Shepard decrypted the door's lock and it slid open. She peered over the door frame to see a guard walking away from the door, his back to them. Shepard overloaded his shields and approached him. She rendered him unconscious in a choke hold, and with Kahlee's help, dragged him into the umpire's locker room. She confiscated his weapon, an M4 Shuriken, before locking him in.

As they wandered the corridors, mindful of steering clear of anyone who remotely looked like a mercenary, Shepard noticed that the security within the hallways was not as tight or as heavy as it was when they we're overtaken. They retraced their steps back to the dugout entrance, but heard a "psst!" coming from behind them.

"Hello there, Shepard. It's good to see you causing the right kind of trouble wherever you go," whispered the voice.

Shepard spun around, "Kasumi?"

Kasumi Goto appeared, uncloaked, in a dark, hooded outfit. "That was quite a thrashing you took, Shepard. I would have helped, but," she looked over at Kahlee Sanders, then back to Shepard, "I am just one lowly tech expert," she said.

"What are you even doing here?" Shepard asked.

"Rumors of a mad scientist working out of the basement of a two hundred seventy year old athletic field? One does not ignore such improbable happenings! He's also in possession of a special type of omni-tool. I want to, uh, study it. You know, for science," she said with a shrug.

Shepard let out a small smile. "Of course you do."

"Before you bust out of here, I have some information concerning your weapons and armor. They're being held in the security room. On the plus side, a majority of the guards have left the arena," said Kasumi.

"I noticed that too. Why is that?" Kahlee asked.

"I arrived here several days ago and had the luxury of thoroughly checking the place out. Legally, this area really works as support for the surrounding hospitals, but also serves a darker purpose: patients or volunteers that happen to be biotics 'disappear,' to what I worked out is a different location," answered Kasumi.

"So this place was a trap for biotics all along," said Kahlee.

"We need to get to them as soon as we can. Kasumi, let's go."

# # #

Miranda wobbled to a corner of the room, still feeling light-headed. She felt as if the room was spinning & leaned her head against the wall. She slid down to the floor and sat across from Jack, thinking it strange that Jack was uncharacteristically subdued. In fact, many things felt strange to her. Why the sudden burst in my biotics? As she sat against the wall, she felt tingling sensations in the back of her head where her biotic implant was, and at the base of her spine. She chuckled a little bit, for no apparent reason.

"Somethin' funny, Cheerleader?" asked Jack.

"No, not really, but I can't help it. I feel funny. Strange. Strangely funny. It's downright uncanny," Miranda responded. Even the words coming out of her mouth didn't feel right.

Jack looked Miranda in the eyes and Miranda briefly stared back before looking away, feeling guilty. Unfortunately, Miranda could not explain these irrational feelings of guilt to herself. Jack saw the apparent confusion in Miranda's face and let out a small, crooked smile.

"That has never happened to you before, has it?" asked Jack

"What?"

"You were fighting with a ton of mercenaries and before that, my two best Grissom academy students. How'd that feel?" Jack asked, leaning forward slightly.

Miranda shut her eyes and thought for a brief moment, before opening them again, relishing in the memory of it. Little did she know, there was a tinge of red in her normally light eyes. "It felt amazing. The harder I fought, the better I felt. Like I was flying," she answered. As she spoke, her mind reeled, coming to the conclusion Jack already knew. "Oh god," she said as she briefly covered her face in her hands before rubbing her temples. She leaned further against the wall for support. She felt as if she could melt into it.

"Don't worry about it too much, princess. You'll come down in a few minutes. Or a few hours," Jack said with a shrug. "We've got bigger things to worry about anyway," she added.

"You're right. The older scientist with the grey hair-"

"I remember that bastard from all those years ago," Jack said, slamming her fist against the wall. She stood up angrily, pacing back & forth between the sides of the room.

"He has aged, now that I think about it..." Miranda said, trailing off.

"What, did you know this guy? An old Cerberus friend of yours?" Jack asked, glaring down at Miranda.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Miranda exclaimed, mustering the energy to stand up to face Jack, though still feeling light-headed. "Those Cerberus files Shepard gave you to study? You didn't think I'd just hand them over without looking through them first?"

