"Mass effect core is offline," intoned the AI.

"Sir, that was the last critical system. The station has been successfully crippled."

"And what of our agent?"

"He is reporting that 19 of the 30 crew are confirmed dead, with another 6 unaccounted for."

"If I may operative," the AI interrupted. "I was able to detect 7 personnel unintentionally exiting the ship when I disabled the safety protocols in the two hangar bays."

"That is sufficient, TAI." replied the operative whose presence dominated the command deck.

"What crew members remain operational aboard the station?"

"Although the identity of the personnel who worked the hangars cannot yet be confirmed. If the crew have not deviated to far from their normal patterns... the remaining survivors would include two security personnel, the chief of security Francis Wight and chief medical officer Sophia Benning."

At the mention of the survivors there was a noticeable change in atmosphere. The only survivors happened to be the most troublesome, and it was clearly evident that the operative was not pleased.

"The security personnel were supposed to have perished in the initial stages. Did the charges not activate?" Inquired the operative in a voice that barely disguised his rage.

"I can confirm that all charges detonated, however the targets have not been affected as intended."

The operative cast a menacing glance towards the AI's display."If I could reach you TAI, I'd break you." Then rounding on the ship's captain, "In my absence you have command, prepare my shuttle for departure immediately." To this the captain gave a quick nod and began making preparations for the shuttle crew.

"And TAI?" he continued, "re-engage the core and docking bay environmental safeties before my shuttle enters the station." And with that, Kai Leng - Cerberus's most deadly operative- departed.


There were some unusual benefits to a zero-g environment. First off, it made navigation easier with a severe leg injury, and secondly, it was oddly relaxing.

Francis had spent the first few minutes of weightlessness organizing his thoughts and trying to make sense of the current situation. He reasoned that with the stations primary systems being offline, a substantial part of the crew being dead, and the VI's report regarding gunshots being fired... The station had been boarded and was currently under attack.

How someone gotten aboard without him detecting it was a concern for another time.

Still, with the mass effect core offline, security across the station was severely compromised.

As in non-existent.

All security doors and checkpoints could now be bypassed because, the VI which controlled it was offline. That meant that the high security portion of the station -also known as his half- was completely vulnerable to the attackers.

Which was not good.

Time to see if there was a silver lining to this particularly shitty cloud.

Making his way towards the nearest door panel, Francis activated his omni-tool. If he could redirect emergency power from the lighting system to instead power stations internal communications, then theoretically he should be able to talk with the survivors. That way, he could see what resources he had at his disposal.

If he could re-route the power...


Sophia Benning was terrified.

Curled up behind one of her examination tables, she struggled to maintain her silence.

Her life depended on it.

She had been waving to Engineer Brian through the reinforced glass when everything went wrong. She would never forget his face, contorted in horror as the atmosphere was vented from engineering. Then he was gone, just like that.

Gone... like all the others.

Barely holding back a whimper, she risked a glance around the table. The man she had known as Simon, was still in the adjacent room looking for her. She had always thought him to be a kind soul, he was always ready with a joke to lighten your day or a word of encouragement. Now she knew him to be a vile monster, a killer and a traitor.

She was just about to approach him after the carnage of the hangar when she saw him review a message he had just recieved on his omni-tool. How could he do that if all systems were down? How could he be so calm and collected, and why did he have a pistol? Ducking around a corner suddenly unsure of her plan, she heard him mutter "So the doctor and some security are still alive. Shit."

Shit? Who says shit to good news like that?

Luckily she had come to the right conclusion and high-tailed it before Simon rounded the corner.

Now she was cowering behind the table, waiting for death. Maybe coming back to the medical offices had not been her best moment.

Good going Sophia, just make it easier for the crazy killer...

However, Sophia was not the caring and compassionate soul she thought Simon to be. She was made of sterner stuff than most people knew, and she planned to go down swinging... Or stabbing. Hence the two scalpels she had firmly grasped in both her hands.

"Sophia? Are you in here? If you are, you should come with me to the escape pods, were evacuating the station." Simon says, as he cautiously enters the back room where Sophia is hiding.

That was when the mass effect core went offline.

"What the-" Sophia heard Simon exclaim when she herself let out a small yelp of surprise.

Oh no.

"So you are in here... Why are you hiding Sophia? It's me Simon, I was sent to get you."

Sent to get me, hah, your a real joker Simon.

Knowing what she did, she could hear the excitement in his voice, and it sickened her. Still, the lack of gravity only increased her odds of survival. That is, if her assumption that Simon would find firing why floating slightly more difficult than before.

