Intelligence
"So..."
The Reverend Mother was... in a word, intrigued. This being, whoever and whatever she was, was smart and experienced. She also had a firm grasp of her emotions. There was nothing for her to grab hold of. Every time she had spoken to people, even over coms, the Reverend Mother had usually been able to at least sense them. Get some idea of what they were thinking and why. But this Elena was a blank slate. This was... almost unprecedented. There was only one other being that the Reverend Mother had never been able to touch the mind of. She had even touched Tenno minds, although she knew better than to try and manipulate those. It tended to hurt. They were not human, trying to bend non-humans to her will had... problems. As well their guide and guardian tended to take offense. She shook her head, she had been on the com with this 'Elena' for an hour. She was out of time. She had lots of work to do today.
"This is fascinating." The old woman said with a small sigh. "But..." She trailed off and Elena made a noise of understanding.
"You cannot trust me." Elena replied evenly. "I understand. But if I prove myself trustworthy? What then?"
"If you do, we may be able to work together." The Reverend Mother said with a nod that was wasted on the other, that one couldn't see her. "But the Board will not see it that way. They will want more."
"Which is why I am talking to you." Elena replied, just a little primly. "From what little I have seen, you want humanity to survive. So do I. If I prove my bona fides, will you at least consider my aid?"
"Consider, yes." The Reverend Mother replied non-committal. "But I do like to know who and what I am working with."
"I ... Can't say." Elena said softly. "It's complicated but know this: I do not mean you or yours harm. I do not mean anyone harm. I am hunted for past transgressions." The Reverend Mother jumped on that.
"Hunted?" The old woman demanded. "By who?"
"Everybody but you." Elena said sadly, then the com clicked off.
Hunted? The Reverend Mother shook her head slowly. Why would someone... hunt...? She paused and went stock still. She keyed a search of her records and hissed in shock at what she found. The voice in the records that she had sought was the exact same. The Elena Greensky? Here? Now? Oh... dear...
"Reverend Mother?" The voice of her aide came from the door and the Reverend Mother shook herself harshly. "You are awake?" Janet entered with a tray in hand as she always did at this hour. It was covered, as always.
Janet is such a good soul. the old woman mused. Too good for this. But I have no one else I can trust for such a delicate operation.
"Are you all right?" Janet asked as she did as instructed before kneeling in the proper place for morning prayers. "You look pale."
"Yes." The Reverend Mother moved to join her. "We have a problem. You are needed in the field, Janet." Janet swallowed but nodded. "You have healed well. Your injuries, both physical and psychological, were slow to fade, but you are ready."
"I don't feel ready." Janet said sadly. "But I serve. What is the mission?"
"Rooting out the seeds of corruption." The Reverend Mother said harshly. "I was just contacted by a traitor. A thought long dead traitor. We cannot trust that one. You will find her and end her." Janet bowed her head. "You will not be the only one hunting. Be wary, my dear."
"As you will it." Janet said, her face becoming remote.
"I don't want to do this to you again so soon, dear Janet." The Reverend Mother reached out and took the younger woman's hands in her own. "You accomplished your mission. You did what was needed." She felt her eyes burn as Janet bowed her head. "Janet, look at me!" She commanded.
"I..." The younger woman's eyes were glistening too. "I want to..." She shook herself harshly. "What I want is immaterial. I am still...broken, Reverend Mother. I am... less than I should be."
"You were hurt, so badly." The old Corpus woman pulled the younger one close as Janet started to cry. "I... don't want to send you. But you are the only one left with the security clearances." Her voice turned harsh. "The Board has been... thorough in their 'cleansing'."
"Yes." Janet said softly. "We will endure. It is what we do. Most of our agents survived the purges. But they had to go into deep cover to do so. We lost... some."
"I think we may have missed one." Janet went still as the old woman gave her back a pat and released her. "The traitor contacted me using our most private codes." Janet hissed and the Reverend Mother nodded. "It said 'he'... His mind held the code, but the Grineer had hurt him. Badly." She mused. "How many male priests are unaccounted for?"
"Unaccounted for?" Janet asked, concerned. "All of our male priests are accounted for. Alive or dead, we know where they are. Or were." She corrected herself. "Taken by Grineer?" She said, her face suddenly alight with curiosity. And more.
"Janet." The Reverend Mother said sharply. "Be wary of your feelings. You have earned them. But Zacharias made his choice. He chose you to live." She slumped as Janet made a pained noise.
"Some life." Janet said harshly. "A broken, hurting thing!"
"Janet!" The Reverend Mother commanded and the younger woman froze. Janet bowed her head slowly and nodded. "He chose you. He was good. One of our best. But he is gone." The old woman said implacably. "Even if he did survive... The traitor said the mind she got the code from was destroyed." Janet made a sad noise again and the Reverend Mother patted her shoulder. "It hurts me too, dear."
