Trust
"And as you saw, General, the ship was destroyed." Anna said firmly to the holo of the Grineer general who was all but spitting at her. "The weapon has been negated. Our mission was accomplished."
"And you are nowhere to be found." General Sargas Ruk was not a happy Grineer. "The Queens will not be pleased."
"You might be surprised." Anna said with a shrug. "I usually am when dealing with them. The Queens are mercurial and dangerous, but they are not stupid. I did get a chance to look at the targeting parameters and yes, it would have targeted anyone and everyone who was vocal about destroying the Tenno. Millions would have perished, guilty and innocent alike." She frowned a little. "I have my own disagreements with the Tenno, but even I know that even the worst of them would not do such a thing lightly. Whoever is responsible for that horror is long dead. The ship is destroyed and..." Her face turned sly. "I am sorry I didn't stick around so you could kill me. But to be honest? The Queens see me as a useful tool. They would likely not be pleased if you did so, and such would not end well for you. The threat is negated and you won a victory. I don't see the downside for you in this outcome."
"Gah!" The General cut the connection and Anna smiled as she turned to the others.
The small ship seemed cramped with Anna, Lynn, Hadi, Anahera and Tali in it, even if only Anna and Anahera were corporeal.
"And you say 'I' have a temper." Lynn quipped as she hugged Hadi close to herself. He hugged her back.
"You do." Anna replied. "So do I. Never say that the Grineer do not come by their anger honestly, Lynn. They were abused for a very long time. Their rage is genetic now, built into their DNA. When they were given the chance at freedom, they grabbed it. As slaves have throughout history, their revenge on their brutal taskmasters was bloody. Yes, they are dangerous and violent but they are not all evil any more than all Tenno are good."
"I do have a lot to learn." Lynn said sadly as she turned to where Anahera stood beside Tali. Both looked weak. "Are you all right?" That was to both.
Tali looked at Anahera and both shook their heads.
"The AI fragment that you installed in this ship is sufficient to keep us both going, but all the others…They are lost." Anahera said sadly. "I was to be their protector. I failed."
"You know he planned for that." Tali said quietly and Anahera nodded. "He planned for you to wake and take control of me, connect me to the AI and use me to take revenge on whoever had attacked."
"Yes." Anahera sighed deeply. "I… Once I called him 'Friend', 'Teacher', 'Master'. Now? I can only call him an enemy."
"No." Lynn said quickly enough that everyone looked at her. "Do not give Hayden that kind of power over you. He is a manipulative piece of-" She paused, looked at Hadi who grinned at her and then she continued. "-...of garbage." Everyone snickered at her expression. "But those who follow him are not all enemies. Not even Nikis." Anna's face was set, but Lynn continued. "You know he could have done far worse to you, Anna."
"Yes." Anna said very quietly. "But I will neither forgive nor forget. My duty was to Hadi and he tried to keep me from my duty."
"He failed." Lynn hugged Hadi again and the boy snuggled close to her. "That said, from what I know about you spetsnatz, you know all about dirty jobs, Anna." Anna nodded slowly and forced herself to relax. "I am not excusing what he did. To you or to Hadi, but he has always been focused on his own duty. Nearly to the exclusion of everything else. He has more demons than you or I can possibly imagine. I am not asking you to forgive him. I am asking you not to let him have power over you. You are better than that."
"Sometimes." Anna shrugged. "Are we there yet?" She asked, a sly look on her face. Lynn's felt her incorporeal face heat and the shade shook her head as the shade tried not to sputter.
"You are bad, Colonel!" Even now, Lynn could not shake the grief that had hit her when they had told her that Samuel was gone for good. "But for what is worth? Thank you." She smiled at Hadi and Tali and they smiled back. Tali, a bit hesitantly, but Hadi's smile was full and genuine. "Through the fires of hell, through war and death and horror almost beyond imagining, you did your duty. You saved my son and daughter."
"I had help." Anna said mildly as Nina Tal entered the room behind her, Karen at her side. Karen's face was stricken and Anna nodded. "It is not your fault, Karen." The Colonel reassured her. "Such ops are never clean."
"I did what I had to. Hadi needed help and I gave it. I have no regrets about that." Karen said weakly. "But being cast out out of the clan hurts almost as badly as my adopted father shooting me did." Lynn sighed deeply and nodded.