Making her way slowly around the table, Sophia prepared herself to strike at Simon. She was well aware at how dangerous her current situation was, but she also knew human biology quite well and had two inconceivably sharp knives at her disposal.

"Come on Sophia, stop hiding. We have to get going now!" Simon announced turning away from Sophia hiding spot just as he lurked around the corner to pounce.

Lucky.

Kicking off the table with all her strength she sped towards Simon.

Hearing something, Simon tried to turn and draw his pistol but was taken off guard by the sudden reversal of roles. Unable to draw his weapon, he grappled with Sophia briefly, but using his superior strength he sent her sailing across the room.

At this point, Sophia knew she was about to die. Watching Simon reach for his weapon between ragged breaths, she closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable gun shot.

It is taking him an awfully long time.

Opening her eyes, she was greeted with pure darkness.

So that is it then. I'm dead. Shit.

Then she realized that for being dead, she was still in quite a bit of pain.


The captain of the SSV Independence stared at the last obstacle Cerberus had to overcome for total domination of this system. The holographic image of the system lazily spun above the projector, the station highlighted in red for increased visibility. All of it was completely at odds with hustle of the CIC. The crew were at battle stations, but the fact of the matter was, they could not assist without jeopardizing the mission.

The space station Retaliation which orbited the planet Horizon served as a warning beacon to both Alliance command and the planet below should the Reapers decide to invade the system. While it certainly could not stop (or even delay) a Reaper force from attacking the planet, it possessed incredibly powerful transmitters to bypass any jamming and send a signal to the Alliance.

That is what made this operation so difficult and interesting.

The station could not be blown up because Alliance command would no longer receive its regular status updates. Nor could the station be boarded or seized conventionally because the crew aboard would be able to lock it down and send a distress signal in time.

No, this operation had required extensive planning, and to make sure it went off without hitch, they sent Kai Leng to oversee it.

Stuck up asshole.

The captain disliked the man, and he strongly believed that his crew felt the same. The man was obnoxious, and carried himself with an authority he felt he deserved, rather than one he earned. He was willing to admit though, Kai Leng was certainly capable of earning that respect. Whether he did though, was another story altogether.

"Captain, the shuttle is away." informed his communications officer.

"Very good," the captain replied with a deep sigh of relief. Turning to face his communications officer he surveyed the ship. His position on the bridge allowed him a perfect overview of the entire crew. Steady streams of data played across dozens of screens. Then all that information across all those stations was analysed, parsed, summarized and then rerouted to him.

Although the mass effect drive may be the heart of the ship, the CIC the brain; he always thought the captain was the ship's purpose, its will.

And if a captain loses his purpose... he put the troubling thought aside.

"Sir? Something troubling you?" the comm officer inquired coming to stand beside the captain. The captain found his timing to be uncanny. Still though it bothered him that his state of mind was so easily read by one of the crew. He would have to work on masking he feelings better. However, as much as he regretted it, he had an unofficial open door policy with his crew. He believed there were benefits to being open with the crew, that it developed a relationship that would survive the more rigorous ordeals of combat.

Having a noble cause and a respect for rank is fine, but when in the thick of combat, you fight to keep yourself and your friends alive. That was the simple truth of things. Therefore, he preferred to be a friend of the crew in addition to their commanding officer.

But sometimes he regretted how lenient he was. A typical crew would never have questioned the commander well-being in front of others, it was unprofessional and possibly damaging to morale.

Not to mention less embarassing...

"I know- knew, some of the people aboard that station. And to be responsible for their deaths sits ill with me, no matter the reasons." the captain finally replied with honesty. Then looking over to his officer,"Does this trouble you?"

The communications officer looked over to his commander, then looked back at the vast expanse of space. The hazy orange lighting of the local sun provided a picturesque background and helped to further highlight their target, their mission."Permission to speak freely sir?"

"Granted."

"It would be more troubling if it didn't bother you sir. And I think you'll find that all the crew are of the same mind. I believe it's important now more than ever, that we maintain our humanity so we don't lose sight of what we are fighting for."

The captain turned to face his communications officer yet again, a grin appearing on his usually stoic expression. "Holy shit. That was deep."

"Thank you sir." the officer replied, turning away from the captain to hide his embarrassment.

The boy is young, but he is also wise. He understands war in a way that allows for both reason and duty. To bad there are others calling the shots.

"Captain, I'm registering an increase in power to the stations communications. The survivors might be attempting to organize and get a signal out." the AI voiced, interrupting the captains musings.

"Is there sufficient power to send a signal to the Alliance?" the captain asked, his voice not betraying his increased anxiety.

"No, it appears someone has rerouted the systems emergency power to restore inter-station communications not the broadcast system. However, it is possible that if the broadcasting array were manually accessed, then emergency power could be re-routed to create a signal of sufficient strength to reach the Alliance."

