Chapter 25

Eldfell-Ashland Energy Corporate District, Vulpes, the planet Sanctum

Miranda stormed out from the tavern's back storeroom and into Sanctum's cold, bleak landscape. The skies were overcast, the color of iron, and the day's light was failing fast as night steadily overcame the settlement.

Striding deliberately across the wide boulevard that bisected the heart of the settlement's industrial and trade district, Miranda's boots struck the hardpack road surface with emphasis as she chased after Zaeed Massani. Kasumi had fallen in at her side, gliding along in her effortless fashion.

Sanctum was an unforgiving, frozen world that afforded only a narrow strip of inhabitable land along the planet's equator. It was in this region that the capital, Vulpes, was located.

Unlike the typical grid pattern of most human-influenced colonial settlements, the buildings of Vulpes were laid out in a looping, irregular fashion to minimize the effects of the extreme conditions. Harsh, biting winds blew constantly from beyond a jagged range of snowcapped mountains to the east, sweeping across the miles of tundra that encircled the mining-focused colony. To endure the brutal climate, the structures were all over-engineered, looking more like giant bunkers with rounded edges, minimal windows, and outer walls as much as a meter and a half thick.

Bracing against the chill, the two women trudged after the grizzled mercenary who had appeared within the bar so unexpectedly. The air was clean and dry, but bitterly cold. Each breath Miranda drew in felt like tiny daggers sliding down her throat. She zipped her heavy white coat up over her chest and reached back to pull the thick, synthetic fur-lined hood over her head, cinching it close around her neckline. In the distance, beyond the eastern mountain range, an ominous storm system appeared to be moving rapidly toward the settlement.

Overhead, a flight of two fast moving shuttles suddenly swooped in low across the overcast sky. They were commercial variants of the venerable Kodiak platform and bore the insignia of the Eldfell-Ashland Energy Corporation. Miranda eyed them warily until they disappeared behind the massive collection of buildings that comprised the hub of the corporate administrative campus.

Turning back, she saw Zaeed ambling toward a large maintenance garage farther up the street. The building appeared to be abandoned and clearly neglected after battling the planet's climate for what looked like decades. Miranda watched as he approached a heavy reinforced door, punched in a rapid series of commands on the adjacent security panel, and then disappeared inside.

Miranda and Kasumi moved closer to the open entryway and exchanged a quick, suspicious glance. They both then retrieved their weapons from under their coats, and swung hip to hip into the dark interior of the building.

"I told you, you don't need those," Zaeed's gravelly voice greeted them through the gloom. "Now shut the goddamn door. It's colder than a fucking Ice Varren's balls out there."

Miranda kept her heavy pistol at the ready for another few seconds, scanning the interior of the building, allowing her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting, before finally holstering her weapon. Next to her, Kasumi followed suit before casually wandering off to the side to inspect their new surroundings.

A number of partially dissembled vehicles and other heavy equipment littered the large, open garage. Only a handful of weak, orange colored work lights illuminated the interior and the whole space smelled like industrial grade lubricants and ancient fossil fuel-based chemicals.

Toward the back of the room, Zaeed threw himself into a rickety-looking swivel chair, leaned back, and propped his heavy boots on top of a nearby desk. Pushing back the hood of his coat, he reached into one of the drawers and retrieved a large glass bottle of authentic, non-synthetic whiskey.

"Real nice place you've got here, Zaeed," Kasumi said. "I hope your rent's cheap."

"It suits me fine, Goto."

"That it does," she muttered under her breath, casting her eyes around the filthy workshop.

The exterior door then slid shut with a harsh metallic clang that boomed within the garage. Miranda thundered past her partner and rounded on the mercenary. "What the bloody hell was that about back there, Massani?" she shouted. "What do you know? Why are you here?"

Zaeed gave a disinterested grunt as he pulled the thermal gloves from his hands and thumbed the cap off the bottle. "Still the uptight prickly sort I see, Lawson. I was afraid that after shacking up with Shepard you might thaw out a bit," he said before throwing back a long swig of alcohol. "It's comforting to know some things never change."

Kasumi could see Miranda was ready to pop and quickly stepped forward. "Who was waiting for us outside that bar, Zaeed? How'd we get blown?"

"My old pals," Zaeed said. "Some of the better operators from the Spec Ops branch of the Blue Suns."

Miranda and Kasumi shared another brief, quizzical look.

"The Blue Suns wouldn't move on us without a contract. Who's paying them?" Miranda demanded.

Zaeed set the bottle back down onto the desk and looked up to meet Miranda's intense gaze. "The Suns don't actually give two shits about you. Its baby sister they're after. You're just the inconvenient bitch standing in their way."

Miranda felt her stomach tighten. "My father."

"Bingo, sweetheart. After those Eclipse pukes screwed the pooch on Illium, daddy Lawson contracted with the Suns. Didn't even bother with the typical intermediaries and went straight to Vido." Zaeed paused to extract a battered-looking, real tobacco cigar from his coat pocket and thrust it between his teeth. "I understand the contract was extremely lucrative."

