So, there were numerous things about Mass Effect 2 that I didn't like. The lack of a plot. The writer's obsessive desire to make the Council look as stupid as possible. And so on. The 'Cerberus railroading'(as it has been rightly named by others) was so implausible that it required the death and subsequent resurrection of Shepard to accomplish.

Shooting Canon is a series of short stories dealing with some of these improbable situations, along with some character studies, and anything else that sounds interesting. They each independent, though not free of all weakness, and may contradict each other.

Disclaimer; nothing stated in this short story should in any way be taken as an indication as to how Antiheroine will turn out.

The bland, square room surrounding her dissolved into a sprawling, black office. A blazing red star, surprisingly close, dominated the starscape out the windows that formed an entire wall, reflecting spectacularly off the mirrored floor. And in the middle sat a man, impeccably dressed, in a comfortable-looking office chair. His eyes glowed blue in his shadowed face, lit dimly by the red glow of his cigarette as he drew in a lung-full of smoke. If he saw anything at the center of the universe, Kara guessed, it was not humanity; it was him.

"Commander Shepard."

"Jack. I though we'd be meeting face to face."

"I'm sure you understand the need for people who know—what did you call me?"

"Jack Harper. Mercenary, xenophobe, and terrorist."

He took another pull from his cigarette. His expression remained serene, but for a subtle narrowing of his eyes. She had caught him off guard, but she was under no illusion that events had shifted in her favor. He was a skilled manipulator, operating on his own ground. The advantage was his. "You know something about me."

It wasn't hard; the extranet was full of rumors, some of which fit neatly with the data recovered from Saren's private files. Sorting out the truth required nothing more scarce than persistence and reason. It seemed her memory had, miraculously, survived brain-death, freeze-damage, and planetary re-entry. "More than you know about me."

"I know about the Reapers."

If he was trying to impress her, it fell flat. The head of every major intelligence network in the galaxy knew about the Reapers, as did the head of every government in Council space. If Cerberus still maintained contacts within the Alliance, it was impossible that he not know. Saren's files had also mentioned that Jack had encountered Reaper tech around the time of the First Contact War, and it had changed him. It would be foolish of her to not regard him as partially indoctrinated. "So what?"

Another breath of smoke. "Human colonies in the Terminus systems have been disappearing mysteriously. There's no damage, no evidence of struggle or weapons fire, the colonists are simply gone. The Alliance has claimed slavers are responsible. I suspect the allies of the Reapers."

"You brought me back from the dead for that?" He had a number of agents capable of investigating for him, including the cold but impressive Miranda Lawson, whom she had just met herself, some of them with the training to do things properly—training that she lacked. No, she suspected a different agenda; he wanted her to be seen working for him. She was a capable marine and leader, though irreplaceable in neither role. Beyond that she was a symbol. She was the heroine of Elysium, humanity's first Spectre, and the woman who had defeated Saren. Through her actions humanity had a seat on the Council, and some measure of respect from the races it served beside. She had made Cerberus obsolete, but her cooperation could change that. He would never get it.

"Shepard, the future of humanity is at stake. The Reapers have singled our species out for special attention, and you're the only one capable of stopping them."

Kara smiled. "If you truly believe that, you'll allow me to return to Council space, where I will resume my post as Spectre. I will conduct an investigation in that capacity."

"You are free to speak to the Council, of course, but I assure you they will not cooperate. First, however, the colony at Freedom's Progress has been hit recently, and I'd like—"

"No."

"What?"

"I'm not going to make an appearance wearing your colors. Send someone else."

"… but Shepard, humanity is under attack—"

"And has established its own means for dealing with the crisis. I don't answer to humanity, I don't answer to the Alliance, and I will not answer to you." Miranda had suggested that Cerberus spent billions of credits on her resurrection, more than enough to hire every mercenary company in the Terminus systems. If the amount was correct, Harper would not risk threatening her, but would attempt to use her more subtly. If he knew her at all, he would already have a plan to enforce her cooperation. First, though, he would appear to give in.

"Very well, Shepard. I'll have Jacob take you in one of the shuttles. Miss Lawson will investigate Freedom's Progress. I only hope you haven't lost us a valuable opportunity."

Kara shook her head, and walked through the projected room, leaving the Illusive Man talking to empty space.

Thanks for reading. If you enjoyed the experience, please leave a review. Feel free to make suggestions about other scenes for Kara to inexplicably drop in on. This collection is won't be a priority, as it was taken up more as a distraction from writing Antiheroine, but who knows what may come of it.