"Relay this information to our agent on board."

"I have already tried, but a recent change in his vital signs suggest he may no longer be useful."

"Get me communications with Kai Leng immediately." the urgency in his voice was easily apparent. It was difficult for him to remain collected, this mission was crucial and the situation had deteriorated so rapidly it was almost comical. Their agent on board was probably dead, and one of the remaining crew on board had just developed an affinity for electrical engineering and hacking.

And now to tell Kai Leng the good news...

The twist was, he couldn't assist in anyway that would not compromise the mission in another way. Any external damage to the station to stop the signal would take too long to repair in order to maintain an effective ruse.

"Sir, communications with Kai Leng have been established."

The captain began finding it difficult to breathe.

But Kai Leng is aboard, maybe destroying the station is not that bad of an idea after all... He was seriously considering it when he realized the man he had just killed in his mind, was waiting for him in real life.

Still though...

"Excellent work," the captain replied not missing a beat. "Prepare all forward batteries to fire on the Retaliation. I want them aimed at all structural hard points that may assist in the transmission of a signal off station. TAI, relay the necessary information to the gunnery crew." Then he activated the communications channel with Kai Leng.

"You ask for me, then leave me waiting captain? And here I thought you were intelligent." a rather irritated Kai Leng responded.

"There have been some developments that you need to be made aware of." replied the captain ignoring the insult.

"Go on." all venom in his voice disappearing. When the mission is at hand, it seemed his usual demeanour was set aside for the sake of professionalism. Interesting.

"To be brief, our agent aboard the Retaliation is either dead or dying and a survivor aboard the station has restored the stations internal communications system by redirecting the emergency power. Which means-"

"I'm aware of what it means captain." Kai Leng interrupted...

Maybe his usual demeanour wasn't set aside.

"The plan remains unchanged." Kai Leng continued. "I will board and TAI will proceed to restore partial functionality to the station in order for my boarding team to close with the survivors faster. Also inform TAI that he is to now restore and take control of station security so that he may further slow the progress of the survivors."

"It will be done. Anything else?"

"Yes. If for some reason the station begins to broadcast its signal, destroy it. Even if I remain aboard."

"I have already made those preparations." the captain replied with a grin."If I may suggest something operative?" He continued.

"You may."

"Do be quick." and with that he closed the connection cutting off Kai Leng's reply, much to the amusement of the crew.

Two can play at that game.

For a man who had probably just consigned himself to death, the captain was rather happy.


"This is Francis Wight. If there is anyone still out there, please respond."

Maybe I should apologize about the lights...

He was just about to try and contact the survivors again when a familiar voice interrupted him."Francis? Francis, I'm in the medical bay."

"Sophia? It's good to know that someone else is alive. How are you doing? Are you safe?"

"I-I think so. Francis... It was Simon. Simon was the one..." Sophia continued after a considerable pause.

"Sophia," Francis said softly trying to calm her. "I need to know if your OK."

"Of course I'm not OK you -static- idiot!" she snapped."Everything has gone to hell! I saw everyone in engineering get sucked out into space Francis! A-and Simon just tried to kill me with a- a freaking pistol Francis! So no, I am not OK." If it was anyone else the reaction may have surprised him, but he knew Sophia had a rather... explosive personality.

"Sophia," he replied trying to maintain his own composure. "You're going to get through this, but I need you to get a grip on yourself OK? Did you say Simon is trying to kill you? Simon from navigation?" He still couldn't believe that one part. Simon was, well Simon. He couldn't imagine him frowning let alone trying to kill someone. Then again, a traitor on board the station would explain how the recent events came to pass. A well placed agent would bypass all the stations external securities.

It's hard to defend against yourself... And with that thought, he thoughts immediately went to Cerberus. The reapers wouldn't bother with any of this subterfuge, not for a planet as insignificant as Horizon. They would just send in a few ships, destroy any resistance, and collect the rest. That was the most efficient way.

A machines way, he thought darkly.

Only Cerberus would have the resources, and the patience to plan something like this. And here he was, a lowly militia officer blocking their way. He didn't like his chances.

"Yes, the Simon from navigation." Sophia continued interrupting his mental sleuthing. He noticed a sadness creeping into her voice. Then continuing on after a short while, "I can't hear him any more... I think I may have killed him. I think I may have killed him Francis."

"I'm on my way Sophia, you'll be safe." Francis promised. "Just stay safe and wait for me." Turning off his omni-tool, he went to his security locker for gear. His equipment might not have been impressive, but at this particular moment he was just glad to have anything. Strapping on his combat armour and fastening his Phalanx and spare thermal clips to his good leg, Francis departed to find the medical officer.