"My friends, I am afraid it is only going to get worse." The former acolyte of Hayden Tenno said with a frown. She shook her head. "That said. Colonel? General? Was there an option?"
"We have consulted. It has never been done." Anna frowned in thought as Karen took up station behind Lynn who frowned at her. Hadi beckoned her closer and Karen shrugged. She knew better than to argue with both of them. She stepped up the pair, smiling at the energy boy. "General?"
"It was unheard of for a Tenno to become a Marine." Tali smiled a bit. "From what I understand and have seen, you are a damn good one, Karen. They won't cast you out. They won't dare." She shook her head. "Not after the Empress personally yelled at the sergeant in front of them all. I have known a few Emperors and Empresses. Eliza has a temper to match any of them. Impressive vocabulary too." She smirked at Karen's expression.
"She shouldn't have done that. She shouldn't have dressed him down in public." Karen said weakly. "I… I disobeyed orders."
"You followed procedure." Tali snapped in command voice and Karen stiffened instinctively. "You heard Hadi crying and you did as you should have." Karen was shaking her head but Tali was having none of it. When she spoke again, it wasn't to Karen. "You were right. She is being stupid."
A golden hologram appeared in the middle of the room. Eliza was wearing a nightgown and not wearing her crown. She was wearing a disgusted look. Karen opened her mouth, but Eliza beat her to speech.
"I am not surprised." The Empress said with a smile that was more than a bit grim. "What just happened would have hurt anyone, let alone you, Karen. You have been through hell several times. You have emerged stronger for it each time but such things always leave scars. That said..." She glared at Karen who stiffened to attention. "You did as you were ordered to do. You guarded the vault. When Hadi woke up, you followed procedure and called me. I spoke to him and when you found out what was happening, you stepped up. You did not hesitate. You offered yourself, your very existence to a being who you did not know. You saved Talia's son and daughter." Karen opened her mouth, but Eliza speared her with a finger. "Do not argue with me, First Lieutenant."
Karen's eyes bulged. That was two steps above Karen's rank. The Empress had every right to do such things but still… The Marines handed promotion in their ranks! Oh, there would be serious upset in the Marine ranks if even the Empress stepped on protocol so blatantly.
Karen swallowed and when she managed. "I, um… I am honored, Empress, but… I am not qualified to be an officer." Eliza crossed her arms and her face set. "Uh..."
"Says who?" The Empress demanded, her face and tone cold.
"Uh..." Karen looked for support around the compartment, but everyone looked away. She swallowed hard. "Empress…" She slumped. "I don't feel worthy of such."
"That means you are." Tali said with a nod when Karen looked at her. "Any who want such responsibility are insane or idiotic. The job of a Marine officer sucks. No one likes it. There are those who are good at it and those are not. From what everyone has said, you are." Eliza nodded.
"I know better than to argue with Generals and Empresses." Karen said sadly. "And I have nowhere else to go. They took my Liset." Lynn hissed, but Karen just shook her head "It was clan property, not mine. What little I have that was mine, I offer, Lynn. Mainly my self, my warframe and weapons." She nodded to the shade.
"Oh, don't worry, Lieutenant." Eliza smiled and while it was cold, bit was also a bit mocking? "You are going to be very busy and will be making lots of funds to restock. I did look over precedents, General and it has never been done." Tali nodded, but Eliza wasn't done. "That said, there is nothing in the Tenno Code that forbids it or in any of the law archives that I have perused. Feel free. There is another who wishes to join as well. Another who burnt his bridges fairly thoroughly."
"We will need to take it slow." Tali said after a moment's thought. "We are different. We are not Tenno nor are we Marines. We act in ways that both will find abhorrent. We work in the shadows and we consort with scum and villainy. The mission always comes first but in the end? We need to remember what we fight for or we will become what we fight. That was the fate of far too many who fought in the shadows throughout history."
"I thought spetsnatz had to be-" Karen paused, looking at Nina Tal who smiled just a little. "Ah, you know what? Forget I said that." Her tone was so sour that everyone smiled.
"Said what?" Anna, Nina Tal and Tali chorused matching grins.
"Jokes aside, I will have a big target pained on me as far as any Tenno are concerned." Karen said soberly.
"Not all." Eliza growled. "The Royal Guard have all voiced their support for you. If you wish to join their ranks, you have but to ask." Karen's eyes bulged again and she slowly shook her head.
