installed my first omnitool. It would be great to have you with us.”

“I wish I could,” said Fenok. “It would be good to see the galaxy again. But I have a practice here. I have students, and patients- -I’m expecting at least three births next week alone, and let me tell you, that is NOT an easy thing for a doctor to survive when it comes to yahg. The people here are counting on me, and I’m afraid I don’t have the luxury to go with you.”

“You don’t have to,” said Lyra, putting her hand on his shoulder. “Because I will.”

“You what?” said Starlight, confused. “But you just said- -”

“I know Zedok. And I know that even if we tried, we’re not going to stop her. Not that we should try. This is approximately the worst possible idea, and I’m going to recommend against it with everything I have- -but if she’s going, so am I. None of you have experience with the crystal galaxy, but I do. That, and nearly ninety years of continuous combat experience.”

“You’re really old, aren’t you?” said Jack.

“Older than you’ll ever be. Expecially if this goes the way I know it’s going to go.” Lyra looked up to Fenok. “Unless, of course- -”

Fenok shook his head. “This is Zedok’s decision, and yours. I love you, Lyra, and I trust you more than any other living individual in this galaxy. If anyone will keep Zedok safe, it will be you. However…” he looked up at Darien, who had been watching the drama unfold with mild amusement. “Take the yahg with you.”

All eight of Darien’s eyes widened. “M…me?” he squeaked.

Fenok released Lyra and walked over to where Darien was sitting. He put his hand on the yahg’s shoulder. “Darien, do you know how I feel about you?”

“You don’t like me.”

“No. I don’t. Not at all. Do you know why that is?” Darien shook his head. Fenok smiled. “Darien, do you know what the most valuable thing in a krogan’s life is?”

“Um…no?”

“His daughter,” said Fenok sharply. “I don’t expect you to understand the depth of this sentiment. I don’t think you could know. You know what the genophage is, but you never saw what it did. What Tuchanka became. How we krogan are. However, you make me seriously question my devotion to pacifism.”

“I was not aware,” said Darien. “I am truly sorry.”

Fenok shook his head. “Words. Words are worthless. You have to prove yourself. Go with Lyra and my daughter, and keep Zedok safe. If you make it back, I may actually respect you. Slightly.” Fenok paused. “Of course…if you come back and she doesn’t...well, just know that I’m familiar enough with your physiology to cut every piece of you off and still letting you take several weeks to die of infection.”

Darien let out a nervous whine. “And…if I don’t want to go?”

Fenok patted the yahg’s shoulder. “I think you can figure that out.”

“Oh! Oh!” cried Zedok, standing excitedly. “This will be great! This’ll be your first time offword! I actually have an armored suit I made for you just in case this ever happened!”

“You…you were planning this, weren’t you?”

“Well, not this specifically, but come on.” She raised one of the facial markings that existed in place of her eyebrows. “You knew you were signing up for this.”

Darien sighed and looked down at the table. “I did…” he admitted.

“Great,” said Beri, crossing her arms. “Now we have a horse, a psychopath, another horse, an asari teenage, and a yahg. Anyone else you want to add?”

“Have you talked to Sjdath?” asked Zedok.

Starlight’s eyes widened. “You actually know where she is?”

“Of course,” said Zedok. “We write to each other sometimes. Sort of. She tries to do it by hand, and, well, I’m just going to say it: vorcha have terrible handwriting.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to ask,” said Jack. “Sjdath is crap in a fight, but she’s damn persistent. That, and she owes me a ton of back pay.”

“What’s a vorcha?” said Darien, confused by the conversation.

Starlight looked up at him. “You’re about to find out.”