He regretted his actions immediately.

Navigating the station in zero-g and almost complete darkness was pure terror. With just his pistol's flashlight to bolster his courage, he had to will himself through the horror movie atmosphere. He thought he lost his way a dozen times, and a dozen times more he imagined (hopefully) that something was following him.

He was still not enthusiastic in anyway when he finally recognized the medical bay symbol down the hall. Floating up to the door, Francis prepared himself for the worst and entered.

"Sophia? You better step out because I am completely peaked right now." He called out truthfully.

Oh please god just announce yourself woman.

He swept his flashlight across the room and to his surprise realized that he was standing on the ceiling. Reorientating himself, he advanced further into the room. Still no sign of Sophia, perhaps she was in the back area? That is where he would hide if he was trapped in this room.

Approaching the back area, he grabbed a hold of a nearby table and steadied himself.

"Sophia! Dammit woman come out where I can see you." he called out again before slowly entering the final room. Almost immediately he felt his face brush against something wet. Startled he turned about and directed his light towards the object.

Screaming and vomiting at the same time proved to be quite difficult with a face full of blood.

And that is when the station's systems re-engaged.


Sophia was still unsure if she could trust Francis when he had entered the room.

She did not think she was ready to trust anyone after her encounter with Simon.

Who knew how many other crew members were apart of this? Maybe she was the last 'good guy' on board. The thought terrified her.

So she sat on her counter and waited.

Her opinions changed however, when Francis stumbled into Simon's corpse the second he entered the room.

But before she could even react, she was temporarily blinded by the reactivated station lights. Cursing profusely she stumbled towards where she last heard Francis screaming.

"Oh you poor bastard." she said with honesty while rounding the corner, her eyesight healing. He was not in good shape at all. Actually, he was in awful shape; she could barely see his face through all the blood. He was pinned to the ground by Simon's corpse, and one of his legs was in a bad way. He looked at her and tried to say something, but instead he just closed his eyes and spat out blood which was (thankfully) not his.

Not really much to be thankful for...

It took a while to get him free of the corpse and up on his feet again.

"So," Sophia began. "What's your plan on getting us out of this mess?"


Francis didn't reply right away, he was to busy cleaning himself off in the decontamination room. He was not doing so well. Besides his obvious leg injury, his recent ordeal had no doubt affected him psychologically.

She decided to give him some time to pull himself together and get cleaned up. So she departed and went to get some supplies together in order to treat his leg.

When she returned to check up on him, he was sitting at the counter waiting for her.

"Hello Doc." he addressed her with faked levity.

"Let me have a look at your leg. If I don't get that seen to right now you'll be no good to anyone." she replied giving him a stern look that brooked no opposition.

She assisted him with getting onto the examination table. It was oddly soothing for her to be working again. The analytical and logical side of her had taking over and left no room for any of those tiresome emotions. Cutting away the fabric around the wound, she got to work.

Halfway through her procedure, she realized Francis had been staring at her for some time.

"You can't feel any of this can you?" she asked him.

"Not a thing Doc." he replied looking casually towards his wounded leg. "I'm assuming that is not good?"

"Well in any other situation I'd say no. But considering how you have to keep a sweet thing like me alive, I think a destroyed nerve cluster is a good thing. Now shut up and let me finish."

"You started it!" he retorted defensively.

It's good that he maintains his sense of humour.

When she finished bandaging the wound she looked him directly in the eyes. "Keep your weight off this leg just like you've been doing, and if we make it through this, we will get it fixed up."

"Were not making it through this Doc." he stated grimly maintaining eye contact with her. "The best we can do now is to make some asshole's day miserable and warn the Alliance. This entire fiasco has been to well orchestrated to be some random attack and you know it."

An awkward silence followed.

"Wow, you really suck at this motivation thing Francis." she finally said.

Grinning, he pointed towards Simon's body. "For this next part, you're going to need a gun."

"Why? You think there are more traitors aboard?"

"Who do you think turned the power back on Doc? Certainly wasn't me, and it certainly wasn't Simon here." he said gesturing once again to Simon. "No... I have a sneaking suspicion that no one else will be flying out of the hangars any time soon. In maybe, but certainly not out."

"You mean we've been-"

"Yes Doc," he said interrupting her. "We've been boarded." And then swinging himself around and dismounting the table he moved to the door.

"Come on." he said waving her over. "if I know you. Which I do by the way, 'cause I got your employment history." he said with a mischievous grin. "You'd love some payback."

She walked over, retrieving Simon's pistol along the way. When Francis turned to go through the door she grabbed his arm tightly. "Do you really think we have a chance?" she was embarrassed at how small she sounded.

