PROLOGUE
Kai leng awoke with a bright light overhead and the sound of medical machinery surrounding him in a utilitarian operation room. "You're awake Kai", Said Simone the station's chief medical officer and cybernetics specialist a woman in her late twenties with features showing her African and Chinese decent. "The Medi gel treatment you applied stopped any infection in your legs but we had to replace the damaged tissue using synthetics grown from your cells we had on storage for your right leg and some bone on your left, medical nanobots have been used to speed up the healing process it will take at least a month before you fully recover enough for field operations but you should be able to walk around with slight pain now". "Thank you Simone" said Kai leng. Taking his first step off the table was painful but Kai leng bore it and limped forward outside the operating room, he was on the Chronos station a five level space station with over three hundred thousand square feet of space between each floor it was the main base of operations for Cerberus it held the most sensitive research experiments for the organization and was protected by a over three hundred combat specialists and technical experts of differing skill sets combined with the small fleet of warships including four dreadnoughts six frigates and twenty fighters patrolling the station itself it would take an entire fleet and skilled teams of special forces operatives to take this station if they could even find it.
Kai leng limped over to the mess hall sitting down he ordered a small sandwich and some orange juice from his Omni-tool in the room could see Combat engineers ,Centurions ,Troopers and the ladies that made up the Nemesis sniper class and the phantom combat class and a few scientists and technicians all around chatting and having their fill all had been outfitted with various Reaper technology based implants evident from the visible pulsing blue circuitry on their necks and faces developed from the revelations of the Grayson experiment, allowing them increased physical prowess and endurance tools necessary to protect humanity from the incoming Reaper threat. A young waitress in her early twenties of European decent came over with a plate with two and a tall glass of orange juice for Kai leng "Thanks" he said as she placed them on the table in front of him. The room went quiet as the Alliance News Network broadcast began on the television in the room. "Breaking news this is Emily Wong, Commander Shepard N7 marine and first human specter, recently thought killed in action, today, turned over the new Normandy frigate to military police at the Alliance headquarters in Vancouver Canada, The Commander who had been allegedly working for Cerberus, an origination with a questionable history in a campaign against the mysterious collectors. Is now here to answer charges for destroying a mass relay in the Arathot system claiming three hundred thousand Batarian lives, We will have more updates in the hour ". "Good riddance" said a Nemesis sniper class operative her red ocular implant flashing "Less of those four eyed menaces the better" Kai Leng smiled in agreement as he finished his food knowing the deeper implications that the Reaper threat was drawing closer.
Leaving the mess hall Kai leng decided to tour the research wing a black tiled hall way that consisted of six labs and around a fifty of the top Cerberus scientists and technicians all working to fulfill the Illusive man's orders implanting all Cerberus operatives with cybernetics. Kai Leng brought up his Omni-tool the device enveloped his fore arm with a tap a small screen appeared allowing him to access the research notes from the station's local area network . The first lab had two troopers outfitted with Cerberus issued black ,yellow and white body armor and each carrying a M-25 hornet sub machine gun guarding a room reserved for the PHANTOM INITIATIVE as referenced by his Omni tool data. The troopers nodded as he went up to the glass window beside the door he could see and implant operation taking place inside a young Caucasian woman was lying in a hospital gown on the operating table hooked up to monitoring devices and small tube with what looked like many tiny spheres suspended in a liquid emanating dim blue light attached to her neck a female technician hit a few buttons on a terminal to start the implant process Kai leng could see the liquid begin to move through the tube the woman's skin immediately started change tone becoming pale, a common reaction as the nanobots did their work converting the body's minerals to fuel required for power during the modification which would change her into a Phantom modeled after the Alliance N7 slayer program of which Kai leng had trained before he was dishonorably discharged. The phantom operatives would have enhanced muscular systems that allowed for extreme prowess in evasive maneuvering and acrobatics each operative would be outfitted with a powerful hand held shield disruption and a dense mono molecular blade capable of bypassing kinetic shields and cutting through Armour. Kai Leng looked around at the second lab behind him with a similar setup it reserved for NEMESIS INITIATIVE it too had a young woman this time of oriental descent lying on an operating table but this time with a small bandage over her right eye with a glowing red light emanating from it Kai leng the data this as an ocular implant that would allow her to see enhanced detail past natural human capability and thermal imaging the nemesis sniper class was based off common military snipers with arm muscles enhanced by nanobots the nemesis snipers could easily handle the recoil of an M-98 widow or M-13 sniper rifles without having to go prone an immense advantage on the battle fields allowing for greater mobility.
