Part Two: Closure

His palms were sweating. Kaidan wiped his hands against his pants, picked up his glass of water and sipped it, trying to look casual. The restaurant in which he sat was packed; apparently a very popular establishment in the capital city of Scott. The low murmur of many conversations and distant clink of silverware on plates should have made him feel better. Should have helped calm him down. Instead, it made things worse.

There were too many people, too much commotion, too much movement. Not enough exits and no good way to reach the exits that existed. Too many places to hide weapons, equipment, people, traps… Even worse, he hadn't been allowed to wear his hardsuit or bring any weapons. He wasn't even wearing a uniform right now. He was just another patron at a table, waiting on his other half, lost in a sea of civilian normality. He'd even taken to wearing a high-collared jacket to help hide his biotic amp. Where there was one AHAB member, there were likely to be others, and Kaidan had no desire to be kidnapped.

He brushed the still-slightly-stinging spot on the underside of his left forearm where the subcutaneous transmitter had been injected. That and the barely noticeable press of the tiny receiver in his ear were the only reminders that he really wasn't alone in this. But for some reason, that didn't reassure him much.

Kaidan had never liked these types of situations - situations in which very little was known about the enemy or how the enemy would behave when pressed. As a lieutenant he'd been through several such scenarios – most notably those with Shepard, when they really had no idea the true scope of the geth's invasion, or of Saren's involvement, or of the very real threat of the Reapers – but that didn't mean he'd ever managed to feel comfortable with them. And he'd never faced one alone… never been the one to make the decisions or call the shots when it was impossible to know all the facts. He suddenly had a brand new appreciation for the agony Shepard must have gone through over those long, arduous months aboard the Normandy. This was his first time in such a role, and he already felt unraveled and exhausted after only two hours top-side.

Must be why you haven't made Commander yet, a wry voice piped in his head – his father's voice. Kaidan scowled and pushed it away, shifting on his chair. So what if he liked to ask questions first and shoot later? It had gotten him into less trouble than some of his counterparts who liked to do the opposite. And he wanted to keep it that way.

The form of a tall, slender woman drew Kaidan's eye as she entered the restaurant and spoke briefly with the hostess. The lieutenant went rigid, staring hard at her face. The eyes… the eyes were familiar. His suspicions were confirmed as the woman's gaze scanned the restaurant, then suddenly locked on him with absolute certainty. She smiled, showing brilliant white teeth, and waved.

Kaidan froze.

Rahna Bachar swept past the hostess and moved with long, purposeful strides toward his table, throwing her arms wide as she arrived. "Kaidan!" she greeted warmly, as if they were old friends.

We are old friends. The stray thought flickered briefly through his head, then vanished again as he somehow roused himself enough to stand stiffly from his seat and accept, with complete bewilderment, her generous hug. She smelled like vanilla.

She took the seat across from him and he resumed his own, staring at her, taking in her appearance and still feeling as if this was all some kind of dream. She looked… different. Thinner than he remembered, and gaunt in the face. Her once-rounded and gentle features looked sharper now, worn and weary. But her eyes were bright with enthusiasm as she leaned her elbows on the table and grinned.

"Kaidan Alenko," she said again, as if unable to believe this meeting was taking place herself. "Imagine seeing you here, after all these years."

Kaidan swallowed hard, trying to find his voice. The memory of the last time he'd seen her kept replaying in his head, over and over again, sharper and clearer than ever before. He'd tried to go explain things to her, tried at least to say goodbye, but she'd refused to speak to him. She'd refused to even look at him, recoiling from his reach and acting as though he'd snap her in half if he so much as touched her.

"Rahna," he said finally, his voice thick. He instinctively glanced around the restaurant, though he wasn't sure what he was looking for. "I… I came to talk to you."

She nodded, still smiling. "I know. You came all the way to Terra Nova just to meet with me. I'm flattered."

