Ready

Lis lay in the pod while it filled and tried not to fret. It was not uncomfortable, far from it. Her body felt...wrong with all of the painkillers that the various docs had insisted on dosing her with when they removed her from her warframe. She hadn't made any noise, indeed, hadn't reacted at all. But they knew. Oh, yes... They knew how much it had hurt her.

It was alien to her, this feeling of helplessness. Even at her worst, when she had been shot full of holes while escaping her former clan, she hadn't been this weak. Now she couldn't even move her hand. The less said about the feelings below her navel the better. She had been hit in the belly, the high powered Grineer bullet passing clean through her human form damaging everything it passed close to, including her spine which had been severed cleanly. The warframe she had assumed immediately after being injured had replaced her damaged nerves with its own technological pathways, but the damage to her body had been extreme and the warframe hadn't healed any of it. Indeed, warframes maintained everything in a stasis of sorts. She had gotten used to being in pain. This...was different. She was weak. She hated being weak.

"Lis?" Healer Iriana's voice came directly to her auditory nerves. They didn't want to connect her neural net too quickly after the trauma she had undergone when they removed her from her warframe. Lis was no medic, so she wasn't sure how bad the damage had been. However, she knew she had shocked Iriana in particular. The Healer was only this gentle with someone who was at death's door. "How you doing?"

Peachy. Lis tried to keep the sourness from her mental tone and mostly managed. She hadn't wanted this. She had a tube down her throat to aid her breathing while the docs did whatever they were going to do, so she could only communicate like this. She was a warrior, not a doc, so she really had no idea what they were going to do to heal her. The ICU pod that would be her home for the foreseeable future wasn't uncomfortable, but the fluid it was filling with felt very odd. Just peachy.

"It will be okay, Lis." Iriana promised her. "As soon as we are sure you are set, we will shift you into a virtual environment. You will not be alone."

I am not worried about that, Healer. Lis said with a mental sigh. Sara is going to be stressed. Serene is stressed. Violet is stressed... Heck, everyone is. I... She trailed off. I just want this done.

"It will take as long as it takes, Lis." Iriana chided her gently. "At least we know the regen will work, if not how long it will take for you. I would prefer you in the Tower hospital, but there was no chance of you agreeing to go with Sara going to school here, so... This is the best choice available. And we can access some... other techniques here."

You can say it, Iriana. Lis said with a silent snort. The Caretakers can help me here. Not so much at your hospital.

"Well..." Iriana sighed. "No. The Tower is adamant that the only people it will let in are the hospital staff and patients. Understandable, that paranoia... Especially after what happened with..." She broke off abruptly and Lis sighed. "Sorry." Iriana said quickly. "Didn't mean to bring back bad memories."

Working at the tower was marvelous, Iriana. Lis said quietly. I really wanted to make a difference. To make up for what happened.

"You did." Iriana said with a smile in her voice. "Serene was a handful, and you helped enormously." Lis smiled as well but it hadn't been a laughing matter at first.

Serene had lost her legs due to a combination of radiation and nanobot alteration. She had very nearly been Corrupted by a mad tower that the Corpus had accessed. The religious fanatics hadn't been prepared for the sudden influx of microscopic machines nor the Corrupted that had poured from the portal as soon as they had opened it. Only Serene's quick action had prevented that entire base, and probably far more, from being overrun by mad Orokin machines. It had cost the female Tenno her legs and very nearly her sanity to close the portal. But she had survived. Mostly.

Then.. The tower. Serene had been at the tower when Lis, trying to escape from the renegades who she had once called kin and clan had tracked Lis after Lis had fled. The clan... Lis' thoughts shied away from that. Karl had been very thorough in his attack on the renegades who had followed his brother. Lis had expected to die. To Nicholas -her former clan leader who she had fled from-, to Karl -who hunted and killed the renegades of his/her clan-, to Serene and Jasmina after stopping Karl from killing himself. None of that had happened. Instead, she had been Corrupted. Or so she had thought.

When Karl had asked, Lis had agreed to help Serene. It hadn't even occurred to the female Tenno to lie or dissemble. She still loved Karl. She likely always would. Without the emotional controls that Lis had assumed were permanent, it might have been very bad to watch Serene grow large with Rocky. Karl's child even if the hidebound Rhino wouldn't let Serene acknowledge him as the father. Serene... had not had a good time in bearing the child. Lis had been there for her every step of the way. For a time, Lis had despaired as much as the tower let her when Serene had been increasingly apathetic. For a long while, it seemed as if Serene was passively suicidal. She wouldn't do anything no matter how much Sara, Mishka, Iriana and Lis nagged her. But then... Karl had returned.

Lis had been busy trying to get Serene to eat when Karl had come. He had swept in and essentially grabbed Serene by the collar and jerked her up short. Lis had been just as dumbfounded as everyone else when Karl had dragged Serene, Sara and Mishka as well as herself first to his dojo -a place Lis had never thought to see again- and then to a storied hideaway. And what had happened after...