Kai leng decided to take look at the other lab down the hall this lab had a team to twenty network and software engineers each sitting behind computer terminals with a Dr. Eric Rotham a man of Asian and Caucasian descent a multi-skilled researcher that held advanced degrees in electronics engineering ,synthetic intelligence and robotics design sat a his own terminal at the front of the lab. Kai leng opened the door and walked in still feeling slight pain with each step he had a seat beside Dr. Rotham "What are you working on" said Kai "A continuation of Dr. Archer's Overlord project we have made a break through but after the project was compromised we don't have enough intact Geth platforms to field an effective force our efforts are now focused on deploying our technology on the Reapers" "WHAT !?, THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE " said a surprised Kai leng. Dr. Rotham's face tensed at the statement "Did you forget I was the one that headed the project to create both the Enhanced Defense Intelligence and the synthetic infiltration unit' ? both synthetic intelligence based on Sovereign's cyber warfare suite or did you also forget I was the one who wrote the protocols for implementing the Reaper Identify Friend Foe system discovered by Dr. Chandanaws and his team on the derelict Reaper the Commander Shepard retrieved over Mnemosyne into all Cerberus ship A.I allowing our ships to evade the Reaper fleet when they inevitably reach us" said and annoyed Dr Rotham " Just really surprised is all" said Kai Leng. "Dr Brynn Cole has sent her research on Reaper to collector communications from beyond the Omega 4 relay we will need more experimentation on Reaper to husk communications and more source code and electrical schematics from other Reapers to find vulnerabilities for controlling them but if the Geth can be controlled so can the Reapers" said the doctor "Wait, how exactly did you get to control the Geth and how will this control the Reapers " said a still unconvinced Kai leng "We found that the flaw with Dr. Archer project was that he used his Autistic savant brother in a man machine interface , the fact that his brother was autistic and also in immense pain made it effectively like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, the solution was to develop a false Geth hub, nearby Geth connect to it allowing us to launch a man in the middle attack enabling us to install our own operating system that was able to overwrite twenty networked Geth placing them under our control, deploying it wide scale however would require an assault on Rannoch were the main Geth bases are located. I theorize however we can use a similar technique on the Reapers possibly creating a digital simulation of a suitable candidates brain to use as the new intelligence " said Dr. Rotham "Interesting" said an amazed Kai Leng.
Kai Leng's Omni-Tool materialized on his fore arm, it was an incoming call from the Illusive Man himself. Kai Leng tapped the device enabling small 7 inch video screen to appear showing the blue eyed charismatic leader of Cerberus " Kai leng come up to my office" said The Illusive man in is usual calm tone. "Amazing talk doctor but I have to go now" said Kai leng "We can do it and we will !" said Dr. Rotham as Kai leng walked out of the room and back into the corridor seeing more labs with implant operations taking place TROOPER CENTURION GUARDIAN INITIATIVES were the programs taking place in a lab considerably larger than the first two with at least thirty patients both male and female being implanted a final lab was reserved for the ENGINEER INITIATIVE . The final area was what seemed to be a massive training facility all with operatives,specialists and soldiers out of their armor all visibly with pulsing blue circuitry and noticeably pale skin regardless of complexion all doing training exercises together to build unit tactics. Kai leng made his way to the end of the hall to a direct elevator to the Illusive man's office one of two ways on the station to reach his location.
Kai Leng entered the office, a large room with dark colored reflective gloss tiles on the floor and a large cylindrical viewing window in which he could a large bright plume of what appeared to be orange and green gas in the distance implying the station was near a nebula just like the view on the Citadel, an awe inspiring sight to behold so closely. The Illusive Man was sitting on the room's single chair flanked by a Phantom class combat specialist in the room a hologram of human council member Donnel Udina could also be seen. " the mission will be ready in a few months we will talk again soon" said the councilor as the hologram de materialized.
"Hello Kai glad you could make it, I see you can walk under your own strength Dr. Simone tells me you won't be able to be implanted until your wounds fully heal within a month but humanity still needs you " said the Illusive man in his usual controlled tone as he pivoted on his chair, that moment the phantom operative started a quick acrobatic maneuver toward him closing the six meter a distance Kai leng was from the Illusive man's console and within no less than two seconds she instantly pulled out a two foot mono molecular blade and held it to Kai Leng's neck .He was confused and had not even begun to react to the display. The operative then used her free hand to remove her white and black helmet as she returned simultaneously returned her blade to it's sheathe revealing herself to be Cory Kim a playful woman with short black hair and of African and Chinese descent, a friend with benefits and one of Cerberus wet work operatives, like himself she was also an ex alliance solider who had been dishonorably discharged from the alliance, she had the same training as Kai leng and her skin was noticeably paler from the last time he saw her almost anemic, her eyes now and slight blue glow to them and there was visible blue pulsing circuitry on her neck a telltale sign of her implants. "You're getting sloppy Kai, first that old Relic Anderson kicks your ass now this tsk tsk tsk " as she smiled "Now that you two have had your fun you both will be in charge of a complex mission one to infiltrate the Batarian home-world of Kar'shan" said the Illusive man "They ran away from council space and hid after we disciplined them in the Blitz travel is highly restricted, just getting there will be a challenge plus a human would stick out like a sore thumb" said Kai leng contemplating the mission "We have solved that problem our operative Mara Mott assassinated Cree'halant a Batarian Business woman with top level security clearance to Batarian State Arms and the hegemony and her two associates who liaise with Batarian External Forces, she assumed her identity with the help of a disguise molded from the corpse of Cree matching even her DNA by our technicians. She then the set up a meeting at the Bria research facility out side a small town on the south continent of the planet, coordinates will be in the file there are two more disguises they are located in your room Kai, one for Miss Kim here and another phantom operative " said The illusive man "Halloween is here early, What is the mission then boss ?" said Cory Kim in a playful tone "Retrieval of research on the Leviathan of Dis, the Batarians have hoarded it and we have to liberate it before it is too late, according to the count down from the reaper artifact on Arathot the Reapers will be at Kar'shan within two days and we will need the files before they arrive there is also a modified Batarian cargo ship in the hanger you will meet up with operative Mara Mott in the Vular system she will brief you on the location look over the files take and resources you need and be ready to go in two hours " said the illusive man "Understood sir" said Kai leng and Cory Kim in unison as they turned and walked from the room.