A burn of guilt began crawling up Kaidan's neck. He hoped she hadn't misunderstood his intentions… He cleared his throat. "I just feel like… I feel like there should be some… closure between us." He winced. It sounded lame, like a setup. He wasn't very good at this undercover thing…

Rahna blinked, tilting her head to one side, a lock of long, brown hair falling over one shoulder. "Closure?" She gave a little laugh and a memory long forgotten stirred within Kaidan. He remembered wanting nothing more than to hear that laugh. "Kaidan, it's been sixteen years," she said. "Sixteen years since we went our separate ways. I know things weren't that great between us then, but… it's been a long time. A lot can change in sixteen years."

Yeah, like you deciding to join an anti-biotic group, he thought grimly. He sat back in his chair, shrugging. "I know. But I just wanted to be sure you knew that I…" He trailed off, frowned. He felt bits of truth beginning to come out in what he planned to say. He didn't really want to drag all this out into the open again, but for the sake of the mission, it was sort of necessary. He drew in a deep breath, let it out heavily, and forced himself to meet her eyes. "Rahna," he said in a low voice, "I never meant to kill Vyrnnus. I just wanted him to stop hurting you. To stop… hurting all of us."

She held his hard gaze for a long, silent moment.

"Of course you didn't mean to kill him, Kaidan," she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper. "You were merely a tool, doing what you were built to do."

The lieutenant felt his spine stiffen, sensing more than seeing the change in her attitude.

"I do regret the manner in which we parted," she went on, her smile fading as sadness touched her rich brown eyes. "You don't know how much that hurt me… but I was… I was so scared and confused. For a long time I thought about you, Kaidan. And about what had happened. I kept thinking that we – all of us – had done something wrong, somehow. That we hadn't turned out like we were supposed to. That you… that there was something wrong with your amp or something, and that's why your biotic outburst killed Vyrnnus." She sighed quietly, then continued. "As I got older and was able to do my own research into human biotics, however, I came to a sudden realization."

She looked Kaidan square in the face, and a prickle crawled up his neck.

"The human biotic ability was engineered, Kaidan," she said, very quietly. "From the very beginning - it was engineered. And do you know why?"

But Kaidan was already shaking his head. "Only in-utero exposure to eezo can result in human biotic ability, and there's nothing engineered about an accident of –"

"Isn't there?" Rahna interrupted, leaning over the table again. "Tell me, Kaidan, what do you think of that rash of drive failures in 2163? Do you really think all of them were accidents? Don't you think it's a little strange that not one single drive failure occurred out in empty space? That every one of them just happened to occur over populated areas? You don't find that suspicious?"

The lieutenant just looked at her, deciding on his response. He had wondered about the exposures in 2163, and it was more than just a passing curiosity. He'd even let slip something about his theories to Commander Shepard when she'd first come aboard the Normandy. But at the same time, there was no actual proof that any of the drive failures had been arranged on purpose. A conspiracy theorist could find conspiracy anywhere they looked, after all….

"Kaidan," Rahna spoke up, not waiting for his reply, "just think about it. The biotic ability is a weapon." She hesitated, then forged ahead. "You better than anyone should know how true that is. They took us to Jump Zero to turn us into soldiers. Tools. Weapons for the military. They wanted what the aliens had… the equivalent to asari commandos."

Kaidan snorted. "Human biotics aren't nearly as strong as the asari… and anyway, biotics don't have to be used as weapons, there are plenty of other uses –"

"Really?" Rahna broke in, crossing her arms. "Like what?"

"Search and rescue," the lieutenant answered easily. "There are many biotics in the medical field who use the ability to manipulate gravity in order to rescue those trapped beneath buildings, cars, rocks… stuff too heavy, bulky, or awkward for anything short of a crane to remove."

"But the fact remains those objects could still be removed with a crane."

"Which takes time to retrieve and place," Kaidan countered. "Some people don't have that kind of time to wait."

"And what else can biotics be used for?"

Kaidan opened his mouth, about to mention the fact that one could retrieve something from across the room without getting up, but stopped himself. He had a feeling Rahna wouldn't care in the least about such trivial uses, and anyway, that was how she'd gotten her arm broken all those years ago. He cleared his throat, shifting again in his chair, trying to think of other situations in which his abilities had been useful.

The only ones he could come up with were combat-related. He scowled.