Jack took a step back, her hands balled into fists. They began to glow with biotics, but she winced slightly and the glow disappeared.

"Besides, I was barely in my teens when you were first brought to the Teltin facility. I knew nothing of Cerberus at the time. Not until I left the Sol system, at least," said Miranda.

Jack relaxed her shoulders ever so slightly. She sat at the edge of a cot, in deep thought. "I remember seeing him. Always in the background. Never really said anything, but was usually tinkering with something on a data pad."

Miranda sat on the floor across from Jack, not quite comfortable enough to sit next to her. "If I remember the Cerberus records correctly, he was a tech expert, specializing in bio-amp technology. 'Doctor Jonas Obiakor' was listed under 'missing / presumed dead.' I wouldn't be surprised if he has changed his identity since then."

"Mother fucker. I should have made damn sure every one of those bastards were dead." In her anger she activated her biotics, then let out a groan of frustration.

"Is there something wrong, Jack?"

"They did something to me. Or to my implant I guess," she said, rubbing the nape of her neck. "My powers don't spike as high as they should and everytime I try, I get shocked. Not exactly a feeling I like. Obviously."

"So that explains a lot. He's found a way to control you, it seems," said Miranda, sounding inadvertently smug.

"What, you're enjoying this?"

"No, Jack, I'm definitely not. Honestly, I want the nightmare that is my current state of consciousness to end. We're both in trouble & we don't how bad it is out there. We're not in any position to fight properly & we still don't know what this place is even for. We're in the dark," she answered angrily, with a slight tinge of panic in her voice.

Jack took a deep breath before hopping off the cot and kneeling over Miranda. Jack hated to admit it to herself, but she felt a little sorry for her. She knew all to well what was going through the mind of the former Cerberus operative. "It's pretty fucking clear to me: this walking piece of shit scientist wants to continue the fucked up shit he did on Pragia. He's using my students, you, and any other biotic in this place as test subjects. I don't know why, but I'll figure it out once I have my hands around his throat."

Jack and Miranda heard a rumbing sound echo within the room. They felt the room vibrate for a few moments before the lights in the room shut off.

"Now we're literally in the dark," said Miranda. To Jack, it almost sounded like a joke.

"You're a goddamn riot, Lawson. You should get high more often. You're a lot more agreeable," Jack said, somewhat sarcastically.

"You're a lot more agreeable too," responded Miranda wryly.

They heard footsteps run by their door and disappear further down the hall. They forced the door open in time to see a lone guard stop in his tracks upon seeing them.

"Get back inside!" He yelled, raising his weapon at them. Miranda quickly slammed him against the wall. His body lay limp on the floor, still glowing with biotic energy from the attack.

"Do you hear that?" Miranda asked.

"What?"

Miranda heard the sound of gunfire, though it was very faint. "There's a firefight going on. This place is being attacked."

"Let's join the damn party then!" exclaimed Jack.

"That's exactly what I was thinking."

# # #

Kasumi's intel led Shepard and Kahlee to an unassuming building several city blocks away from Wrigley field. The building itself was only three stories high, though the schematics Kasumi projected from her omni-tool showed that the property extended several stories below the ground floor.

Kahlee Sanders contacted the biotic platoon stationed in the outskirts of Chicago. Most of the platoon was still necessary to help keep the peace in and around the city, but several biotic soldiers volunteered to meet them at their location. They were briefed on the situation behind meeting.

"The property is registered to a 'Doctor Jonathan Onal,' just the man I'm looking for," said Kasumi.

"The Jonathan Onal?" asked Kahlee, sounding a bit surprised.

"What should I know about this guy?" asked Shepard.

"All the information I have on him goes back ten years. He created this startup company specializing in designing VI interfaces in modern bio-amp technology. His company has been very successful, though, like all scientists, he prefers his privacy," answered Kasumi.

"His company is primarily responsible for the bio-amps used by all of the biotic students in Grissom Academy. Our studies have shown that these improved implants are safer to use when compared to previous generations. The interface also allows us to monitor vital signs of all the biotic students, in order to prevent over-exhaustion or other serious injuries," added Kahlee.

"This still doesn't explain the missing biotics, though I've got a hunch and it isn't good," said Shepard.