Lis shook herself a little. She was woolgathering. This was so unlike her. Then again, this whole situation was unlike anything she remembered. Cryo-nesia had taken its toll on her as on all Tenno. But she did remember being hurt before, just never this bad.

How is Sara coping? Lis asked over the silent linkage. And Serene?

"Sara is doing homework with Mishka." Iriana said with a hint of quite pride in her daughters. One of flesh and one adopted. "Serene is handling Rocky. They are safe, Lis. You can rest now."

I... Lis sighed. I don't know if I can. I have always had to be on edge, Healer. This is... wrong.

"It's not wrong, Lis." Iriana corrected her gently as the feeling of fluid climbed up her body. "Your body is damaged. You need downtime. You need to relax." The word 'relax' reverberated through Lis for some reason. Lis felt herself slowly relaxing despite her tension.

How is Violet doing? Lis said as she fought to stay awake. And Abigail?

Ask them yourself. This time, Iriana's quiet voice came over the mental link as Lis felt the fluid covering her face.

Without sense of transition, she was... elsewhere. But it was not what she expected.

"Get out!" The voice was familiar. Violet. Lis stared as she materialized in the virtual world with Abigail, Violet and... a woman she did not know. Tall woman who wore a headdress of some kind that covered her eyes. Not the Lotus. The odd visor that covered her eyes was slitted, like some kind of shade? Or blind? Not like the blindfold that the Oracle wore either. No, this was... different. Lis looked down at herself and nodded a little. She wore the usual bodysuit that Tenno wore when not in warframes. So, the virtual world was within parameters.

"You know I speak the truth." The woman said in a voice that was probably meant to be kind. It... didn't quite work. She wasn't. "We need you and her."

Lis stared. She was standing behind the stranger. Abigail was huddled against one wall. From her shudders, she was crying. Violet stood between Abigail and the other, her posture furious.

"You can go to hell." Violet snapped. "You hurt her and you will answer to me."

"And me." Lis said quietly as she moved to stand by Violet. This was virtual. It was supposed to be a meeting place. A place of rest and conversation. No one else was supposed to be able to enter. Violet did not move or lower her hands, but Abigail looked up, her eyes streaming tears.

"Ah..." The odd woman said quietly. "Lis F-43." Lis stilled. What the hell? "You are needed as well."

"Violet?" Lis asked, ignoring the woman despite the shivers that poured through her. "You okay?"

"This...person just showed up and demanded we aid her." Violet snapped. "She represents some group called New Loka."

New Loka. Lis did not take her eyes from the oddly garbed human woman. They were one of the Syndicates. One of the groups in the Solar System unaffiliated with either the Corpus or Grineer. She didn't know much more than that. It hadn't been germane to her existence before.

"I see." Lis' tone was flat.

"We need all three of you." The woman said sternly. "You are all pure. We need you. We will have you." Lis... went still. Did she really mean...?

"Need us?" Lis asked in a quiet and dangerous voice. "Or our DNA?"

"She wants me to bear kids!" Abigail cried. "I can't!"

"The damage that was done can be undone!" The woman declared. "You and Violet and you, Lis F-43... All of you will be welcome. We need you. We..."

"What you need..." Lis said in a quiet voice that shut the other woman up. Calm, cold and matter of fact. "... is to leave before Violet or I hurt you. Which we will. Leave Abigail alone. This is your only warning. Security. Intruder." She raised a hand and the woman gave a short scream as golden code grabbed her and she vanished. "Damn." Lis said with a sigh. "Violet? What happened?"

"We came in and started to talk..." Violet said as she knelt by the still crying Abigail. "Then... she showed up. Never seen her before. I read some reports on New Loka, but they all seemed harmless. A fringe group, dedicated to rebuilding Earth of all things."

Lis bit her lip as she thought. Earth was a devastated wasteland, an irradiated and inhospitable place. Not to mention, it was the home base for the Grineer Empire, so it had more clones than anywhere else in system. It had been the cradle of mankind and the seat of power of the Orokin. So... She shook her head.

"We need to report this." Lis said with a sigh. "But right now..." She knelt beside Abigail and took one of the girl's hands in her own as Violet took the other. Here, the girl looked her true age, fifteen. "Abigail, it's okay..." Lis crooned. "It's okay."

"She wanted me to bear children!" Abigail cried. "I can't. Not after... Not now." Lis did not reply and Abigail paused. "Can I?"

"This is not how I wanted to discuss this." Lis said sadly. "But we have some... new techniques for cellular regeneration." Abigail and Violet both froze. "I lost something when I was hurt." Violet stared from Abigail to Lis and back. "The docs said they can give it back. I... am not sure... I am a soldier, not a mother."

"I..." Abigail stared at the Tenno, her tears still falling. "You are Tenno. Why would they help me? Or Violet?"