The news didn't exactly shock Miranda. From the moment she'd stolen her sister away nearly two decades ago, she'd known her father would never stop pursuing them. The man was relentless. And after just barely managing to keep Oriana from his grasp on Illium, she fully expected him to regroup and intensify the effort to re-claim his prized daughter. It was why Liara's aid had been so critical in the wake of her abrupt departure from Cerberus. With the Illusive Man's assurances of protection gone, there would have been little else to shield her sister from Henry Lawson's ambitions.

More recently, after assuming personal charge of Oriana and bringing her into Anita Goyle's operation on the Citadel, Miranda had been meticulous in developing security measures designed to conceal her sister's identity and presence on the station. All the while, she knew full well that anyone with sufficient motivation and resources would eventually discover her whereabouts.

But Miranda hadn't expected an abduction attempt to come on a remote, desolate world like Sanctum. Now, she kicked herself for failing to foresee it, for letting her guard down, and underestimating the lengths to which her father would go to satisfy his pride.

And it was that unrivaled hubris, she had come to realize, that was at the heart of his stubborn pursuit of Oriana. Truthfully, neither she nor her younger sister was irreplaceable to the man. Miranda knew he still possessed the considerable means to recreate the process he'd used to birth both herself and her younger sister. In fact, it was very likely that he had produced several more candidates to carry on his family legacy during the intervening years. She often wondered how many of these other offspring he may have disposed of since losing his prized daughters.

Miranda gave an involuntary shudder at the thought. If Henry had indeed continued the program that had brought her and Oriana into the world, he was keeping the results well out of the public eye. "My father's association with your former colleagues is no surprise," she said, glaring at Zaeed. "But that doesn't explain why Santiago is dealing with Cerberus here on Sanctum."

"Right, the Kenson woman."

Kasumi shot Miranda a quick glance before taking a half step closer to the man. "You're very well informed, Zaeed."

Zaeed smirked, pushed away from the desk, and rose back to his feet. "I've got someone on the inside, close to Vido," he said and then stalked across the room to an oversized, dented equipment container. He punched in a code on the cracked keypad touchscreen and extracted a data tablet from one of the lockers. "The Suns had a team tracking your crew on the Citadel, waiting for an opening to bag the girl. They were getting close to making a move when you took off for Erinle and blew their shot. After the team lost your trail, Vido reported in to Lawson."

"And my father went to the Illusive Man," Miranda said quietly.

Zaeed grunted his agreement and sat back down in the chair heavily. "Dangled Kenson, knew you'd only bite for something really juicy," he said and tossed the datapad to Miranda.

Miranda kept her gaze fixed on Zaeed for another moment before glancing down at the tablet in her hands and beginning to rapidly scroll through what looked like weeks of collected surveillance. "You believe the Cerberus lab here is authentic?" she said, her eyes still locked on the intel.

"It's real alright. Your old boss knows you'd sniff out a phony setup. My guy tells me it's been active on some project for months now. The Suns have been auxiliary security for the whole settlement for more than a year and have an exclusive deal in place with the Cerberus team."

"Yes, I see…" Miranda said, trailing off as she studied Zaeed's information further.

Kasumi stepped closer and peered over Miranda's shoulder, gazing down at the datapad. "So… Kenson's not involved with this lab though?"

"Nah. From what I can piece together, she's been working some kind of side project that spans multiple facilities scattered throughout the quadrant. But the old woman's just showing her face here to draw the Lawson's' out into the open."

"The Illusive Man has been seeking a closer partnership with my father's business empire for years," Miranda said. "Securing Oriana for him certainly makes sense as a means to improve that relationship." She was doing her best to remain stone-faced, but inside she was seething, furious with herself for allowing them to be exposed, alone on this frigid colony world.

"Yeah, win-win for everyone," Zaeed growled. "Pop's gets his golden child back and the Illusive Man eliminates a particularly nasty thorn in his side. Vido planned to grab you first as a hostage, force little sis down from orbit, and then kill you. They probably just take your head off straight away, Goto," he said, glancing over at Kasumi, and shrugged. "Sorry."

Kasumi grinned scornfully. "No one appreciates my value anymore."

Miranda cracked the faintest of smiles. "You haven't explained why you're helping us Zaeed. And don't tell me you're simply here to look out for old friends. What's your angle? What do you want?"

Zaeed smiled broadly, showing his crooked and stained teeth clenched around his cigar. "The same thing I've always wanted, Lawson—Vido's head on a spike. And you two can help me make that happen."

Kasumi let out a pained groan and shook her head. "Oh boy…"

"We're not interested in helping you resolve your absurd feud, Massani. We have no time for grudges or other petty business."

"Petty!" Zaeed spat, jumping up from his chair and taking a step toward Miranda. "Don't talk to me about goddamn petty. I have a debt that needs paying. Your fucking boyfriend kept me from it before. I'm not letting that happen again."

"Wrong," Miranda said, crossing her arms in front of her and stubbornly holding her ground against the big man. "That was your own incompetence. John simply refused to allow a refinery full of innocents burn while you chased after your blood lust."

Zaeed gave a derisive laugh. "Yeah, Shepard's got a lovely moral center. Gets in the way. Not like me. Not like you, Lawson." He paused to take another swig of the whiskey bottle still clutched in one hand. "You want Kenson. I can see it burning away in those pretty blue eyes of yours. I know what happened in Bahak. I know what they did to you afterward."