As top Cerberus operatives both Kai and Cory had modest quarters on the station they decided to plan the details of their mission in Kai Leng's room. Medium sized, the room had an observation window, a queen sized bed, dark marble tiles a small chest of weapons and a Haptic interface computer and a large case was also on the floor.
"All work Kai leng ?" said Cory as he ran her hand over his chest up to his face and started pulling off the pieces of her armor Kai leng followed suit with both fully nude Kai Leng saw the extent of the implants over Cory's skin they were small randomly shaped patches of black skin with blue pulsing patterns favoring electronic circuitry all over her skin Cory jumped on Kai Leng wrapping her legs around his waist and arms around his neck planting a kiss on his lips initiating their lustful encounter.
Twenty minutes later Kai Leng was dripping with sweat and breathing heavily Cory on the other hand was not in the least fatigued "How is it ?" asked Kai Leng "Not your best performance" replied Cory jokingly "I meant the implants ?" said Kai in an annoyed tone "Well I barely get hungry or tired anymore but ever since the upgrades I feel like something or someone is watching me ,I get slight headaches sometimes too, but enough about that we need to plan this mission and hurry to Kar'Shan" said Kim "Agreed" said Kai leng they both redressed Cory went over to look at the large case while Kai Leng booted up his computer "Remember when we were with the Alliance doing recon around Kar'shan's moon Torfan before the blitz ?" said Cory "Sure the Intel made the raid on the moon possible I got arrested the week after for killing that Krogan in self defense" said Leng as he brought up the file that operative Mara Mott had complied it had a holographic representation of the Bria research facility "Look at me I'm a filthy Batarian" said Kim who had tried on the suit enabled with a bio mimicking face every word and facial expression Cory formed was mirrored by the mechanical face which used facial muscle sensors, thousands of nano servos and microscopic air pockets to create lifelike expressions on the surface if Kai leng hadn't known better he would have mistaken her for a middle aged Batarian woman.
"It's a small facility, Mara speculates that around thirty military personnel from the external forces guard it the local computer network has no wireless connectivity neither is the facility connected to the planet's internet requiring and direct base approach. I suggest we take another phantom class operative two nemesis class and twelve troopers in case the disguises somehow fail and we get into trouble, this mission should be an easy smash and grab" said Kai leng "I will select the operatives from down stairs, the ship in in the hangar you can get it ready and wait for us there" as she took off the Batarian suit placed it onto the case and changed into a blue overall then left the room with Kai Leng following.
In the the larger of two hangar bays on the station was the Batarian ship a cargo transport it was colored in a light brown and had a yellow shine as the lights hit it, the hull was angular with six separate twenty foot compartments three on each side of the ship for cargo with a small shuttle bay in the center, previously belonging to Cree'halant the ship had been modified by Cerberus engineers and technicians and employees from Cord Hislop Aerospace. The ship now had an Artificial intelligence installed code named the Ultimate Defense Intelligence with a copy of the Reaper Identify foe system Commander Shepard had retrieved during campaign against the collectors. The system would allow the ship to evade and reaper ships by appearing as a Reaper intelligence Dr. Rotham sent instruction to Kai Leng's omni tool on it's use outlining that the system should work if no active scans are used. Kai Leng hoped the mission would be over before Reaper front hit Kar'shan. He entered the ship seating for thirty humanoid persons were evident along with the pilot's and co-pilot chair. "Begin pre start check" Kai leng said enabling the ship's AI, a twelve inch green hologram looking like a chess pawn appeared to the left of the flight controls "Commencing now" said the head of the hologram in a syntheized voice as it strobed at each word "'All systems nominal, fuel at full" said the small hologram. That moment Cory and the platoon of operatives started boarding the ship. Cory sat in the empty co pilot's chair "We will rendezvous with operative Mara Mott meeting us in the Vular system" said Cory.
