No one is sure what accident of magic, technology, or nature caused the Cleftan Region to constantly shift both climate and temperature. In the difference of a few moments, a windswept plain can become humid swampland or a frigid mountain.
Fortunately, the terraforming engine Glen 'borrowed' had a much easier time converting Rannoch's arid soil. With a little programming, they were able to convert the normally dry terrain around the Shepard Home into prime farmland. Fences were set up to ensure the chirality of crops weren't accidentally mixed during the seeding process.
That didn't mean it was easy; land had to be tilled, irrigation had to be set up, and seeds had to be planted, which is why Glen, Javik, and Shepard were out in the southern field for over four hours in the hot Rannoch sun, digging a long ditch for what would be an artificial river.
"I would be the laughing stock of my entire division if they could see me," Javik complained as he plunged the shovel back into the dirt.
"Now, now, Javik." John said, resting against the handle of his shovel. "It could be worse. Imagine how much harder this would be if we were out here moving dirt with our bare hands, instead of that nice tractor Glen ordered for us."
Glen wiped the sweat from her brow. "Oh, sure … it's my fault Sol-mart doesn't have next-day shipping across the damn galaxy."
John chuckled even as Javik grumbled. Eventually, they set their shovels aside and sat down in the folding chairs Glen brought for them. Glen made a pit stop at the cooler to grab drinks for herself and her friends; beer for John, hard lemonade for her, and asari honey mead for Javik. She tossed the bottles to her friends before sitting down herself.
"Look at it." Glen said, motioning with her bottle to the field before them. "May not look like much today, but in a few weeks, we'll have it producing enough to keep us fully stocked with veggies. We'll have fruit from the orchards, plenty of herbs, maybe even some eggs if those chickens ever hatch."
"Oh, good. I was just thinking how appetizing unfertilized avian ovum would be right now." Javik said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
John and Glen chuckled at their friend's dour attitude. So far, Javik had turned his olfactory organs up at everything the Shepard House's pantry, usually telling them about some ancient Prothean dish that was supposedly much better.
"It's hard to believe." John whispered. When Glen glanced at him curiously, he said, "That just a year ago, we were fighting the Reapers."
"Well, to be fair, Rannoch was relatively untouched." Glen said.
"Yes … thanks to the geth." John's face fell.
Glen sighed. "Still no word from the deep space teams?"
"Nothing," John admitted. "I don't know what's worse; that they all might be dead, or that those that survived are so far out, they'll never know what happened to the others of their kind."
"Not never." Glen corrected. "Think about it; if some of them did head out into deep space, we probably won't see them back this way for at least a few hundred years."669Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFlUz7puqgd
"Agreed." Javik said. "While I can't claim to be fond of the machines, they were no fools. They would not risk being discovered by the Reapers."
"I know. I just … knowing that some of them survived …"
Glen knew exactly what John wasn't saying. She'd been there when John made the choice, and how heavily the death of the geth and EDI had hit him. Even as she thought it, however, a frown spread over her face. Glen examined the Normandy's AI core for weeks once the crew returned to Rannoch. It wasn't that EDI's programming was broken; large chunks of it were simply gone.
"All right." Glen said, rising to her feet. "Enough of this feeling gloomy crap. We made a promise, didn't we? To live for those who didn't make it." Raising her glass, she said, "For Legion, EDI, and the geth!"
"Here, here." John said, raising his bottle. "For Ashley, Thane, Mordin, and Anderson!"
"For the Prothean Empire, finally avenged!' Declared Javik, raising his own glass. "And for us, who brought down the cycle once and for all!"
As they drained their respective drinks, John's omni-tool beeped. He glanced at it and said, "We should be getting back; I promised Tali I'd be home early today."
"Ah, that's right." Glen said, a grin spreading across her face. "Today's the big anniversary."
"You'll hear no complaint from me." Javik said. "Let us get out of this wretched sun."
They packed their gear quickly and hopped into the skycar. The flight home only took a few minutes by air, though they were joined by several curious yulias as they neared the landing pad. The cat-like creatures had certainly made themselves at home, though out of respect to John and Glen, they confined their exploration to the public rooms unless invited.
Glen brought the car down in the usual place, pausing for a few moments for a particularly rambunctious group of kittens to scamper away before activating the landing gear.
Javik left without so much as a backward glance, as always. Glen didn't mind; the Prothen simply was a man of few words. Once he was gone, however, John asked in a low tone, "Glen, about the strawberries …"
"Yes?"
"You're absolutely sure they're safe for Tali?"
"Absitively Posilutely." Glen told him. "Tried them myself. Tasted great, and no signs of rejection."
"And you're sure it'll be okay for her too?"
"Let me put it this way," Glen said, spotting Garrus approaching. She waved him over and asked, "Hey, Garrus! How you feeling?"
"Tired." He admitted. "While you three were playing in the dirt, I've been moving boxes. I swear, we didn't pack this much stuff when we first came here."
"No tummy-aches? Soreness? Uncontrollable tremors?"
"No …" Garrus said, raising an eye ridge at her. "But there was something I've been meaning to ask you. It's about that fruit you gave me yesterday."
"Yeah?" Glen said, doing her best to sound innocent. "Tasty, right?"
"Very," he agreed. "I looked for it in the gardens, but couldn't find it. You got anymore stashed someplace?"
Glen looked at John expectantly. He smiled and nodded. "Good enough for me."
"Zorah-Sweet Strawberries." Glen said, "I registered them with the agricultural commission this morning."
John's smile widened. "Thanks, Glen. I knew you wouldn't let me down … now I'd better go wash up. Got a full evening planned."
"Of course." Glen said, giving him a nod. As he walked away, she added beneath her breath, "You've got the evening, and Tali will take care of the night."
Realizing Garrus was still looking at her, Glen asked, "What's up?"
"What's with the Zorah-Sweet thing?"
"Oh, that. Fruit comes in a lot of varieties, so I figured this being a new type of strawberry-"
"A new type of strawberry? Wait a minute; aren't strawberries a levo-chirality fruit?"
"Normally, yeah, but I genetically engineered some strawberries so they're omni-chiral; both dexto and levo systems can eat 'em, no problem."
"Both … oh. Oh." Garrus's eyes narrowed. "Oh. So when you gave me the strawberry yesterday-"
Realizing where this was going, Glen said, "Whoa, would you look at the time I really should get back to my workshop."
She backed away, but not fast enough. Garrus put a restraining arm on her shoulder and said, "Why don't I escort you? It'll give you time to explain."
"Oh, goody." Glen said without much enthusiasm.