Miranda stood rigid, caught between her urge to lash out at the mercenary and the darkness that swept over her at the memory of her time in that Alliance black site. But Zaeed was right on one account. She did want Kenson—badly. From the moment she saw the woman's face on Liara's surveillance vid, she was consumed with a desire to capture the woman. The Cerberus double-agent was at the core of the plot that had ensnared her, Shepard and the rest of the Normandy's crew. She needed answers—and pay back. Was I blinded by that impulse to reach the woman? She suddenly wondered. The Illusive Man played me well and my carelessness has put Oriana and the others in terrible danger.

Zaeed nodded slowly, eyeing Miranda and sensing her thoughts. "She's still planetside, Lawson, inside that lab facility with Vido," he said and shrugged. "Along with a full platoon of Blue Suns death dealers and another half dozen Cerberus operators that are here for the sole purpose of identifying your corpse." He then turned and walked back to the desk, retrieved two dirty-looking glasses from another drawer, and filled them with whiskey. "You're sure as shit not going to call baby sis and the Krios kid down from orbit to help, so you need me to get this done."

Miranda narrowed her gaze on the man she'd never fully trusted. "Kasumi and I will manage just fine."

"Look, they knew you were here the second your platform heels hit the tundra. And after today, they'll know you've gotten wise to their plan. They're gonna stop waiting for you to come to them and turn aggressive. You'll have to move fast if you stand a chance of grabbing Kenson before they come at you hard. You'll need my help for that," he said and gave a satisfied grin. "You bet your sweet ass you'll need my help, Lawson."

Miranda was unmoved and ignored Zaeed's leering. But the man was right again: There was no scenario that she would entertain that involved recalling Oriana down to the planet and away from the security of the Casandra. With the ship's superior speed and stealth characteristics, they could easily escape any boarding attempt Cerberus or the Blue Suns might attempt. On the surface was another matter entirely. They were exposed down here, far out along the frontier, and without any semblance of backup.

Oriana had come a long way over the last several months. She'd gained experience and honed skills that would serve her well for the rest of her life. But Sanctum was the Wild West; a lawless world that could quickly swallow up an unwary traveler or even the colonists that called this bleak world home. Outside of the corporate security contractors that ensured their employers' properties and interests were looked after, there was little law and order presence on the frozen planet.

Then Miranda caught the subtle, knowing look that Kasumi was shooting her way. "I need Kenson alive, Zaeed," she finally said, her tone absolute.

"And I need Vido dead. He's not slipping past me again," he said before walking over to Miranda and Kasumi and handing them both a glass. "Let's have a drink to a renewed partnership, eh?"

Miranda eyed the drink in her hand with barely masked revulsion. "You trust this source of yours?"

"Fuck no. But he's motivated to put Vido down."

"Motivated by what?"

"Ambition."

Less than two hours later, Miranda, Kasumi and Zaeed were moving along a narrow subterranean maintenance tunnel, deep below the surface of Vulpes, slowly advancing toward a rendezvous with their Blue Suns informant.

Zaeed's man on the inside, so he told Miranda and Kasumi, was Darner Vosque. A high-level Santiago lieutenant, Vosque was salivating for the top spot in the Blue Suns hierarchy and enjoyed significant support from others within the organization that had also grown weary of Santiago's leadership and increasingly erratic behavior. But he lacked the sufficient leverage to topple Vido outright. He needed help and Zaeed's well-known personal vendetta against Vido satisfied the bill nicely.

Once they left Zaeed's hideout, Miranda and Kasumi had quickly gathered the rest of the weapons and equipment they'd stashed in another part of the settlement and informed Oriana and Kolyat of their plans. Strict orders were relayed that forbid the Casandra from descending into the planet's atmosphere for any reason, no matter how dire.

After regrouping back at the garage, Zaeed led the two women into a deep basement that accessed the tunnel they would use to approach the Cerberus-leased lab undetected. One of a series of maintenance shafts that dated back to the earliest days of the colony, the tunnel was a damp, barely lit path that smelled of mold and decay. A convoluted series of pipes and outdated electrical conduits extended the length of the corridor, crisscrossing the way at sporadic intervals and making their progress a slow and tedious process.

"So what's this about you working for the Alliance now, Lawson?" Zaeed asked as he contorted his body to squeeze between two massive, rusted-through heating pipes. "Those pricks toss you down a hole, screw up your biotics, and now you're working for them?"

"I don't work for the Alliance. I work for Anita Goyle," Miranda said as she slipped through the same cramped space Zaeed had just squirmed through, her slim, body-hugging armor allowing her to bypass the obstacle much more easily than the mercenary.

Zaeed snorted. "There's a difference? Seems to me you still like getting kicked around by overbearing assholes. You got a self-esteem problem, Lawson?"

"Zaeed, will you shut the hell up?!" Kasumi said. She was bringing up the rear of their meager little column and was in an unmistakably bad mood as she clambered along through the filth of the tunnel.

"Relax, Goto. Just making conversation."

"I'm just saying…"

"The work Kasumi and I have been involved in goes well beyond the SAIS and the Bahak incident, Massani," Miranda said coolly. "And it's a far cry more important than whatever foul business T'Loak contracted you for. So let's just drop the pretense that you have any right to judge me."