"I honestly think we do..." he said sincerely looking her in the eyes, and with a grin added "Now that I have tasted human blood I feel unstoppable. And besides, that is one monstrous pistol you have there."

Curious about his earlier comment, she looked down and examined Simon's old pistol. M-358 was written on its side and it was rather hefty. She looked forward to firing it.

Redirecting her attention back to Francis, she noticed something humorous. "Mine is bigger than yours Francis. You should be embarrassed."

"I always figured you had one." he replied without missing a beat.

She was about to ask what that meant when he interrupted her. "Don't worry about it. We have wasted to much time as it is. Lets go and send that signal."


Francis looked back towards Sophia. It had been a few minutes since they had left the medbay, and the sneaking had become routine as to allow for thinking.

My biggest strength, he thought glumly.

Sophia was holding up good -considering she had literally butchered a man minutes ago- and that leg brace she gave him actually made him able to walk again. Looking back at Sophia he frowned, he didn't think the gravity of what she had done had settled in yet. For her sake, he hoped it never would.

Recalling his own terrifying experience in the medbay, he gripped his Phalanx tighter. Trying to suppress the memory he took comfort in the small things.

I have a weapon and, I have a mission.

Also, navigating the station with the lights on was also a major bonus.

Early on in the journey, they heard gunshots echo throughout the that their may be more survivors, Sophia had urged him to go change course.

"You don't understand Sophia," he replied. "Whoever fired those shots is done for." He waited a while, maybe if there were more shots... there were not. Turning back to face her, he continued "This isn't a holding action, and it sure as shit isn't an action flic where we heroically win the day. As much as I want it to be, it just isn't. This is a hunt Sophia, and I'm thinking you know who the prey is."

Realizing what he had said, he looked way angry with himself. Of all the things to say, he chose all the wrong ones. "You were right," he continued in a whisper "I really do suck at this motivation business. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I wouldn't want you to die feeling guilty about something you said. And I think, given the circumstances, I'll forgive you this once."

He was dumbfounded. Of all the reactions, this was the least expected. He was about to tell her as much, when she surprised him yet again. "Next time though, I'll shoot you in the face."

Now that was the Doc he remembered. The one who had -with incredible reluctance- saw to it that he got acquainted with the crew, and settled into his new home.

He thought it fitting that she was the one he 'left' this station with.

The grinning like a fool he added the following small comfort to his list. I have a girl.

They had been travelling in silence for a few minutes when they encountered the first Cerberus trooper at a junction. The heavy footfalls had warned them to take cover around a corner, when moments later a figure in skull white armour pounded past and further down the hall. Francis started to recalculate his chances of success a few moments later when another trooper approached. This one however, decided to stop right in the middle of the junction. He obviously had orders to hold that particular position.

Francis turned to Sophia and saw the mixture of fear and surprise in her expression.
He was sure his own expression was a match.

"The signal room is just through that junction and to the left." he whispered. "Once I shoot, they will be coming quick; so follow me no matter what." he continued taking hold of her hand.

She nodded in understanding, making what he was about to say even harder.

"Now when we get in that room, I'm going to need you to cover me while I reroute the power to send a signal. So fire my gun like crazy if you see someone."

Another nod.

Giving her hand a comforting squeeze, he let go and readied himself for action. Taking a few slow breaths, he played the coming scenario out in his mind.

Break cover, inhale and aim, exhale and fire. He recited his newly created mantra a few more times before he acted.

He rounded the corner and brought his weapon up.

Inhale and aim.

Exhale and fire.

And just like that, he killed someone. In the time it took the trooper to register his presence, it was already over.

Just like that, he thought. He was just about to sit down when something shoved him from behind.

"Get moving you dumbass!" Sophia shouted breaking him out of his reverie.

Oh shit! Oh shit oh shit oh shit!

It did not take long for him to regain his composure, and it took even less time for him to achieve top speed.

Turning the corner of the junction, they sped down the hallway towards their destination.

He was just wondering where the other trooper went when his answer attempted to leave the room he was headed for.

Although the trooper was expecting trouble, he was not expecting this particular kind of trouble. Almost immediately he was brought down by two individuals unable to arrest their momentum. Weapon already in hand, Francis quickly brought it against the side of troopers head and pulled the trigger.

Just like that.

This time however, he remained focussed. "Cover me." he said handing his gun to an astonished Sophia.

Then leaving Sophia to guard the hallway with a gun he knew she couldn't aim with, he began redirecting the power.


It seemed like an eternity, but the captain had only been waiting a few minutes before he received word from the AI.