"Exactly," Rahna said. "The biotic ability is first and foremost a weapon. A weapon exploited and encouraged by the military. Why else do you think we were ripped away from our families as children and stuck out on the edge of the solar system? Why else do you think other people eye us so strangely, Kaidan? Because they are scared of us. And with good reason. We both know how destructive biotics can be -"

"The ability can be controlled," Kaidan cut in, beginning to feel uncomfortable. The image of Vyrnnus flying across the room, smashing into the wall, crumpling into a broken heap - an image he'd been trying to bury for sixteen years - kept replaying in his head with shocking clarity. He remembered the rage, the surprisingly strong pull of gravity on his body as he struck out, the screech and clatter of tables and chairs being sucked into his throw... things he hadn't thought about in years. A creeping guilt built somewhere in his gut, but he told himself she wasn't really talking about him specifically, she wasn't blaming him... her attitude toward biotics hadn't been influenced by what he did, surely...

"But will it be controlled, Kaidan?" she asked. "That is the most important question. Take Major Kyle, for instance, and his rather large group of biotic followers."

Kaidan raised his brows, surprised to hear her mention that incident.

"I watch the news," she said, picking up on his expression. "I'm sure there was more to it than what the broadcast mentioned, but I admit I was exceedingly impressed that you and that Commander Shepard got out of that place alive."

"They were still human beings," Kaidan growled, his irritation rising, "They listened to reason."

"So why was a Spectre sent to deal with them, then? Admit it, Kaidan, that situation could have turned real bad, real fast."

Now it was his turn to lean forward on the table. "Just like any situation in which there is a group of people who believe strongly in something, who are told they need to stop doing what they are doing, and who are armed with anything - whether it be biotics, tanks, grenades, or guns." A part of him hoped she'd see the parallels between Major Kyle's cult and the Alliance of Humans Against Biotics.

She looked at him for a second, and then a small smile curved the corners of her mouth. "Tanks, grenades, and guns can be taken away. They can be regulated. Biotics, on the other hand... the ability is inherent, it exists within a person. It cannot simply be… removed."

The way she said it made Kaidan's stomach curdle.

"Do you know what happened to the other kids from Brain Camp?" she asked softly, suddenly.

He shook his head.

"Three of them committed suicide shortly after the program shut down. Four went insane and currently reside in mental health institutions. Two were members of Major Kyle's cult." She gave a nod at his expression of disbelief. "I'm sure you didn't see them; there were a lot of people at that compound. But they were there. Of course, where they are now, nobody knows. One of our BAaT classmates became a doctor, another an N7. And then there's you. And me."

A long silence stretched between them. Kaidan wasn't sure what she expected him to say, if anything. He didn't want to argue anymore, Rahna having made her opinion on biotic abilities quite clear. He would have preferred to leave, to get back to the Tokyo and get on with his life, trying to forget this discussion had ever happened, but he hadn't yet gained any information on the missing people or AHAB's research.

He sighed, met her waiting gaze. "Why did you join the Alliance of Humans Against Biotics, Rahna?" The question was abrupt, his tone flat.

She reacted as if he'd slapped her, her eyes going wide. "How did you find out about that?" she hissed.

"I have my sources."

She glared at him, but Kaidan refused to back down. "You are biotic, Rahna," he pressed. "It's a unique and rare ability, and yes, maybe it can be used to hurt people in the hands of the wrong users, but that's why it's up to us, the people who have that ability, who know what's it's really like to be biotic, to make the right choices and make sure we are doing the right thing." He shook his head. "Joining the cause to stir up more confusion and distrust toward biotics is not the way to solve anything."

Rahna's face had gone very pale, her hands clenched into fists on the table. Her dark brown eyes glimmered like he had never seen them; hard and angry. "You are wrong, Kaidan," she whispered, and a sinking feeling bloomed in his chest... she just wasn't going to listen. "I am not biotic," she said firmly, and swept her long hair aside, twisting in her seat so he could see the back of her neck, where a long, hideous scar marred her skin from hairline to spine. He drew back in his chair as she turned around to face him again. "I had the jack taken out."