Shepard had donned her armor before leaving Wrigley field, with Jack's Geth plasma shotgun slung on her back and held Miranda's M-25 Hornet firmly in her right hand. Her Carnifex was nowhere to be found, though she assumed it was plundered by one of the mercenaries.

I'll get it back.

"Are we ready? This won't be a walk in the park," said Shepard.

Kasumi readied her Locust, a souvenir from Donovan Hock's collection. "It can't be any more worse that working through the vents on the collector base," she answered.

"Here's the plan: Kasumi, Kahlee, and I will cut off power to the facility while the biotics division deals with as many mercenaries as possible. If the resistance here was anything like the force we faced earlier, there will be quite a bit of fighting, so be ready. Once you're all engaged, we'll infiltrate the lower levels. We stay in radio contact at all times. If worse comes to worst, which I hope won't happen, get the hell out of here and contact Alliance brass to shut this place down. Clear?"

The soldiers nodded in accordance, and Shepard and her squad made their way to the other side of the building.

"I love breaking into buildings. The adrenaline rush, the excitement, the goodies inside, and doing it all for the greater good, of course," said Kasumi as she cracked open a security panel on the side of the wall and worked on a terminal.

Shepard could hear the sounds of biotic explosions happening on the other side of the building. "You about done there, Kasumi?" asked Shepard.

"If there's one thing good about structures built in the later half of the 21st century, they are much easier to hack...there. Their power's out & won't be going back online unless, well, I make it go back," she answered.

Three security guards burst through the rear entrance & were stunned to see Commander Shepard as the source of the disturbance. Before any of them could react, Shepard overloaded their shields while Kasumi threw a flashbang grenade, incapacitating the trio.

They ran inside, Kasumi sifting through the building's blueprints on her omni-tool.

"That was quite a powerful grenade," remarked Kahlee as they ran down a stair case.

"Working on the Crucible gave me the opportunity to upgrade my arsenal," replied Kasumi.

"I knew I recognized you from somewhere," said Kahlee.

As they opened the door to a lower level, several more guards noticed their presence and fired their weapons at them. Kasumi threw another flashbang grenade, while Shepard aimed her weapon and fired. She wasn't used to the Hornet's recoil & a few of her shots missed. She released a combat drone, reloaded, the adjusted her aim and posture to compensate for the recoil. The mercenaries dropped like flies.

"Kasumi, do we know where we're going?" Shepard asked.

"According to these blueprints, we're in an area marked as 'dormitories.' If the good doctor isn't here, he'll probably be in the lower levels," she answered.

"What is this place anyway?"

"This building started off as housing for the local university. The school ended up building a separate facility closer to the main campus, and sold the property," she answered

"I guess it explains the layout," said Shepard, thinking it strange that there was both a gymnasium and dormitories.

In the distance, Shepard could hear the sounds of biotic energy being released. There's no way the biotics team made it down here this fast…

Shepard, Kahlee, and Kasumi turned the corner to see Ensigns Rodriguez and Prangley fighting off a slew of mercenaries, though these were not as heavily armed. Prangley's arm was in a sling, apparently broken. He held up a biotic barrier while Rodriguez pushed the mercenaries away. Shepard and Kahlee shot the remaining mercenaries down before running to the students.

"It's good to see you're both okay," said Kahlee, clearly relieved.

Prangley took down his barrier and the two students approached them. "We've got to keep on fighting, this place has been infiltrated by Cerberus," said Rodriguez.

"What makes you so sure Cerberus is involved? I personally made sure they are no more," said Shepard.

"How do you think my arm got this way? I fought off a Cerberus agent!" answered Prangley.

"Yeah, she was ruthless. Even against the two of us, she almost had us beat," said Rodriguez. "Though, you wouldn't know it to look at her. She looked more like a movie star than anything else," she added.

Shepard immediately knew who the two students from Grissom Academy were talking about, but things still did not make sense. "Look, we don't have much time. You two need to get out of here before things get worse. Ms Sanders, do you think you can get these two out of here?"

"Of course I can," she replied.

"We can't go, we can still fight!" protested Prangley.

"I'm not arguing with any of you. We came here to get you two out and to shut this place down. I know you two are excellent fighters, but you'll be much better off out there than in here," Shepard said sternly. They begrudgingly accepted Shepard's orders and followed Kahlee up the staircase.