"Cerberus personnel have successfully eliminated two of the remaining security personnel."

With that one sentence, half of his anxiety evaporated.

Turning away from the galactic backdrop, he watched as two of the four remaining crew profiles turned a dark red and disappeared from the primary holodisplay. Considering the amount of time the survivors had to get organized, he had begun to fear that they had regrouped completely. If that had been the case, their chances of success would have been exponentially higher. Now there were only two survivors, and they were up against an elite Cerberus boarding party led by it's most ruthless operative. He would have felt pity at their odds of survival, but as long as there were odds he wouldn't permit himself such feelings.

Examining the holodisplay, he began to read the data Cerberus had uncovered about the two survivors. What else was there to do?

A bitter medical officer and a socially awkward security chief. He thought as he finished his overview a few minutes later. The dynamic duo.

He had not realized he had spoken his last thought aloud until the communications officer looked at him oddly.

"I certainly hope not sir." he said with a furrowed brow and one eyebrow raised questioningly. "If I recall correctly, those particular two had a habit of beating the odds."

Thinking back on his childhood on Earth, he met his officers gaze. "But they had an awesome car and cool costumes."

"Touché, sir." the man replied with a grin turning back to his console.

Because a car and costumes is what really made them heroes. He thought sardonically, realizing that those two still could still undo everything, regardless of their odds.

A few moments later, the captain would become a firm believer in Murphy's Law.


Kai Leng was disappointed, this mission was beneath him. When he finally encountered some targets, they didn't even slow him down. Their feeble attempt to stop him only served to further infuriate him. These men had no discipline, no backbone; therefore, they were beyond contempt. He had almost lowered his barriers to give them an illusion of a chance, but judged that they did not even deserve that. No, his mercy had been killing them quickly.

Where was the challenge in this? He raged. Why does the man continuously insult me by denying me a chance to prove myself!

There was an entire galaxy in flames, humanities largest and possibly final trial was at hand and...and, here he was, assisting Cerberus personnel with some rejects not worthy of digging a latrine.

He is unwilling to utilize me, but he spends a fortune to resurrect his deadliest opponent. This particular thought often crossed his mind. Why would the Illusive Man focus so much of his resources rebuilding one person? He could have commissioned the construction of an entire fleet and put assets into play across the galaxy. Hell, he could have bought Omega or an arm of the Citadel... but no. He brings back the Commander. He would never see the wisdom in that particular decision. It was such a colossal waste of capital.

If only he realized my potential. I would have been more than capable in defeating the Collector threat, and we would still have their station for research...

Blue tendrils of pure biotic power played across him as he obsessed about the injustice of it all. He would have his chance one day.

A nearby centurion approached him cautiously. "Operative. We need to continue with our objective, the other two survivors have yet to be terminated."

He turned to face the centurion, the biotic storm vanishing. "Yes of course," he replied regaining his composure. "Hopefully, these last two will prove to be more of a challenge." With that, he continued further into the station.

Consulting his omni-tool, he brought up the schematics for the station. Overlaying the location of his team, he noticed that some of his advance forces could move to secure the signal room. If he cut them off from the only thing that could jeopardize the mission, then this farce was as good as over.

"Charlie One and Two, proceed to and secure the signal room and nearby junction. Report any hostile targets immediately. All other units, continue to sweep your assigned quadrants."

Looking back at his display, he located the medbay. What better place to find a doctor?

He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he found navigating the confines of the station calming. It was whenever he wandered a station such as this, that he truly appreciated humanity's capacity for creation and invention. To have gone so far as to colonize the infinity of space itself -and within such a short time- was testament to humanity's superiority over other species.

The Asari, Turians, Salarians... They all had their chance to take control, and they squandered it. In this conflict, humanity had an oppurtunity to become the most powerful faction in the galaxy, and Cerberus would see that chance become a reality.

Regardless of how the Illusive Man may treat him personally, Kai Leng believed in -and would fight for- Cerberus's ideals until his last breath.

He was nearing the medical bay when he heard the first shot.

"This is Charlie two. I'm reporting weapon fire outside the signal room. I repeat weapon's fire in my immediate vicinity. I'm moving to engage."

"No don't en-" But the signature sound of a door opening interrupted him. A moment later, a much louder a commotion on the troopers still active communication device interrupted him. "-gage." he finished with a sigh. The loss of the signal had coincided with another gunshot.

"All troops converge on the signal room." he ordered.

Kai Leng was not pleased, his troops were better than this. How could a reject security chief get the better of two highly trained and augmented troopers? Activating his omni-tool he highlighted the most direct route to the signal room, this was certainly not a time for caution. And he certainly wasn't prepared to suffer the consequences from failing this particular mission. The Illusive Man had a habit of 'disposing' of assets he no thought were no longer useful.