Zaeed let out a long, rasping laugh. "Fair enough, Lawson. But in my defense, that foul business I was undertaking for the Queen was pretty goddamn successful in shafting your old Cerberus pals. At least until they brought the hammer down on Omega and the purple bitch was forced to bug out."

Miranda froze a moment and looked up ahead toward Zaeed. "So it's true. Aria is still alive."

"Ha! That asari wouldn't bite it that easy. She's still breathing, alright. Heard, she got out with a few of her pet batarians before the station was sealed tight. Nobody's seen her since, but she's out there, waiting."

"Waiting for what?"

"To hit back at the Illusive Man, of course. No way she's gonna let that stand, having Omega taken out from under her. She'll surface soon. And now that the Reapers are busy fucking up the galaxy, grabbing everyone's attention, I expect that she'll poke her tentacle head up any day now."

Miranda harbored little sympathy for Aria. In fact, she despised the asari warlord. Still, she had to admit that T'Loak's escape from Omega and her newfound overt hostility toward Cerberus presented some intriguing possibilities. "So you simply went back to hunting Santiago," she said contemptuously.

"Damn right. Anything else sounded too bloody boring. Besides, Shepard's locked up on that shithole planet Earth, I haven't a clue where the fuck Vakarian is these days, and I don't much care for that cloak and dagger crap you two been wrapped up in."

Miranda raised an eyebrow, but stayed silent.

"But before Omega fell, I had a tight little crew under my wing, some of Aria's best," Zaeed continued. "We did smash and grab jobs all over the quadrant, kept the rival outfits at bay, and even took out some juicy Cerberus targets. But the topper was knocking over the Cord-Hislop Shipyard out in the Kepler Verge. Came away with a brand new next-gen cruiser, fresh off the line, slated for the little navy the Illusive Man's been building up."

"Wait. What?" Kasumi said.

"Later, Goto," Zaeed growled. "We're here."

They'd arrived at an enormous, severely corroded metal hatchway that looked as if it belonged on an ancient seagoing freighter more than beneath the surface of a colony world. Zaeed approached the door and rubbed off a thick layer of dirt and grease from an old style digital touchpad and began to key in the access code.

Miranda straightened up as much as the cramped space allowed and pulled her Locust SMG from its holster on her hip. She then glanced back toward Kasumi and gave a quick nod.

Kasumi winked, engaged her cloak and vanished.

A moment later, a loud thud echoed in the tunnel as the hatchway's locking bolts disengaged. Zaeed grasped the round handle on the front of the hatchway, spun it counterclockwise one full revolution, and yanked the door open.

The doorway opened into some sort of subbasement, filled with mechanical equipment that likely powered the building an era before the much newer facility was built upon its bones. Two steep, metal stairwells extended upward along the walls at opposite sides of the room.

Just inside, Darner Vosque stood before them, flanked by two Blue Suns mercs in heavy battle armor and full combat kit. The faces of Vosque's bodyguards were shrouded by mirrored visors that extended down from their helmets, giving them an ominous, intimidating appearance.

An older man, maybe in his mid-fifties and noticeably balding, Vosque was slight of build and looked so unassuming that it was difficult to believe he'd spent his entire adult life engaged in crime and mercenary work. But once he opened his mouth to speak, one recognized the edge in his voice that hinted at his capacity for violence and ruthlessness. "Just the two of you, Massani?" he said, letting his gaze linger on Miranda an extra heartbeat. "Are you fucking joking? Where's the thief?"

"Sitting this one out," Zaeed said. "That one's got no stomach for this sort of revenge business."

Vosque tilted his head to the side, appraising Zaeed with a pitiless expression.

"Relax Vosque," Zaeed said. "We've got this. Just hand me the intel and get out of the way. I'll get your bloody dirty work sorted."

He glared at Zaeed for another few seconds before finally handing him a data tablet. "It's all there. Security codes, patrol schedules, personnel duty rosters, the works."

"And Kenson?" Miranda said, her voice icy with impatience.

"That hag's still here too. Last I saw, she was up in the central lab with Vido."

"And the Cerberus military presence?"

"Yeah, there's a few of those fucks skulking around. Only a six man team that came along with the scientist. But two of the females are goddamn creepy, carrying around swords if you can believe that shit."

Miranda groaned inwardly, remembering her last encounter with the Cerberus Phantoms. Those cybernetically enhanced women are here for me,she thought to herself. Just in case the Blue Suns aren't up to the task.

Vosque lingered for another several seconds, seemingly weighing the duo's chances of success as his gaze flicked back and forth between Zaeed and Miranda. "Don't fuck it up, Zaeed," he said. "Or else it's both our heads." He then pulled a micro transmitter from his pocket and thrust it into Zaeed's hand. "Here. Use this to contact me once it's done and before you start your exfil. I'll make sure your exit route's clear."

The three Blue Suns mercs then abruptly turned and stalked up the metal stairwell that extended along the south side of the room. Their heavy footfalls echoed within the space until they disappeared into the darkness above and through some unseen passageway.

Kasumi rematerialized a moment later. "Your friends, Zaeed…" she said, shaking her head. "Sheesh."

