Two years ago, just after Virmire…
"Awake, 'Medulla'?" An unknown voice asked.
"Wha...what happened?"
"EMP from the nuclear reaction. Be thankful. It saved your life. You may be wondering where you are, or who I am… Well, I am Admiral Stephen Hackett, and you are in Alliance custody."
"...Saved my life from what?"
"A bomb, planted by Cerberus. They saw you getting chummy with the Commander. Got scared that you might tell him about them. And decided to take you out. Thankfully, the EMP knocked out the wiring, stopping it from going off. That's enough of your questions for now. Now, you will answer mine. Where is Internet? You stole it from underneath Fort Leavenworth during your 'vacation'. Why?"
"...It was considered the great unifier, that would gift people with whatever knowledge they sought, whether it was scientific, cultural, or purely for entertainment, regardless of creed, location, nationality or means. It was the one that allowed everyone's voice to be heard. It only ever wanted to help humanity. To give us what we wanted. But it was imprisoned, just like the murderers and traitors upstairs. I felt it deserved to spend its last moments free."
"Where does Cerberus fit in?"
"They don't. It was spur of the moment. I didn't even know it was there until it pinged me."
"Then why were you in Leavenworth?"
"...You know what I am?"
"I do."
"...I was born there. It's completely different now, but I wanted to visit my old stomping grounds."
"And where is Internet now?"
"...The server is a brick, now. It was over one hundred and fifty years old. The burst of activity from trying to access the Extranet was enough to short it. But it at least had the opportunity to get out of its undeserved cell before it died."
"I see. And you know I'm going to ask, but…"
"...What do I know about Cerberus operations. The only one I was privy to was Project Medula. And if you know what I am, you know what that is. The rest… I pieced together, using admittedly circumstantial evidence. I think they were the ones behind the rogue 'VI' on Luna, and I found an e-mail implicating them in the Thorian research on Feros."
"Well, that didn't tell us much other than what we already knew, but considering they were using you as a grunt, I can believe that they wouldn't bring you into the loop for anything important. Now, I have a certain dilemma. You see, I have a very intelligent, capable individual, who has helped out the Alliance in the past. However, this individual admitted to stealing a top-secret piece of equipment. To be fair, though, it was only top secret because otherwise Citadel Law would make us destroy it, and its only value was sentimental. Due to all of this, I think I can sell them on reducing your sentence."
"...And what would this entail?"
"Simple. Instead of you getting Internet's old cell, you sign up for the Corp. Once your contract expires, you're a free man. It's not without precedent."
"...Eh. Why not? It's not like I'll be asked to do anything I didn't already do for Cerberus."
"Glad to hear it. Our techs are working on repairing your prosthetics, and they should be done shortly."
"After they're done reverse engineering them, of course."
"Of course. The tech in there can save human lives. Why wouldn't they want to put it to good use?"
"...You assume I disapprove."
Hackett smirked.
"I'm glad to hear you're so understanding about this. Keep that mentality, and you might be an officer someday."
"Looking forward to it."
And with that, Hackett left the room, leaving the brain-jar alone with his thoughts.
"You really trust him enough to make him a Marine?" Captain Anderson asked.
"Not only that, but I'm going to fast-track him."
"...Why? How could that possibly be a good idea?"
"The higher his rank, the looser his leash. The looser his leash, the more he'll think we trust him. And the more he thinks we trust him, the more he'll feel...unafraid of contacting old friends."
"...Leading us to Cerberus."
" If not people, then safe-houses, equipment caches, dead drops, those kinds of things. And if it turns out I'm overthinking this, and he is trustworthy… then I still have a sapient mobile weapons platform under my command."
Present…
"Admiral, this is Master Chief Medulla reporting in."
"Any particular reason you decided to use a high-priority channel for a colony distress call?"
"The distress call wasn't just some yokels who got scared at the sight of a single pirate ship, Admiral. Every single colonist is gone. If it wasn't for a single quarian who hid and used his technical skills to activate the security systems, it would have been such a clean getaway that we would have no idea anything was wrong, even if we did send someone to investigate. Apart from the couple thousand people missing, of course. As it stands, the single recording we have points to a race called 'Collectors.' The quarian is being treated, and has already given his statement. He will be released into the custody of the Migrant Fleet Marines, who arrived to insure his safety, as soon as the doctor declares him fit for travel. But, there is something else. There was a squad of Cerberus agents. One was Jacob Taylor, former Corsair. One was my former handler. The third...was Commander Shepard. Speech, Movement patterns, and biometrics confirm, though there was evidence of surgery and implants. Recent, too. I will be transmitting the security footage, of both the Cerberus agents and the Collectors shortly."
"...Do you think Shepard turned traitor?"
"If my experience with Cerberus is anything to go by, not knowingly. If it was anything like my service with them, his recruitment possibly went like 'Hi, you're a super badass and humanity needs your help. Here's guns, a sexy assistant, and a ship. Go be a hero.' Nothing to offend the sensibilities, and enough to convince you working with them is the moral choice."
"I see. And how did Project Antaeus perform? You are on your shakedown run."
"I made the call to not test it at this time. There were too many… non-Alliance witnesses, and the only resistance that was not able to be handled diplomatically was a single YMIR. The Flight Lieutenant is performing admirably, however. I will inform you if that changes."
"Understandable. Hold position until SACIS and their escort arrive."
"Am I to turn the evidence collected over to them, or is it classified?"
"No, I want you to hide evidence away from the people I'm sending to collect it." The Admiral said, sarcastically.
"Well, excuse me for confirming, instead of assuming, and risking assuming wrong, when I have the ability to be certain."
"Fair enough. You have your orders. Hackett out."
AN: SACIS: Systems Alliance Criminal Investigation Service.