He was making excellent progress when the captain of the SSV Independence hailed him on a secure channel.

"Operative Kai Leng." the captain started. "The reason for this communication is to inform you that once the signal strength nears a level which could compromise the mission, we will fire upon the Retaliation. While systems that could assist with sending a signal are our only targets, I'm apologizing in advance for any collateral damage or casualties that may occur."

That is a interesting way of saying 'I'm kinda sorry if you die, Kai Leng thought with a grimace.

As much as he wanted to, he would not countermand his previous orders to the captain. It was the appropriate action to take, and if he did fail in this undertaking... he wasn't sure if he could live with the embarrassment."Acknowledged and understood captain," he replied, still continuing his breakneck pace through the station corridors. "How much time do I have to stop the signal?"

"TAI estimates three minutes."

"That will be all captain," he replied closing the channel. If he was not so far from the action, that would have been plenty of time. But as it stood, he calculated he'd have about half a minute once he actually reached the signal room. This was getting interesting, and not in a good way. He cursed inwardly at this change of fortune.

More gun fire echoed down the corridors as he neared his destination. Comm-chatter was getting frantic, the casualty count was rising at an unexpected rate. Then again, considering how the initial planning for this operation had not allotted for any casualties, any losses were unexpected.

Another shot, but this one had terrible power behind it. He cursed again.


Sophie was surprised she lived as long as she had, and she was more surprised when her blind firing around the corner resulted in a grunt of pain. That was the fourth time she heard that noise in as many minutes, and it would always make her smile.

Those bastards think they can take me! I'll show them, I'll make them all pay.

But she knew it was pure luck that she was still alive. Earlier on she overheard a trooper get reprimanded when he tried to prime a grenade. "Are you mentally retarded?" what she assumed was the higher ranking officer shouted. "We need that room intact! Which means no grenades, and no missing when we get inside. We do this the old fashion way."

If the old fashion way spared her from being blown up, she was all for it. Risking a glance around the corner, she spotted more troopers making their way quietly down the corridor. She pulled her head back as the area where it had been quickly filled with a stream of bullets.

Time to return fire, she thought grinning. If she survived this, she might just join the army. Grasping her Phalanx pistol tightly, she reached around the corner and pulled the trigger. She had wanted to hear another grunt, but all she got was a melody she certainly did NOT want to hear.

"He's out of rounds! Rush him!" came the excited cry of a trooper. They finally weren't running down a corridor with a crazy woman shooting at them. The slow and cautious advance of the troopers had turned into a mad charge.

Wait, they said rush 'him'. They only think one person is here. They didn't know two people had come into this room, and because of the resistance they encountered, they assumed that they were up against the security chief. She found that reasonable, but also slightly sexist. She gave a short laugh. Out of bullets and with death rapidly closing in, she started to smile. She would have the last laugh in this battle. Those troopers were in for a surprise when they found out they were held back by a female non-combatant.

If only I could see their expressions... To bad I'll be dead. Maybe I bought enough time for Francis to finish.

Ready for the end, she slunk down to the ground and closed her eyes. Taking what she assumed would be her final breath, she tried to recollect her life before all the madness; but her thoughts immediately turned to her horrifying encounter with Simon. She still found it hard to believe that the Simon who she thought to be a gentle soul was also the Simon who had minutes ago almost shot her with a pistol.

A pistol...

She suddenly felt incredibly stupid, she had forgotten all about Simon's pistol. Opening her eyes, she reached down and unhooked it from her belt. Judging from the footfalls, she reasoned that she didn't have much time before they were upon her. Standing up, she peaked around the corner and fired.

The kickback was tremendous, and the damage equally so. The troopers who had been advancing down the hall were very much dead. She judged this to be the case from the lack of a head on their shoulders. As she prepared to wretch from the horrific sight, she was tackled violently to the side as a torrent of gunfire passed through the doorway.

"I told you that was a monstrous pistol Doc," the tackler said in an all to cheery voice.

Francis...

"The signal is about to send," he continued. Climbing to his feet, he offered his hand to help her up."Lets give those Cerberus bastards a good show before we die."

"Lets," she replied. Then handing him back his pistol, "You can have this back, I like mine more."

Taking it, he checked the pistols ammo counter and grinned. "I guess I should have told you how to reload."

She didn't hear, she was deep in thought trying to remember something. A moment later she turned to face him, slightly confused as to why he was looking at her like that. "They only think there is one person here," she said finally recalling what the trooper had said. "They thought I was you, they don't know there are two of us here."

