Author's Note: YES! I AM POSTING! HE CAME BACK FROM THE TRIP, THE BOOGER! I MISSED THIS!
Next thing she knew, Agatha was sitting on a chair in small, dirty, not-so-white-anymore, square room, with a single light hanging over her head. Her hands and legs were tied behind her, but not with rope. She'd had untied it by now. It seemed like a mechanical lock, probably one of those highly expensive ones, and by the feel of it, opened by remote. She had no idea how to get out of those. She looked down on herself, she wasn't cut or bruised, and she actually had on something decent, as for her mental state…
"Agatha Marline Shepard. Born in Mindior. Joined the Alliance at age 18. Ex-Alliance number 0974274083. I am Alliance no more, only have the Normandy. The year is -. I died. Cerberus brought me back. I am preparing for the Reapers."
…was apparently fine. As ludicrous as some of the ideas and concepts thrown in were, it all coordinated with her mind. She tried with her most recent memories. They were chasing after he clone, she and Vega. They reached an area where the alleyway divided in two, and it would have been for her an easy escape had Kaidan and Thane not intercepted her. She talked with the clone, got her to lower her weapon. And then, she smirked. Agatha had been spooked by it, and was about to figure out what the woman found so convenient when- nothing. There was nothing after that.
"Finished with the sanity check?" Her voice startled her, but it wasn't hers. Agatha looked up, to see an openly smug version of herself leaning against the door, a door that had to be opened for the woman to come in. She should have noticed that, typically she did. What was on with her? Finally, she identified the grogginess that could be associated with nothing but a heavy drug. She opened her eyes again, eyes she hadn't authorized to close, to see the clone sitting cross-legged down on the floor, hands clasped before her, eyes shining, exited. She looked like a little girl. Agatha didn't register her sitting down, she shook her head. It was like she could do only one thing at a time. She was either in her head, or alert, but considering her current situation and her lack of mobility, up in her head was the best option.
"Finished." Agatha answered, remembering she'd been asked a question, and focused on the woman.
"Awesome, 'cause I came down here to talk for a bit." Came down here, she said. They were on a basement or lower levels if they still were within a station. They… they!
"Where's the rest of my squad?!"
"Oh, they are fine. Just now talked with Alenko."
Agatha exhaled throw her nose, eyes closed. The clone wouldn't lie about that, if she did, she'd keep it quick. The comment about Kaidan was her confirmation.
"He's cute, isn't he?"
Agatha deliberately took her time opening her eyes. The clone was up to something.
"I found him handsome, so you must have too... Ever… acted on it?"
Yelling "that's none of your business!" was tempting, and she almost did, but it was the equivalent of revealing something was going on. Why the clone wanted to know didn't matter, giving her any information she wanted was a bad idea. She brushed off the topic as unimportant. "Came down here to talk for a bit?"
The clone kept the smile on, but even in her state, though it was slowly wearing off, Agatha could recognize the chinks in her poker face. The woman didn't have the practice she had. She was impatient, and now, a bit angry. "Yep." Her tone was much better, lighthearted, nice, without a care for the world, but the response itself was too curt, it didn't match the drawn out poised ones.
"Then I have a deal for you." She had? Yes, yes she did. "We talk, but you must answer my questions, truthfully."
She shrugged. "Sure, I have no problem with that. There's not much you can do, anyway." The girl seriously lacked the experience for this. She should make it hard. There was no getting friendly while she had Agatha tied up. Still, she did hold the advantage. She needn't be honest in all the questions. But Agatha knew which ones to ask.
"What happened?"
Clone's Point Of View
I cached my breath against the chair, looking through the window into space. That was close, they almost hit the ship. I smiled; it was a good thing that they thought it necessary for me to know how to fly. They never asked Shepard if she did… so just in case, they taught me. They could always say I learned. Cerberus fuckers, they didn't tear me apart for her, and when they can't use her anymore, they turned to me, so I could take her place. But I wasn't her, so they could… they could…
I was going through the data of the Omega 4 relay. They would later show the human reaper. But now? I was studying. Shepard, or myself, had saved everyone from the Suicide Mission, except a couple of engineers. As always, envy seeped into my veins. I couldn't help it. I could have done the same, and here I was, being treated like a child. There was no true difference between her and me, other than various years.
"Jane!" I turned from the terminal at the call of my name… or lack thereof. "I have incredible news!" It was Nialy, a redhead, a scientist, and so far, my best friend. She was the less inclined to think me a poor, traumatized, worthless being. And while she could be a bit too enthusiastic, it was forgivable. Like right now, there wouldn't be good news until they told me it was time to take the life I deserved, and I had come to terms with that. I raised an eyebrow at her. "Your battlefield training begins in two weeks!"
Actually, that one was good. "You're serious?!" Battle training meant I was entering the final stage of the program.
"I am!" I couldn't help it, I hugged her. I hugged her incredibly petite frame, she needed to eat something. "Yes, you- you just-" Her voice broke. I pulled her from the hug. That smile was fake.
"What is it, Nialy?"
"I- I am just so proud of you."
"Bull."
"I'll… miss you! Yes, I'll miss you, that's… all." Something was off, but all I could do at the moment was comfort her.
"I'll keep in touch, you know that."
She looked up, then back down at my face. Was she trying not to cry? "I know." She turned around, and looked at something in the far desk. She was avoiding something, but if I didn't know what, I couldn't help her. I decided to ask Joseph later. "You'll need to be operated." And she was going to avoid with work. I could only go along with it for now, give her time.
"Ok. Why?"
"Shepard has cybernetics. If we are to fool people, we'll need to give you some enhancements."
"And what are you looking at, the plan?" She didn't answer. "Nialy?" She had stopped moving, and she was looking down at something. "Nia?"
"Why did they have to do this?" She murmured. "Everything was going so well. Why make me do this?"
"What are you…?"
She turned, gun in hand. On instinct, I crouched, but the sights didn't follow me, she shot at the spot she'd been looking at before. Something fell. She walked towards the door, opened her omni-tool, and began doing god knows what.
"What the heck, Nia?!" Again, she didn't answer. I looked the place she shot, on the roof. My gaze fell, and I saw it, a camera. I didn't know there was a camera.
"Jane." A hand on my arm turned me around, and the other shoved a gun at me. "Listen to me, they want to implant you with a control chip."
"A control chip?!"
"Yes."
"Then we need to-"
"I have a plan. Turn that desk over, get behind it."
"And you?"
"I'll be right behind you."
I turned that desk over, and hid. "C'mon, Nia. We need the cover."
She walked over. "Listen, there is a ship ready at dock 20." I nodded, the door's lock began pulsing.
"Nia, the door."
"You get out, and turn right. Go past the offices, and open the farthest door. Shoot at anyone you come across. Use this." She thrust her key-card at me, with another one. "In case it gets blocked."
"Nialy, they are getting in any second."
"Don't look back."
"We'll go together, stop with the instructions, I don't need them!"
"Don't take the elevator, shoot its camera, and activate it for the upmost level. But use the emergency stairs, and go one floor down."
"Nialy!" The door opened, she shoved my head down, and she ran towards them. I got up anyway, prepared to shoot, and then I saw it. She opened her coat, and pulled from a cord. A bomb. I hid.
Author's note: PLOT TWIST! :D This story was being so lineal, man...