Once they were out of sight, Shepard looked over to Kasumi. "They were obviously talking about Miranda," she said.

"Yes, but there's no way she's still with Cerberus," said Kasumi.

"And there's no way this is a Cerberus facility."

"Quite right. They never were good at hiding themselves either. I mean, all their ships and soldiers wore the Cerberus insignia. Not very incognito if you ask me."

They ran to the other side of the dormitory wing, and were greeted by several more mercenaries. Kasumi threw another flash-bang grenade before cloaking herself. Shepard released a combat drone before firing at the crowd.

"Where do you think all these people come from? They're literally throwing themselves at us," exclaimed Kasumi.

"Who knows? I guess if you're a merc there isn't much to look forward to after a war other than more fighting," answered Shepard, as she released a cryo blast and watched as the enemy slowed down before Kasumi stuck him dead while cloaked.

Suddenly, Shepard and Kasumi felt themselves knocked onto their backs by a powerful biotic push. Shepard was dazed for a few seconds. She quickly stood up and took cover around the corner. She looked around and assumed Kasumi was still cloaked since she couldn't see her anywhere.

"Do you think you got all the fuckers?" asked a familiar voice.

"Seems that way but it looks like this man was cryogenically frozen before he was killed. Someone else is responsible for this," answered another.

Shepard peered over the wall to see Miranda knelt over the body of one of the mercenaries while Jack stood over her. Kasumi appeared behind Shepard, also leaning close to the wall. "Jack and Miranda behaving like civilized human beings with each other? What is this, Bizarro World?" whispered Kasumi.

Shepard let out a smirk before slowly emerging from the corner. "Hello you two."

Jack and Miranda looked up to see Shepard approaching them. The both let out small, relieved smiles.

"Well, Shepard, you decide to infiltrate this place all by yourself?" asked Jack.

"Actually-" Shepard said, as she looked to her side to "see" Kasumi cloaked. "I did come here with Kahlee Sanders and some members of your biotics division. Kahlee got Prangley and Rodriguez out of here safely," she said. Jack looked relieved to here the news

"We can't get out of here just yet," said Miranda.

"Yeah. You know the asshole running this place? He was one of the sick fucks that ran experiments on Pragia," added Jack.

"Oh, but Subject Zero, without my help, you wouldn't be the powerful biotic you are now," said a voice.

From the other side of the hall emerged a dark-skinned man with graying hair. He was flanked by several well-armed mercenaries, one of which Shepard recognized as the man that "greeted" them in Wrigley field. Holstered on his hip was her Carnifex hand cannon. In his arms he held a Mattock heavy rifle.

"Fuck you!" was all Jack could respond.

"Now, that's no way to talk to the only person you can ever call a 'father.' You were certainly a daughter to me. One of many of course…but you were the only one I would ever deem a success," said the man as he activated something on his omni-tool. Jack staggered to her knees and let out a wail of pain.

Miranda set up a barrier, separating Shepard and her group from the mercenaries. "S-stay back," she said faintly.

"You won't get away with all the sick things you've done," said Shepard.

"You're deluding yourself if you think I'm afraid of a Council Spectre. The Illusive Man couldn't find me. What makes you think you can stop me?" he asked smugly.

Suddenly, a bright flash and a loud bang enveloped the group. The mercenaries scattered, some brought to their knees from the force of the explosion, others blindly waving their arms and firing their weapons.

"Get them!" said the doctor before falling backwards. He then let out a yelp of pain as Kasumi attacked him from behind and swiped his omni-tool from his wrist. Not exactly my smoothest pull, she thought.

Miranda kept her barrier up as Shepard released a combat drone. Shepard fired at bodies she could see, though she was also taken by surprise by Kasumi's attack.

Kasumi re-appeared next to Shepard with a look of satisfaction on her face. She worked through the omni-tool and her satisfaction turned to shock.

"What is it?" Shepard asked, in-between reloads of her pistol.

"This man…is a certifiable monster."

# # #

Apparently, Bioware released their version of the extended cut. I haven't gotten around to playing it yet, but I do look forward to seeing how it is. I've been avoiding internet message boards like crazy. It's been a busy month for me. R+R, guys.