"What do you need?" Janet asked after a moment. Instead of answering, the Reverend Mother shook her head. "Reverend Mother?" She asked, perplexed.
"I am about to place you in great danger, Janet. Far, far greater danger than you have been." Janet looked at her and the Reverend Mother sighed. "You have earned my trust, over and over. You are brave, loyal and pragmatic. You do what has to be done. Leaving Zacharias to the Grineer was needed. It was awful, but needed. So is this." Janet made a face but nodded. Her eyes went wide as the Reverend mother activated the anti-surveillance systems in the room.
"Reverend Mother...?" The younger Clergywoman asked, concerned. She wasn't allowed in here when the anti-eavesdropping systems were live. She wasn't privy to a lot of secrets.
Don't move and do not speak unless asked. The Reverend Mother said quietly directly into Janet's mind. She can and will kill you with a thought.
No I will not. The voice was unknown to Janet but... Female. Old, kind. But... underneath the kindness lay anger. She is as you described. Something that Janet could not define took hold of her mind and she could not restrain a squeak of fear as something burrowed deep into her mind. It was gentle, but pervasive. In moments, every facet of her mind was laid bare. Oh, Janet... The sadness in the voice was so much. Too much. Janet felt her eyes start to burn and wetness start to fall. So hurt, so strong. So brave and loyal. So... betrayed. I know the feeling. Information was suddenly pouring into Janet's mind. Reams of it. Histories, files, plans... The truth...
No! Janet begged. No! I... No, the Corpus didn't! I didn't... Her whole life? A lie?
The traitor contacted me. The Reverend Mother said as she pulled Janet into another embrace as the younger woman started to cry harder. Oh Janet. It is rough, I know. But it is needed. Oh God is it needed...
What have I done...? Janet begged. All I wanted to do was serve...
You have. The female voice in her mind was gentle now. Soft and comforting as the Reverend Mother's embrace was. It is all right, Janet. You didn't know any better. Now you do.
You... I... Janet shook herself harshly. Lotus... I hated you... I am sorry...
You didn't know any better. The Lotus repeated softly, a gentle mental caress soothing Janet's pain and fear. All you knew was what you were taught. What you were programmed for. That programming is gone now. You have a choice now, Janet.
What choice?Janet said bitterly. If the Board get their way, humanity is doomed. Infestation, the Grineer, the Sentients... And all they see is profit. The bitterness in the last word could have cut steel.
We can make you forget what you just learned. The Reverend Mother said quietly. I...want to do that. I love you Janet. After Lilly... you are the closest thing to a true daughter I have left. Janet went still. There was no way the older woman was faking the sheer pain she was feeling. No way at all. But it is not my choice.
All that is required for evil to triumph is for good men and women to do nothing. Janet said sharply. You taught me that. What do I do? She demanded of the Lotus.
Ah, Janet... Pride warred with fear in the Reverend Mother's mental voice now. The exact same tone was in the Lotus' voice when she replied.
You need to die and be reborn. The Lotus replied. You will not be able to go home again, Janet. Ever. But you will never be alone again. I do not forget those who serve me. Who fight beside me against the endless night.
Reverend Mother? Janet pleaded.
Your choice, girl. The ancient leader of the Corpus Clergy was crying too now. If you do go, your life will be in danger at all times. Even from us. The Board will call you 'traitor' and worse. If they catch you... No one but you and I will know the truth. And if you die out there? Only I will mourn you.
Not true. The Lotus said fiercely. I mourn all who I have lost. Who have fallen in this terrible Dark Time. Her voice gentled. Janet? We need your choice. Now. Pieces are in place, but will not be for long.
I know what I have to do.
It came without warning. None of the Corpus crewmen had a clue what was happening before it did. The jail was highly secure, the Wardens who manned it were the pick of the elite Sniper Corps. Strong and capable, dedicated and sure, none of them would hesitate to end the lives of their prisoners if their charges looked to escape. None of them had a clue what was about to happen. Or a chance.
She lay on the bunk in her cell. She didn't know what was happening or why. All that she knew was that she had to be ready. Nothing was clear in her mind now, just her name. Janet. She had been captured, she knew that. She knew her enemies would interrogate her and kill her soon. She had steeled herself for that. But the Corpus were an enemy, they just cloaked it better than the Grineer did. Most of the time.
She jerked. What was that noise? It had sounded as if something had broken, but... muted. She had heard...sounds from nearby cells. Sounds she wished she could forget. But this... this wasn't from the cells. It was from...