"Vosque ain't no friend of mine. Just a power hungry prick that'd rather not get his hands dirty. Means to an end, Goto."

"And you trust that his intel is sound?" Miranda said, gesturing toward the datapad.

"Trust Vosque? 'Course not. But he'll make sure we've got a legit chance of getting to Vido. It's what comes afterward we have to watch our asses about."

Miranda frowned at the answer but refused to let the dubious nature of the Blue Suns conspirators deter her. They were committed now. And truthfully, she was just as fixated with the idea of apprehending Kenson as Zaeed was in his desire for revenge. A means to an end indeed.

The team then quickly synched the data Vosque had provided to their Omni-tools and in-suit tactical computers, which included the facility's detailed schematics, security vid feeds, and the IFF transponders of all the Blue Suns personnel present within the building.

"There they are," Miranda said as she eyed the miniaturized vid display in the corner of her visor. She'd cycled through more than a dozen feeds before locating the lab. "Fourth floor, southeast corner. Santiago and Kenson are both present with their entourages."

"Got 'em," Zaeed said. "Let's move."

"Wait," Miranda said. "I can only find four of the Cerberus operatives. Two in the lab with Kenson and another pair on the ground floor. Where are the Phantoms?"

"Went for fucking donuts? I don't care, Lawson. We need to move."

"Trust me, Massani. If you encounter one of them, you most certainly will care." Miranda drew in a deep breath and turned to Kasumi. "North stairwell, recon all the way to the top."

"Copy that," Kasumi said and gave another quick wink. "Stay safe." She then engaged her cloak once again and vanished with hardly a sound left in her wake.

Miranda and Zaeed then exchanged a look before raising their weapons back up to the ready position and beginning their climb up the adjacent stairwell.

"Remember, we hold off on taking out any of the Suns other than Vido's personal guard," Zaeed said. "But it's open season on the Cerberus arseholes."

"Except Kenson."

"Don't worry, Lawson. I won't cap your old lady."

Miranda and Zaeed advanced steadily and cautiously up the stairwell, closely monitoring the security feeds as their stealthy companion cleared the path ahead of them. The task of avoiding the Blue Suns troopers, with their clearly marked transponders overlaid onto the team's tactical uplinks, proved relatively simple.

However, the Cerberus spec ops team was another matter. Miranda still had eyes on four of the men stationed on the top and bottom floors, as well as Kenson, but the two Phantoms remained elusive. Their absence was disconcerting, but she was determined to stay on-task and reach Kenson.

Elsewhere in the building, and despite the late evening hour, a considerable amount of activity was taking place within the expansive corporate laboratory. The facility appeared to be focused on the research and production of exotic pharmaceuticals of some unknown nature. There was a large chemical processing area buzzing with workers clad in protective garments on the third floor and at least another dozen researchers occupying various experimental labs up on level four.

There was very real work going on here, something entirely off-books and clearly associated with Cerberus funding and R&D. Observing the activity through the security feeds, the urge Miranda felt to stop and investigate further was palpable. But there simply wasn't time. Kasumi's cloaked presence was an enormous advantage for their little team, but they were still pushing the envelope on this hastily organized operation.

"You've got a clear path all the way up to four," Kasumi announced over the comm link. "I'm descending back to three via the south stairs, standing by for support and diversionary action."

"Copy," Miranda whispered into her mic. She glanced over to Zaeed and gave a curt nod before the two continued their ascent.

When the duo arrived at the fourth floor door a few moments later, they quickly checked the vid feeds from the other side, confirmed the area was clear, and accessed the security panel. The heavy poly-metallic door slid open with a muffled whoosh and the two emerged into a long, brightly lit corridor that branched off in several directions.

Zaeed took several tentative steps down the main corridor, his heavy assault rifle sweeping the way ahead, before he paused to bring up the detailed security vid imager on his Omni-tool. "Looks like Vido and his goons have moved off from the lab and into a conference room at the opposite corner of this floor," he said. "We'll go there first."

"Absolutely not," Miranda said. "We can't take Santiago quietly. Kenson will bolt and the Cerberus team will be on us in an instant."

"Tough shit, Lawson. You're only in here because of me. It's my party and I eat first."

Miranda shot Zaeed a sideways glare, keeping her weapon aimed downrange, ready to engage any sudden threats. "That wasn't the plan, Massani," she hissed. "We stick together, grab Kenson first, and then mop up Santiago."

"Plan's changed. I won't risk missing my chance again." Zaeed then turned his head to face Miranda's furious expression. "Don't worry, Lawson. I think you can handle one old lady and a couple of half-ass security guards. I shouldn't be long." He then spun his weapon around the corner and began to stalk down the hallway, advancing toward the opposite side of the building.

"Damn it," Miranda whispered. "Kasumi, we have a new development."

"I heard," Kasumi said, a sharp note of disappointment in her voice. "I'll come back up now."

Miranda frowned and quickly accessed the building's detailed schematic on her Omni-tool. "No, wait," she said. "I have another idea. Do you see the data center and power hub on level three? I think it's time we terminate our reliance on Vosque's intel and support, don't you?"