Kaidan's mouth fell open, but words failed him. As far as he knew, no biotic had ever had their amp jack removed. The circuitry was directly connected with the brainstem and spinal nerves – to have it removed would be an extremely risky and complicated surgery. The chances of permanent physical damage were ridiculously high. Only a very desperate person would ever undergo such an operation voluntarily….

Admiral Hackett's words came back to him: "Their group is full of fanatic, half-panicked xenophobes…" A very real fear iced his heart as he looked at the woman across from him. He knew suddenly, without doubt, that Rahna's group was very capable of the biotic kidnappings, that the president of the organization was almost certainly lying, that Rahna's research needed to be stopped as soon as possible, and that the Systems Alliance powers-that-be needed to start taking AHAB seriously.

Very seriously.

"You still don't get it, do you?" she asked, barely audible. "Poor Kaidan. They trained you so well, they made you blind."

The lieutenant stood from the table, glaring at her. She sounded too much like the people he'd had to deal with as a young adult, the people who'd eventually driven him to join the military, where at least he had a place, a purpose, and people who appreciated his skills. "You have no idea what you're a part of," he growled, refusing to let her make him second-guess his life decisions, refusing to let her make him feel guilty again. He turned as if to go and she jumped from her chair.

"Kaidan, wait," she blurted, reaching out to catch his arm. He stiffened at her touch, but stopped, if only because he hoped she'd say something else about AHAB's recent activities.

"I… I didn't mean to sound so harsh," she said, reaching down to grip his hand and give it a squeeze. Her fingers were cold and bony. "It's just that I… well, it's hard to explain. I want to show you something. Can I show you something before you leave?"

Kaidan glanced down at her, into her upturned face. Her eyes were soft and warm again, almost like he remembered. He tried to maintain the wall of anger and frustration against her pleading gaze, but it was hard, even after sixteen years. "Depends on what it is," he said gruffly.

"I'd like to show you some of my research; the proof that backs up my arguments. I have a copy on an OSD in my vehicle. I actually… I actually made it for you, to show you what I discovered, if you were interested. You can take it with you if you like. Then… you can make your own decisions."

Kaidan's heart skipped a beat at the mention of her research. That was exactly what he needed. Up until this point, he hadn't managed to weasel one sentence of solid information from her; it seemed anything he said just prompted another rant or more AHAB propaganda. He hesitated, looking around the restaurant once more. But no one seemed to be paying too much attention, or too little attention, to him or Rahna. Everyone looked completely normal, enthusiastically enjoying their dinner. He didn't figure he really had much of a choice, anyway; this was his first personally assigned solo mission, and he sure as hell wasn't going back to the Tokyo completely empty-handed. He nodded reluctantly. "Fine."

Rahna eagerly led him out of the restaurant into the street. The sun was setting, casting a brilliant orange glow against the sides of buildings, flashing against the gravcars' windshields as they whizzed past. Kaidan didn't come to Terra Nova much, but he had to admit the city of Scott was one of the nicest off-Earth human settlements he'd ever seen. The roads were wide and clean, the establishments classy and well-kept. He took a few scant seconds to sight-see in-between scanning the roadways for potential threats or attackers, his gaze coming back often to Rahna herself.

She was obviously a very disturbed woman. Yet he could still detect traces of the sweet and gentle girl she'd used to be, however vague and fleeting. It was an uneasy mix that put him on edge. Part of him still insisted she was the person he used to know, that she really didn't know what she'd gotten into by joining AHAB, and that he could reach her if he tried hard enough. But another part of him – the bigger part – prickled in warning: he couldn't afford to treat her as anything but an unpredictable fanatic.

"My car is over here," Rahna said, gesturing to an alley on the side of the restaurant they'd just exited. Kaidan slowed as he approached the mouth of the narrow lane, raking his surroundings with a sharp eye. The streets were nearly empty, the few approaching pedestrians harmless, the rooftops empty. The alley was open-ended, facing onto another plaza ringed with various shops, eateries, and pubs. Two metal ladders on either side of the passage led up to the roofs of the neighboring shops. Not a dead end. Plenty of exits…

He looked back at Rahna to see her open her vehicle and lean inside. He tensed, a dim blue corona flaring to life around him as he prepared for her to emerge again. He knew she hadn't been carrying a personal weapon, but that didn't mean she didn't have one in her car. At least I know I won't have to contend with her biotics… He felt a twinge of remorse almost immediately and grimaced. That was nothing to be happy about… he would have taken a biotic battle rather than her current AHAB attitude any day.