"I think I can do more here, Empress." Karen said with a sigh. "I want things to be as they were, but change is inevitable, isn't it?"
"Yes." Eliza smiled at Karen. "Good luck, Lieutenant." Her smile turned impish. "Try to keep Hadi out of trouble? Please?"
"Hey, as a Marine, Karen may consider the impossible her stock in trade, but she is a Marine, not a goddess. There are limits." Lynn quipped as Hadi looked rebellious. Then the boy shook his head.
"No, she isn't a deity." Hadi said with a soft, sad smile as he looked at Karen, his eyes glistening. "But she is my hero." Eliza smiled at him and her holo vanished.
"I hope not to disappoint you, Hadi." Karen smiled back, her own face easing. "What do I do?" She asked Anna. "I mean… Do I swear an oath or what?"
"There are formalities, training and such, but you will pass any of that with ease after training and fighting as a Tenno." Anna said with a nod. "We do not use warframes, but our armor is similar to the first ones. Tali saw to that." Tali nodded, her face grim.
"Not quite as good, but a close as I could make it. An actual warframe won't be that different in practice. We much prefer not to go in guns blazing." Tali said with a sigh. "And if there is another Tenno who has lost his way and wishes to aid us or join us, we will need to vet him, but we need more people with Helen gone."
"Will we know what happens to her?" Hadi asked. "She was nice."
"She won't remember us, Hadi." Anna said with a sigh. "I was gentle, but I had to do it."
"Too many secrets." Hadi said sadly. "Too many things that no one can know."
A console beeped nearby and Anahera spun to look at it. When she turned back. Her face was set. "We are being hailed. A Tenno assault craft is requesting permission to dock."
"Who?" Karen, Lynn and Anna all spoke in unison. Karen was visibly tense.
"He says his name is Sun." Anahera said and stiffened as Anna, Hadi, Lynn and Karen all stiffened. Nina Tal was impassive, but was that a smile that crossed her face?
"How did he find us?" Karen demanded, her hand going to her hip where a pistol lay in its holster. "I… I can't..." She swallowed hard. "I have no chance against him even if I was in a warframe."
"Karen, it is okay." Anna moved to flank her and Nina Tal did as well, a moment later. "You are one of us now. We protect our own. Not always the way you might think, but only an idiot takes us lightly." Everyone nodded to that. "He won't touch you."
"Let him board." Lynn said when everyone looked at her. "We will hear what he has to say."
No one moved or relaxed as a soft 'thunk' heralded the docking of the smaller Tenno craft to the remnants of the Artemis. A moment later, a white Loki warframe stepped into the main chamber through the airlock. That wasn't a Prime! Sun nodded to all of them, but faced Lynn.
"Lynn. I am Sun." He said by way of introduction. "Brother to sister, yours in life and death." He crossed his arms and bowed his head as everyone stilled. Everyone but Nina Tal!
"They told me what you did." Lynn said quietly. "You angered Rachel fairly thoroughly."
"I did." Sun shrugged a little. "Hurt like hell, but worth it." He bowed to Hadi. "Are you well, Hadi?" He asked.
"I am, Sun, thank you." Hadi bowed back. "Sun..." Hadi said weakly. "You came when I screamed for help. You helped us, but… You are a Grandmaster Tenno."
"Was." Sun replied and everyone stilled. He shrugged slightly. "I knew as soon as I saw her there that Rachel would not be happy. As the leader of the First, she is the only being who could strip me of my rank. She did."
"For that?" Hadi demanded, his voice turning shrill. "For saving me and Karen? For..." He staggered as Sun nodded. "I..." He was clearly fighting not to cry and Lynn pulled him close. "Why?"
"She has never liked me or what I do." Sun replied evenly. "Like the spetsnatz, I walk in the shadows. I have done it for a long, long time and I was very good at it, but as they know, it eats away at your soul." Anna and Tali both nodded. "They will pick someone else to lead intelligence. I resigned as soon as you called for help, Hadi."
"How can resign from that?" Karen blurted out and then clamped her mouth shut. "I… I don't think I want to know."
"It is simple." Was Sun amused? "You tell Mag to 'fuck off'."
"Language!" Lynn snapped and Sun jerked and then bowed to her and then once to Hadi who snickered but nodded. "Mag?" She demanded, incredulous.