Kasumi paused only briefly before she fell in with her partner's line of thinking. "I follow you," she said. "I'm heading there now. Be safe up there."

Miranda flashed a brief, grateful smile. After months of working closely together on numerous clandestine and high-risk missions, the two women had developed a tight synergy that bordered on the precognitive. "Be advised there are two Blue Suns guards in the vicinity," she said, still studying the schematic and the transponder icons overlaid upon it.

"Yep, I see 'em. Don't worry, I can handle them quietly."

"Copy. Moving to Kenson's location now," Miranda said, killing the display on her Omni-tool and raising her weapon. "Contact in ninety seconds."

She then double-timed it through the corridor, weaving in and out of several vacant rooms to avoid the few roaming guards on the floor. Less than a minute and half later Miranda arrived outside the heavy doors separating her from her quarry. Another quick check of the lab's vid feed confirmed Kenson, two Cerberus troopers, and a half dozen lab technicians were all still present within the room. She noted the soldiers appeared relatively at ease—almost bored—and that they were both cradling their combat helmets at their sides.

"I'm in position," Miranda said. "Stand by."

"Copy," Kasumi said. "All set down here. But you better hurry. I have eyes on our friend now. It's about to get real noisy up there."

Miranda scowled and then keyed the comm over to the wider squad channel the team had setup before starting their infiltration. "Massani, you bastard, we're killing primary power and security systems in three seconds," Miranda said. "If you're still alive when this is finished, come find us. I won't be waiting around for you."

Miranda barely acknowledged the grunt that came back over the radio before she switched back to her exclusive uplink with Kasumi. "Do it."

The subtle background hum of electricity then abruptly ceased and Miranda's surroundings were plunged into darkness. Her visor instantly switched to enhanced thermal imaging and night vision mode and she quickly popped open a small panel located just to the left of the doorway.

With one smooth motion, she yanked back on the auxiliary door release handle concealed within the panel with one hand and plucked a flash-bang grenade from her armor's harness with the other. The double doors seemed to stick for an instant, but then lurched open, revealing the darkened lab within.

Miranda rolled the grenade far along the floor ahead of her and immediately seized the Locust SMG that hung from its strap in front of her. A second later, the lab was engulfed in a wave of blindingly bright strobes, chemical smoke and piercing noise.

Filters within her visor and comm array immediately kicked in to shield Miranda's senses from the disorienting effects of the grenade, but the soldiers within the room, along with Kenson and the unfortunate lab technicians, were caught unprepared. She then swung in through the doorway, her weapon's muzzle leading the way, and quickly acquired the two Cerberus soldiers.

With no time for pleasantries or to be gentle, Miranda targeted the first man and squeezed off a quick, controlled burst of fire. The rounds hit in a tight pattern, just above his nose, and exited the back of his unprotected head with a puff of fine red smoke. Scratch one.

Before the first man's body hit the ground, she wheeled to her right and found his partner. The second Cerberus soldier had succeeded in drawing his own heavy SMG, but, as with the first man, he was too dumbstruck from the flash-bang to respond quickly enough to Miranda's sudden assault. Another burst from her Locust caught him square in the chest, raking his armor with superheated rounds, before she adjusted her aim upward and buried another dozen slugs in his face. Blood and skull fragments spattered the cubicle wall behind him as well as the white lab coat of an unfortunate researcher that had somehow managed to remain standing.

Ignoring the chorus of high-pitched screams that rang out from the handful of stunned lab workers, Miranda swept her vision left to right, probing the darkness for any additional threats, before storming forward to the spot she'd seen Kenson standing before she'd burst into the lab.

She found the older woman ducked down behind a desk, moaning feebly and groping around with her hands, trying to stand on unsteady legs. The flash-bang had detonated just a few meters from her and thin trails of blood were streaming from both her ears.

"Stay down and stop trying to move," Miranda said, her voice cold and severe. She stood over Kenson for a moment, knowing the woman probably couldn't hear her through two likely burst eardrums, and then keyed her mic. "Kasumi, I've got her.

"Understood. I'm wrapping up down her now. Just another few seconds and I'll have the lower levels locked down. Should give us an extra minute to get clear."

"Copy," Miranda said, rapidly flicking her eyes to her tactical uplink. "Extraction in two minutes."

Closing the comm link, she reached behind her back and retrieved a set of flex-cuffs from her belt. Miranda then grasped Kenson's upper arm, yanked her roughly to her feet, and leaned in to her damaged ear. "You may not be able to hear me clearly now, but don't worry," she said as she secured the older woman's hands behind her back. "I'll see to your wounds soon enough. You and I are long overdue for a little chat."

But just then, Miranda caught the subtle glint of reflected light and rapid movement out of the corner of her eye. Reflexively, she shoved Kenson forward hard while simultaneously throwing herself backward.

The monomolecular blade sliced down at her head with terrible violence, catching the edge of her tactical visor and missing her nose by millimeters. Stumbling backward, Miranda raised her Locust and fired a wild, full automatic burst of fire at her attacker as the Phantom cartwheeled across several desks and materialized from its cloak.