Frowning, he looked towards the door. Somebody was coming, and they were coming fast. Then turning back to her, he pointed towards a nearby console. "Hide behind that, and shoot whoever goes to shutdown the signal. I have a bad feeling about our newcomer."

She didn't like it, but it did make sense. She would have the element of surprise, and that might enough to prevent Cerberus from stopping the signal. She watched him reload his pistol as he took cover at the entrance.

He was calm.

It didn't last long.

The second he rounded the corner, he started firing. With each shot his expression grew more and more surprised. Until it changed to fear. This was not what she expected. There was no return fire, and that should have been a good sign. When Francis turned to her, and she saw the pure terror in his eyes, she knew the end was coming. Turning back he hit the control panel to slam the door shut, then he turned to run from the door.

He had made it maybe four feet when blue contrails of pure energy exploded into the room. The door ripped free from it's secured position and crashed into a fleeing Francis. He hit the ground hard. Too hard.

Completely terrified, she ducked behind the console. What in the world could have caused so much destruction? She was trembling profusely when she heard someone enter the room, and she was absolutely petrified when those footfalls came closer to her hiding spot.

"Hrmph, to easy," muttered a contempt filled voice.

That voice, it was so similar. Where had she heard it before? Then it hit her...it wasn't the voice, it was this entire scenario. It was happening again and upon realiziing this, she almost screamed in agony. A friend dead, a mad man trying to kill her, and here she was, hiding like a coward. NO! She screamed inwardly, panic rising. This can't be happening again!

Looking down to the pistol in her hands she realized then, that this wasn't the same. This time, she had the advantage, this time SHE had the gun.

This time, she would not be afraid.

But Francis had a gun too, she thought. The fear slowly started to return.

No. She would not be afraid. And with that, she rose from hiding and brought her gun to bear on the man who was now using the signalling controls. The man who killed Francis. Sensing something he turned to face her.

She would remember that expression forever. Complete surprise.

The moment stretched into eternity; and with all that time, she began to doubt herself. She was going to miss, and even if she hit it wouldn't matter. She would miss, the surety of it was terrifying.

Sensing her hesitation, the man grinned and started to bring his hand up blue power cascading across his armour.

She would miss... and with that a single memory jostled its way to the front.

"We need that room intact! Which means no grenades, and no missing when we get inside."

No missing...

Intact...

She WOULD miss, and to hell with Cerberus!

She adjusted her aim, and fired into the signal console.

Once, grinning.

Twice, smiling like a fool.

Three times.

Then it all went black.


The captain of the SSV Independence considered himself a lucky man. He was not the one who had to deliver the mission report directly to the Illusive Man.

"Operative Kai Leng, I hear congratulations are in order for stopping Retaliation's signal." the Cerberus leader congratulated as the captain entered the QEC. Despite just arriving, the captain still detected a hint of contempt in his voice. The Illusive Man was not pleased Kai Leng had let it come as close as it had.

Oh, but there is more to come; just you wait, the captain thought darkly. Normally he was above such pettiness, but he'd make a special exception for Kai Leng.

Unwilling to reply immediately Kai Leng looked for a temporary escape from scrutiny, yet found none.

"You were about to say something Kai Leng?"

Staring menacingly at the captain, clearly unwilling to discuss his failure in front of anybody, Kai Leng composed himself for his report.

"Yes, sir," Kai Leng started. The captain enjoyed seeing the man this way, it served him right for being so hostile. Karma, the captain thought smiling a little. "I successfully stopped the survivors from sending the signal." Then suddenly finding the floor fascinating continued, "I was however not able to prevent the destruction of the signal room equipment. I'm afraid the time required for repairs means the Alliance will miss two status updates."

The silence was long and incredibly awkward.

"That is most disappointing news Kai Leng." the Illusive Man replied with a frown. "Our plans for this system are incredibly sensitive, and any Alliance interference would prove catastrophic. It seems because of your failure, we must prepare for the worst, while hoping for the best. A not unfamiliar situation, but one I had hoped to avoid." At the word failure, Kai Leng stiffened in anger. Yet in front of the Illusive Man, he would control himself, he could not afford another embarassment.

That man is another level of crazy, the captain thought grimly. He had joined Cerberus to make a difference, not to assist lunatics craving for glory.

"Captain," the Illusive Man began, turning to face the him. "I will require your full report by the next standard galactic day. You are dismissed"

"Yes sir." the captain replied turning to leave.

"And Captain?" the Illusive man called to the captain's retreating figure. "Good work."

Beaming with pride, the captain exited the QEC, but not before overhearing one final word.

"Thessia."


A/N: End of the first chapter! Took me a while, but it got done.

Hope you enjoyed it!