"Those were the exact words she told us to use. She was the First head of Tenno Intelligence." Sun shrugged. "She didn't want people who didn't want to be there. It was and is a very nasty job. You won't trust me, and I know that, but I hope to earn trust someday. I find myself at loose ends. For so long, my job defined me. I had to be pragmatic. I had to be evil on any number of occasions and the balance in my soul is skewed. What is left of my family is as safe as they can be, and I want to be who I once was again." He bowed to Tali. "A simple warrior."
"I don't think anything about you is simple, Sun." Tali said after a moment. "You offer your skills?" She asked slowly. Sun nodded.
"My self, my soul, my skills, all that I am." Sun replied. "I discarded my Prime warframe and stand ready to discard this one."
"I just want to know one thing." Anahera said with a growl. 'How did you find us?" She demanded. "Our cloak is just as good as any contemporary Tenno ship's."
"Ask the Colonel." Sun replied as he took up a position of parade rest in front of Lynn who looked at Anna. Anna's face was a study as she looked from Sun to Nina Tal and back. Nina Tal looked innocent. It didn't look very convincing on a Grineer face.
"You are very different from most Grineer. For more intelligent and self-reliant that any Ballista I ever dealt with." Anna said slowly. Nina Tal nodded. "And..."
"You command me now, Colonel." Nina Tal said with a smile. "I can tell you if you so wish. There was not time before. When I took the oath, I meant it. You did save me from being reclaimed. I am Grineer, that will not change. But my loyalty is now to you and the spetsnatz and you know it." Anna nodded slowly, relaxing.
"How did Hadi call you." Lynn demanded suddenly. "He wouldn't know who you are! What you were!"
"I was watching." Sun replied. "I knew that if I interfered, things would get bad, but when Hadi cried for help and Nina Tal's implants picked it up, amplified it and sent it to me, I found I didn't care what anyone else thought anymore. My brother needed me. I came."
"Your implants seemed to be normal Grineer ones." Anna said softly. Nina Tal nodded. "But they were not, were they?" The Grineer shook her head. "How long have you been a deep cover operative for Intelligence?"
"Almost four years." Sun replied for Nina Tal who smiled thanks at him. "She doesn't like talking about what happened to her and I don't blame her. The fire team she was part of was captured by a fairly nasty Orokin scientist scum. Of them she is the only survivor and she spent a great deal of time as a prisoner of the Tenno. Then she went to Intelligence, offered her services as a way to stick it to the Queens."
"And now?" Anna asked.
"Now I serve you." Nina Tal's tone was flat. "This is a far better use of my skills. You know me now, Anna. On a deeper level than anyone but Brianna ever touched. Will I betray you?" She asked.
"No." Anna said softly. "And him?" She nodded to Sun.
"I trust him about as far as I can throw this ship." Nina Tal said with a shrug and several people laughed.
"Smart spetsnatz." Far from offended, Sun seemed pleased. "I may not be able to serve as spetsnatz, but I bet you could use some sneaky chaotic backup on occasion and I do know how to keep my mouth shut. For what it is worth though? What they did was wrong. What Hayden did was wrong. I may be a snake. I may be twisty, turn-y, evil, all of that. But I refuse to become what I fight."
Lynn looked at Tali who shrugged and then smiled. "I have seen and recruited worse."
"I do not want to know." Lynn said sternly and Tali nodded. Lynn turned back to Sun and nodded to him. "Sister to brother, yours in life and death. Trust will not happen, not soon if ever, but we have a job to do."
"Command me, Sister." Sun said as he stepped back to one wall.
"The Oracles have seen a mess developing on Venus. They only say it looks to be bad." Lynn said and looked at Sun. "Can you say anything?"
"Venus has been a backwater for some time. Nef Anyo's madness to rebuild any and all Orokin tech he can has been contagious and many Corpus are flocking there with the limited reopening of the rail network." Sun sounded thoughtful. "I have heard muted rumbles of unrest from a place called Fortuna. It is some kind of mining outpost and that is all I know about it."
"Then let's say we find out more?" Lynn replied. Anahera nodded, turned to a console and the ship rumbled as its powerful engines kicked to life. "I trust this will be interesting at the very least."
"That at least, I think we can all trust." Karen smiled as Hadi started to chuckle.