Chapter 174: Somewhere Beyond the Barricade

### Summary

After chasing off Minos, Shepard moves to check on the children inside Sunrise House, much to the unease of both Jack and Miranda due to Shepard looking incredibly frightening with her “space-magic glow”. Shepard is not dissuaded, and after a short conversation on how to covertly get the orphanage more supplies, the Rear Admiral enters the old high-school. The children are frightened, but Shepard promises to do a better job of keeping them all safe from now on.  Annabel asks Shepard for a hug, which the woman gratefully offers the child after a warning about her feeling very tingley.

After clearing the Minos communication jammers on board one of the rachni shuttles en route to the SSV *Austerlitz*, Shepard receives an urgent message from Khalisah bint Sinan al-Jilani asking the Rear Admiral to call her right away. Khalisah’s immediate problem is the political shit-storm related to Shepard’s actions at Sunrise House: A carefully doctored video showing a **VERY** scary Shepard throwing Sentzke and frying the gunner, without showing her being fired upon first or the threats against the orphanage. Unfortunately, Shepard doesn’t have any unedited footage to use against the propaganda, given Garrus and his visor was absent from the attack. Khalisah turns her attention to working on a statement for damage control- given that it would be worse to not release one.

Shepard makes a quick stop at the Prothean Archives on Mars to once again try to pick Javik’s mind about the iborihe, but the prothean general still cannot help Shepard with her questions. Javik points Shepard to Dr. Matilda Foster for assistance. Tilly’s personal skills rival Javik’s (that is to say, unfortunately absent) but the scientist advises Shepard to look into prothean philosophical treatises- and more importantly to USE the technology and not allow it to use her. Shepard accesses the Mars Archives Prothethan VI Verdict and makes a few queries, placing her finds in a memory shard.

Meanwhile, in Greater Stochkolm, Clara Goyle attempts to scold a completely unimpressed Sentzke for releasing the video without warning her. The tall, pale woman is completely unapologetic and makes a veiled threat towards Clara- firming the later’s growing sense that she is going to have to do things on her own.

The Howling Commandos discuss the appropriate way to react to the Minos broadcast with Jack, Miranda, and Zaeed, coming to the unsatisfactory conclusion that what they wanted to do would be counterproductive. Instead, they consider cultivating a contact with Carlos- currently considered to be the head of the Seeker Movement.

Shepard turns her mind to the full memory shard and uses it with intent. The answers she gains are unsatisfactory, but she counts using the prothean tech without a resulting headache to be a win.

### Title Meaning

The finale song in the musical *Les Miserables* ("The Epilogue") contains the lyircs "Somewhere beyond the barricade is there a world you long to see?". The barricade is a central piece throughout Act Two, and is the place where almost all there die. Much of the focus of this chapter is the separate groups each fighting for what they envision will bring healing and salvation to Earth and her people. These conflicting visions find themselves at odds, however- if not in their goals, then in their execution.

### Easter Eggs

Shepard's '*Oh crap, a pop-up.'* reaction to the Prothean Mars Archives VI Verdict mimics the renegade dialogue option after repairing Mira the VI during the Noveria mission in the first Mass Effect game.