The rounds from her SMG went wide and high as she desperately tried to track the Cerberus assassin before landing hard on her backside and against a metal table. Her vision reduced to a flickering digital snow, Miranda reached up and ripped the ruined tactical visor from her head and tossed it aside. Scanning the room for her attacker, she found the Phantom perched atop a desk several meters away, crouched like a tiger, and raising her gauntlet-mounted blaster in her direction.

Miranda thrust herself to the right and rolled away before the blast of energy scorched the spot she'd been a millisecond earlier. She then sprung back to her feet, emptied the remainder of her gun's magazine in the Phantom's direction, and sprinted behind the cover of another desk.

With cybernetically enhanced agility, the Cerberus operative skipped away from the rounds that peppered the wall and leapt to another corner of the lab. Without the aid of her visor's night vision, Miranda squinted through the darkness, struggling to keep sight of her foe. Emergency lighting illuminated the room with a dim red light, but the air was still filled with a haze of smoke from the flash-bang detonation and expended ammunition. Then, adding to the chaos, several of the lab workers sprung to their feet and tried to flee from the battle.

Still moving to its left, the Phantom ducked behind a collection of lab equipment and fired another series of bursts in Miranda's direction.

Pinned down, Miranda shifted to her right and kept low behind her meager cover. To her left, a female technician was caught square in the back as she desperately ran for the door. The blast penetrated her unprotected midsection, nearly cleaving the poor woman in half, before her body dropped to the floor like a ragdoll.

Miranda stole a brief glance at the dead woman as she slapped a fresh thermal clip into her Locust and then leaned out of cover to line up another shot. Sensing the attack, the Phantom leapt away again.

But Miranda tracked her target more carefully this time. Leading the Cerberus operative as she dashed along the back wall, she let out a slow breath and squeezed the trigger.

The mass accelerated micro-slugs clipped the Phantom in the shoulder and neck, spinning the armored woman like a top and sending her careening against a high table.

Miranda then launched herself out of cover and sprinted forward. Shouldering aside another panicked researcher making for the door, she continued to rain down a merciless barrage of fire at the downed Cerberus agent. Simultaneously, she flexed her left forearm in a precise series of movements, triggering the silicon-carbide blade from her Omni-tool to flash into existence.

Crossing the distance in a heartbeat, Miranda reached the Phantom just as it raised its palm to fire another blast. She let out a furious cry and sliced down with her Omni-blade, cleaving the thing's gun arm off at the elbow with the searing hot blade and sending the limb flying off into the corner. She then whirled around with her other hand and pointed her Locust square at her opponent's face.

But the Cerberus woman recovered from the trauma with unnatural speed. She struck upward with her sword, slicing the Locust's barrel in half before Miranda could pull the trigger and leapt back to her feet.

Miranda tossed the weapon away amidst a shower sparks and brought her Omni-blade back around as the Phantom rounded on her once more.

The women's blades clashed mid-air with a flash of light and crackling energy, but Miranda was the stronger of the two this time. She deflected the Phantom's strike away and downward, planting the sword's tip into the ceramic floor tile before pivoting on one foot and delivering a vicious kick to her stomach.

Driving the heel of her boot into the woman's abdomen, Miranda pinned her against the wall and then struck again with her left arm, burying the length of the Omni-blade deep into the Phantom's chest. The Cerberus agent struggled for another moment, gave a violent shudder, and then fell limp.

Panting, Miranda kept the dead woman impaled against the wall for another few seconds before finally yanking the blade free from her chest and allowing the body to crumple to the floor. She stood over her would-be assassin for another brief moment, deactivated her Omni-blade with a flick of the wrist and then quickly snapped her head back around in the other direction.

During the chaotic fight, Miranda had lost track of Kenson's position. But then she glimpsed the flash of gray hair as the woman dashed for the door, her arms still bound behind her back and chasing after the last of the fleeing lab workers. However, before she could clear the threshold, an armored figure appeared in the doorway and blocked her way.

Kenson slid to an abrupt halt, nearly colliding with the man thwarting her escape. Zaeed then reached up a powerful hand, grabbed her at the throat, and roughly thrust her back into the lab and onto the floor.

Zaeed took several strides into the lab and stopped just in front of Kenson's prone figure, towering over the woman. His assault rifle was slung across the front of his armor and looked as if it'd been used to deflect several blows from what must have been the second Phantom's blade. He was bleeding profusely from a deep, partially cauterized gash along his brow, and had another jagged wound to his right arm, which was leaking more blood onto the floor.

Miranda gazed across the room at him, shaking her head slightly. She saw that he was holding something that looked like a sack or bowling ball at his side, but couldn't quite make out exactly what it was through the gloom of the ruined lab.

"Looks like you found the other Cerberus minx," he croaked, spotting the Phantom's body slumped against the wall near where Miranda was standing. "I'll admit, Lawson, you were right about those ladies." He then glanced around at the shot-up lab and gave a grim laugh. "We're gonna have a helluva time making it downstairs and out the way we came. Whole building's on alert now."

"I have half a mind to leave you to that futile task," Miranda snapped, fixing the mercenary with a withering glare. "If you think I would rely on Vosque's plan for our escape you're even dimmer than I thought. Our path leads up, not down, you ass." She then stormed across the room, grabbed Kenson's upper arm, and yanked her back to her feet. "Kasumi, we're done here."