"Do you really think it matters?" Lis asked gently as she sat and pulled Abigail up onto her lap. The girl stared at Lis and then, with an incoherent cry, hugged the Tenno tight. "You are hurting. I may no longer be human, but I do remember being such. And in the end? I am a woman too. If we can help you... and you want us to help you, then we must."

"Violet?" Abigail begged.

"I cannot advise you on this, Abigail." Violet said quietly. "I am happy with who and what I am. The road was rocky. But I am who I am because of what I endured. You are still young. If they can help you, give you a chance to make things better..."

Abigail's sobs slowed as the two women helped her to calm. Lis rocked her gently and Abigail sighed.

"I miss the others." The youngest of the three said sadly. "I didn't think I would, but I do. The healers were gentle, gave us time to talk. The others accepted it... But... I miss them."

"I miss never having the chance to get one of those Broadside things." Violet said with as smile that Lis shared. Abigail gave a tiny one. "That was fun!"

"You have an... odd definition of 'fun' Violet." Abigail said as she snuggled closer to Lis. "I am sorry for being such a whiny brat. I... It was so sudden. She just appeared and said I would bear the future..."

"Well, she can kiss my butt." Violet said with a growl. "First, you have been traumatized. More than once. Second, you are still my responsibility until and unless you decide to go another way." Abigail stiffened and Violet sighed. "Boss knows, Abigail. He said... 'Her choice.' So..." She shrugged.

"And third..." Lis said quietly. "There are other jobs open to both of you." Violet went still as Abigail stared up at the Tenno holding her gently. "They wanted me to ask. We can always use more techs, Abigail. Always." Lis said with a nod. "As for Violet..."

"I am still finding my way." Violet said quietly, shaking her head. "I...wasn't ready to go back into the field, but it was needed to handle the tower, so I went." Lis smiled sadly and held out a hand. Violet stared at it for a moment and then knelt to join the embrace. "You have all been far, far kinder than I expected Tenno to be."

"Oh, don't fool yourself." Lis said with a laugh. "We are not kind, generally. We are weapons, no more, no less. Tools of directed destruction. But... you and Abigail are both broken still." Her tone was sad now. "We know about being broken. All of us. We may not remember all of it, but the feelings? Oh yes."

"You are so nice." Abigail was crying again as she hugged Lis.

"While I am in here, I can be." Lis said sadly. "When I go back out, I have to be Tenno again. A cold, merciless, silent killing machine."

"But you are more than that!" Abigail protested.

"Am I?"

Titan, Enclave of the Oracles of Saturn

There are times I like this and then there are times like this... Janet thought to herself sadly as she pondered. When I really, really hate this. She shook her head slowly to the hologram who stood in front of her. "You are not welcome here." She lay in the couch that hid her life support apparatus. Coincidentally, it gave her a regal look. The obscuring veil and headdress hid the bandages and burn dressing quite nicely too.

"We need help!" The woman in armor wasn't one to grovel. But she also was desperate. Even as a hologram, that was clear. "Steel Meridian needs help! We are trying to make a difference."

"What you are making is a mess." Janet said, wincing at the cold haughtiness she was forced to project. She had to play this part though. She had to. If she didn't... "I will not speak against your choices. I think what you are doing is noble. Stupid, but noble." She could feel the other's woman's temper start to rise. "I don't know who gave you the information on how to contact me..." A lie. Janet knew exactly who had given Steel Meridian the contact information. She had. Or, she had given it to Nikis, who had done everything she had asked, no matter how convoluted to get it to the hands of the armored woman. Once a spy, always a spy. "But I cannot help you over any of the other factions. I must remain neutral in this. I have to be neutral."

"I..." The armored woman slumped a bit. "I see."

"You have my word..." Janet said quietly. "That anything I do will help all of the factions equally or none of them. I have far larger concerns than a group of clone deserters no matter how altruistic their actions may seem." She moderated her tone as the armored woman winced again. "But this I will say..." Janet hid a smile as the other perked up. The Oracle was offering something. "I do think that what you are doing will have long term repercussions. Not always in the ways you might think. But you are far more easy to read than the lunatics with the Red Veil." The former Grineer winced again and Janet could relate. Considering that the Red Veil wanted to 'purge' the entire system, of everything they considered to be corrupt... They had even attacked some Tenno, which was not very wise of them.

"Then..." The other woman slumped. "I apologize for wasting your time."

"You did not." Janet said quietly. "I knew that your faction, as well as all of the others, would hear of me eventually. I am glad you sought me out first and were polite. Rest assured, that if I can help, I will. But in most cases..." She shrugged despite a lingering pain in her shoulder blades. She was still recovering and would be for years. "My 'help' would cause far more problems than it would solve."

"And you see it all, don't you?" The armored woman asked. Janet nodded and the other whistled in awe. "Sucks to be you, don't it?"

"If only you knew..."