Rahna finally pulled herself from her vehicle and straightened, the small OSD flashing in the slanting sunlight as she raised it triumphantly. "Here it is." She turned toward him, reached out to grab his hand, and opened his fingers. She pressed the disk into his palm and closed his fingers over it again, looking up into his face. "Take it. Keep it. Maybe it will help you understand."

Kaidan slowly pulled his fist from her grip, allowing his pre-barrier corona to flicker and die. He opened his hand and stared at the disk, surprised despite himself. Maybe I'm just being paranoid. "Thanks." It sounded as lame as the way he'd first started their conversation. He cleared his throat. "I'll, uh… be interested to see what's on here." That much was true, at least.

Rahna smiled faintly. "Maybe we can talk again sometime. After you've reviewed my work."

Not on your life. "Yeah, maybe."

She sighed, her eyes turning sad. She reached up, rested a palm against his cheek. It took all of Kaidan's willpower not to draw away. "Oh Kaidan," she whispered, "you've changed so much."

He opened his mouth to retort that he sure as hell wasn't the only one, but the loud revving of an approaching engine caught his attention. His eyes left Rahna to look behind her, only to see a medical car emblazoned with a red cross pull up at the end of the alley and slide to a hasty halt. Three figures immediately jumped out, striding quickly in his direction.

"Rahna," he began, but no sooner had he opened his mouth than the figure in the lead raised an arm, and Kaidan recognized the shape of a gun.

Adrenaline shocked white-hot fire through his veins and Kaidan instinctively shoved Rahna behind him, then slid into a protective stance and threw up a biotic barrier with every ounce of his strength. Rahna cried out as the boiling blue field enveloped her; a muffled shot echoed between the alley walls and Kaidan felt a ripple through his gravitational field as the projectile hit the disturbance, lost its speed, and fell harmlessly to the ground. Another shot and ripple, then clatter as the bullet hit the pavement.

A sharp pain suddenly flared in the back of Kaidan's skull and his vision blacked; he felt his mass effect field wobble and collapse, the uncontrolled release of pressure making his ears pop. He hit his hands and knees on the dirty pavement, his sight swimming back into focus even as a burning fire spread across the back of his neck. He reached up to touch it gingerly, his fingers finding an empty jack.

Another jolt of adrenaline brought his senses into high alert; the sound of a third shot was impossibly loud, and a shocking pain radiated from Kaidan's right shoulder as the force of the projectile knocked him flat on his back.

The lieutenant ground his teeth, fighting back the cry, and reached over to yank the dart from his skin. He squinted at it, saw the long needle and reservoir, and swore, throwing it away. He'd just been drugged… or poisoned. Kaidan rolled to his hands and knees, then pushed himself laboriously to his feet, swaying. Blood stained his shirt where the dart had hit and sweat beaded on his forehead. He felt dizzy….

"Savant X, eh?" came Rahna's voice, seemingly from far away. Kaidan looked toward her with a start, only to see her holding his biotic amp in her hand, studying it. "No wonder your barrier was so damn strong."

A rush of understanding gripped him and he stepped forward in a rage, but his knees buckled and sent him to the ground. He stayed there for a moment, breathing hard, feeling nauseous as the world rocked around him. He tried to gather his wits enough to mount some kind of biotic throw, but with the drugs in his system and without the amp his efforts fizzled out well before they gathered enough effective strength. He saw the three men from the medical transport approaching in his peripheral vision and tried with all his might to get to his feet again.

But his body no longer responded to his commands. His limbs were heavy and numb and he fell back to the ground, the alley around him slowly dimming. Rough hands grabbed his shoulders, turned him over.

"Welcome to the organization, Lieutenant," one of the men said, and there was another jab in Kaidan's neck.

His last thought before blackness claimed him was of the N7 unit supposedly still tracking him. He hoped they could follow his signal… hoped that wherever he led them would make it all worth it….

TO BE CONTINUED...