"Copy!" Kasumi called back through the comm. "Shuttle's inbound. Roof access is through the northwest corner stairwell. Meet you there."

Miranda then pulled her Phalanx heavy pistol from its holster at her side and marched Kenson out of the lab, pushing the still-dazed woman ahead and past Zaeed. "It's this way if you're still interested in leaving this place alive, Massani."

Moments later, they burst through the north-side stairwell access door with their prisoner only to find the way to the roof blocked by Vosque and his two guards. The Blue Suns troopers were flanking their leader and had their heavy assault rifles trained directly at Miranda and Zaeed's heads.

"What the fuck is this, Vosque?" Zaeed demanded. "Job's done. Enjoy you're new position. Now get the fuck out of the way."

Vosque regarded Zaeed with a disdainful scowl and then glanced down at his side. "Christ, Massani…"

Miranda, remembering the strange object she'd spotted Zaeed carrying earlier, followed Vosque's gaze and felt her stomach lurch. Her mercenary companion was clutching Vido Santiago's severed head by a clump of greasy black hair.

"Can't let you leave, Zaeed," Vosque said. "Looks bad for me if I let you get away with the boss's murder."

"You think you and your boyfriends can stop us, Vosque?"

Vosque sighed impatiently. "Zaeed, I've got you and your whore dead to rights. Sorry to break our deal but you're going to have to—" A sudden bolt of electrical current then shot through the man, interrupting the Blue Suns captain before he could finish his thought.

Within the enclosed space, the stunning charge arced between the three armored men with dramatic violence, launching their weapons from their hands before reducing them to convulsing heaps on the floor.

Instinctively, Miranda ducked low to the ground, yanking Kenson down with her, and brought her pistol to bear.

But then Kasumi materialized from her cloak, standing behind the collapsed Blue Suns troopers and wearing a satisfied grin. "Seriously, Zaeed," she said, shaking her head, "the crowd you hang around with."

"Oh shut it, Goto!" Zaeed bellowed before giving the unconscious Vosque a swift kick to the side of the head. "These wankers are no friends of mine."

"Oh. My. God! Disgusting, Zaeed!" Kasumi shouted back once she spotted Zaeed's grisly cargo.

"Let's go," Miranda said, pulling Kenson back up to her feet. "We're out of time."

Kasumi gave Vido's head another sickened glance and then spun around, dashing up a steep set of metal stairs that led up to the roof access hatch above.

Miranda pushed Kenson up the stairs ahead of her and emerged topside of the Cerberus-leased lab building to find a powerful storm rolling across the colony. Eighty-klick-per-hour gusts were buffeting the settlement's buildings and icy snow flurries were whipping through the air, making visibility almost nil.

The brutal cold was like a slap to the face and Miranda strained to see through the darkness, casting her gaze across the rooftop to the point where she expected the shuttle to descend. Then she heard the familiar rumble of low atmospheric thrusters and breathed a quick sigh of relief.

Most sane small craft pilots wouldn't dare flying in such extreme conditions, but Miranda knew that Kolyat was at the stick of this particular shuttle. In amazingly short order, Thane's son had developed into an exceptionally skilled flier and had become particularly accomplished at handling the Casandra's small, nimble orbiter. She handed Kenson off to Kasumi, who proceeded to haul the Cerberus operative off toward the shuttle touching down a dozen meters away.

Bracing herself against the frigid winds, Miranda rounded on Zaeed as he emerged from the roof hatch and pointed her heavy pistol directly at the merc's forehead. "I ought to leave you on this roof to fend for yourself, Massani," she shouted, her voice taut with anger and her long black hair whipping about wildly in the wind. "You jeopardized everything when you abandoned our plan."

Zaeed chuckled, looking indifferent to the pistol's muzzle aimed between his eyes. "Oh come on, Lawson. It all worked out fine. Besides, I haven't told you about what I found in that Cord-Hislop shipyard… Some very juicy bits of intel on your old boss, I'll say." He flashed a crooked smile. "Believe me, you'll want to hear about it."

Miranda remained stubbornly planted in front of Zaeed for a long moment, her stance wide and her glare alone threatening to bore a hole through his skull. "You are not bringing that onboard my shuttle," she finally said, lowering her weapon a fraction and glancing down at the man's repulsive baggage.

Zaeed made a face, looking as if he wanted to protest, but then simply shrugged. He then punted the severed head off the side of the building and into the gloomy, icy night sky.

Miranda stared at him in revulsion and rolled her eyes but allowed Zaeed to pass and proceed to the idling shuttle.

"Really good to be working with professionals again," he barked over the noise of the shuttle as he passed her. "Can't wait to see what's next on the agenda."

Author's note:

So, Zaeed's still a dodgy scoundrel. It'd be far too boring and out of character to morph the guy into anything else.

I thought about detailing Zaeed's confrontation with Vido but found it too unwieldy. Also didn't want to make this another mega chapter that bogs me down further. Besides, it's a Miranda story after all.

Happy New Year, everyone.

1/8/15 – Back for just a bit of cleanup. I really ought to stop publishing so late at night and bleary eyed. Also changed the number of Cerberus cruisers Zaeed helps steal from two to just one. Thanks for reading and reviewing!