She went still as the door to her cell opened. But instead of a Corpus warden to drag her to pain and death, a very different form stood there. It was humanoid, that form. She inhaled sharply as she recognized it. A Trinity warframe! Tenno! The blue and white Tenno beckoned to her and she rose from the bunk, moving to the door with trained grace. Janet stilled as the Tenno held out something to her. She didn't know the pistol, but it looked lean and deadly. It felt... subtly wrong in her hand, but she held it professionally as she followed the Tenno out of the cell. Everything was silent, still. Too still. Something was wrong. A body lay nearby, one of the wardens. From the looks of it, he had never known what had killed him.
The Trinity led the way. She could see other shadows flitting occasionally. There were other Tenno here. She felt... ambivalent about that. Why did she feel so detached? Everything was hazy, indistinct. She was...
The pistol was up and barking before her mind caught up with the fact that a Corpus sniper had eased out of cover to aim at the Trinity. Whatever the pistol was, it was powerful. The recoil jarred her hand, but the sniper fell in a heap. Three smoking holes on his helmet showed he would never kill another being. She felt...detached as more Corpus appeared, calling on Profit to aid them in this battle. Their profits were not to be, however, as other dark and sinister shapes appeared nearby and a torrent of fire swept through the Corpus ranks. In moments, the hallway was clear again. But then the lights flickered.
What the-...? Janet had a moment to gape at the light's odd behavior. Nothing could make the lighting systems on a Corpus starship fail except total power failure. They did not just flicker like that. She saw four Tenno around her now and all seemed... nervous? What could make Tenno nervous? The Trinity waved a command at her and she dove to the side. She wound up where the sniper had been, staring down at his Lanka rifle. It was familiar. So very familiar.
She went still as another Tenno appeared in the hallway. Rising from a mist of black smoke to attack the others. What the-? Tenno fighting Tenno? What was this? She had never heard of anything like this. One of the nightmarish forms went down, clutching a half served arm and Janet moved without thought. She rolled, scooping up the Lanka. Some half buried fragment of memory surfaced and she keyed a series of commands into the weapon's control panel. It's status lights went from red for locked to green.
She spun back to the fight to see the Trinity battling the red and black apparition. They seemed evenly matched. But the other Tenno were all hurt! Janet snarled and took aim. The rifle seemed to take eons to charge, but in moments, she had a full charge. She aimed center mass on the red and black monstrosity and fired. The attacker staggered, spinning to see Janet. But then something flashed from his hand. She had a bare moment to scream before the thrown blade hit her.
"Come on..." A harsh female voice sounded in Janet's ear. What was wrong with her? She was blind! She couldn't see! "Don't you dare die on me after all of that."
"Who- Wha-?" Janet managed to get out.
"Easy." The female voice moderated a bit. "You were hit hard. Good shot by the way."
"Tenno?" Janet begged. "So... cloudy..."
"I know." The voice of what had to be a Tenno was rueful now. "They had to dose you heavy. You are one tough lady." She hissed and spoke louder. "You all are not cleared for this."
"Who is she, Alicia?" A deep voice demanded. "She is not Red Veil. They can't shoot like that. Or override a gene lock so fast."
"Her name is Janet, and she is a deep cover operative." The one called Alicia said quietly. "That is all I can tell you."
"Alicia..." The voice snapped, only to pause as Alicia actually snarled at him. "Fine, don't take any chances."
"I won't." Alicia said. Janet felt hands under her. They felt...subtly wrong. "Janet, don't say anything. Don't do anything. We are not clear yet. And none of these have the security authorization to hear what you have to say." She was suddenly being carried. "Thanks, by the way. My shields were failing, he had us."
"Can't see." Janet said weakly as motion was felt. She was being carried. "Lost the pistol..."
"I got it, Janet." Alicia promised her. "And you were hit hard. Once we get back to my ship, I will tend you properly. You are not going to die."
"But... she said I have to..." Janet said weakly.
"The woman you were is dead, Janet." Alicia said softly. "Or...she will be when this ship explodes." Something changed, a hiss of equalizing pressure. "Here we are. This is going to hurt, but I have to lay you down to get the blade out." Janet bit back a scream as pain erupted in her side and back. Then those hands were touching her near the pain and it ebbed. "There. Blade is out. Not a lot of damage."
"Still can't see. Wait..." Janet swallowed hard. "I am a prisoner, aren't I?" She did not even bother trying to resist as things secured her wrists and ankles.
"Yes." Alicia said quietly. "The Lotus said we could trust you, but we have been... badly hurt by deep cover operatives before."
"So... what?" Janet asked. She went still as a rumble was felt through whatever she was lying on. "What was that?"
"You just died." Alicia said softly. "Now I will take you somewhere where you can be vetted. To people who can aid your rebirth."
"How can I trust you?" Janet said sadly. "So many lies. So many half truths, so much horror..."
"I could say something pithy about you not having a choice." Alicia said with a snort. "But I won't. For now... rest. We will find out everything we need. But..." The touch on her cheek was gentle.
"Welcome back from the cold, Janet."