Chapter 26: The Spectre and the Reds

Earth-Mt. Pleasant Cemetery/Toronto, Canada

The cemetery saw a little activity today, as people flocked to pay their respects to the dead. The war had left much in the way of devastation, and even months after the Reapers' defeat Alliance soldiers were still finding bodies as they worked to rebuild what was destroyed. Cemeteries and funeral services were seeing lots of business, but a lot more hard work in trying to find a place for all the new bodies. Two men in Alliance uniforms were walking through the cemetery hand in hand, a dark-skinned man of Latino descent looked at all the families and friends paying their respects to the fallen and gave a sad look.

Cortez knew what they were going through, a year ago just before the war started, his husband died coming into conflict with one of the Reapers' servants known as the Collectors. He was able to put Robert to rest, thanks to the man beside him and soon afterwards they became a couple. But the war takes all, even the most selfless; Kaiden's parents became victims of the Reapers cruelty. Cortez looked at Kaiden, he had a grim look on his face…not surprising, ever since they came back to Toronto the Spectre had been trying to avoid this moment even though Cortez knew better. They stopped at two tombstones that read Charles Alexander Alenko and Ling Halim-Alenko, Kaiden's parents.

Kaiden shook his head. "Why are we here, Steve?" he asked sadly. "You and I both know, those graves are empty…"

Cortez gripped his lover's hand. "You need this, mi amor, it's not healthy to bottle it up" he said. "I should know…" Kaiden sighed and went forward with flowers; he placed it on his parents' grave.

"Hey, mom…dad, sorry I haven't been by to see you…it's been hard…" Kaiden said. "There's so much I want to talk to you about, I have a wonderful boyfriend whose here with me…I know you would have loved him if you met." Cortez looked on as his boyfriend continued to talk, he then saw Kaiden's shoulder staring to shack and his voice starting to break as he went on his knees as tears fell on to the graves. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry I couldn't be there...please forgive me…"

Cortez came to him and helped him up, Kaiden turned and cried into his shoulder. He tightly embraced him. "It'll be alright, mi amor…I'm here for you…"

Moments later

Later at the park next to the cemetery, Kaiden and Cortez were on a bench. Kaiden had since calmed down from his breakdown, he looked at Cortez and he looked back. "Are you okay?"

Kaiden kissed his forehead. "Yeah, sorry you had to see that…" he said. "Thanks for bringing me there, needed that" Kaiden and Cortez kissed. "No more sad thoughts, let's go somewhere fun tonight, my treat"

Cortez smiled. "I would like that" As the couple was about to get up, he saw an older dark-skinned man in a police suit come up to them. He has thick black hair that was starting to grey, he had a thick but trimmed beard. Across his nose to the bottom of his right eye was a long scar that has since healed.

"Alenko, been a long time son" he said. "I have to say, you look good" Kaiden blinked and then he came forward and shook the older man's hand.

"Muhammad, what are you doing here?" Kaiden asked.

Cortez walked up beside Kaiden. "Who is he, Kaiden?" he asked. The spectre rubbed his hand sheepishly, until Muhammad spoke up.

"I was his parole officer" he said. Cortez looked at Kaiden as he blushed and scratched his cheek with his index finger. "He's changed now, but he was quite the troublemaker when his was a kid…I got the paperwork to prove it"

"Muhammad…are you here to bring up the past or do you want something?" The old cop became serious and they went somewhere private.

"I have information on your old running buddies, the Tenth Street Reds" Kaiden frowned, this surprised Cortez…he had no idea that his boyfriend was a part of a gang in his youth. Then again, it was understandable, no one wants to talk about the negative parts in their past. According to Muhammad, two officers were on patrol near the old docks in old Toronto; the Reds saw them and attacked. During the gunfight, the Reds had weapons they never seen before one of the officers were hit and were disintegrated. The other cop barely came out with his life…

Kaiden crossed his arms. "Reds don't kill cops, brings too much attention"

"Tell that to their leader" Muhammad said. "I would go to the chief about this, but thanks to the damn war we're stretched thin and plus how many former Reds do I know have become spectres?"

"I'll see what I can do" Kaiden said.

The old cop nodded. "I owe you one, Alenko and be careful those weapons they have are no joke" Kaiden and Cortez walked away, while heading back to Alliance HQ things were quiet between the couple. Kaiden knew what Cortez wanted to say.

"Okay, out with it…" Kaiden said. "I know you are wondering"

"Well…it's just…you don't seem the type that would join a gang" Cortez said.

The spectre snorted. "Anyone can be the type, when they're young, stupid and angry enough…"

Kaiden told his story; it was after the hell of the Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training or BAaT for short. It was a biotic training program that was started up by Conatix Industries with support from the Alliance before the Alliance started training biotics on their own. It broke a lot of children, including himself, it was there where Kaiden's first boyfriend hung himself in the barracks. After Kaiden killed Vyrnnus out of self-defense, Conatix closed down the program fearing blow back from the turians but that wasn't the end of their troubles. Once parents had gotten word about the abuses that went on there, they banded together expose Conatix but the company had friends within the Alliance and the Parliament and they had the records sealed.

Conatix folded a year later, but to Kaiden it didn't matter…no one was going to know happened to them. When he came home, Kaiden was a very different person…he much more distanced and impatient but more importantly…so damned angry. He started getting into fights, his once impeccable grades started to fall hard. Kaiden lowered his head. "My parents tried to help me…but sadly I pushed them away" he said sadly. "I was the perfect target to be recruited"

"Who recruited you?" Cortez asked.

"A small-time drug peddler named Finch" After beating up the latest poor bastards that had pissed him off, he met Finch. Finch promised him the world, and being young and stupid at the time he ate up like candy…of course what Finch and the Reds were interested in was his biotics. Biotics were still pretty rare at the time, so when the Reds had one on their side…this small-time gangs weren't so small-time anymore. In just three short years, the Reds were able to take down and absorb two of their biggest rivals and of course by then Kaiden had something of a rap sheet by then. "Robbery, arson…drug peddling…I did it all" Kaiden said. "And went to jail for all of it…"

"So what made you turn away?"

"My conscience finally caught up with me" During Kaiden's time with the Reds, he quickly rose through the ranks fast. By the age sixteen, he was an enforcer for the Reds…instead of people telling him what to do; he was the one bossing people around. Didn't pay your dues to the gang, Kaiden broke your legs…sell drugs on Reds turf without paying their cut, the spectre would beat you like a rented mule. There was no one around that wanted to mess with him and the big wigs were so impressed that they let Kaiden on the big score; if this deal went through they were going to get paid handsomely.

"What was the big score?" Cortez asked.

Kaiden frowned. "Humans…the Reds had been collecting humans throughout the city, the poor and the homeless mostly" he said. "They were going to sell them to the Batarians" That night was his wake-up call; he saw what he was turning into and didn't like it one bit. He was going to abandon the Reds but couldn't leave the victims to be sold to the Batarians. He slipped away during the talks to contact the police; the cops came fast and brought the big guns with them. Inviting humanity's enemy to sell their own people had put the Reds squarely on the Alliance's shit-list; the raid was bloody and chaotic the police and the Alliance had covered all exits forcing the Reds and the Batarians to fight. By the end, most of the Reds and the Batarians were either dead or captured and the captives were freed to get help.

As for Kaiden, he slipped away during the fighting and went home. The first thing he did was beg his parents for forgiveness; he had been a creep to them when all they were trying to do was help their son. To his surprise, they forgave him…but his anger was still there, four years with the Reds had done nothing for him except make him angrier. It was his father suggestion that Kaiden should join the Alliance, to give that anger some direction but first thing, he had to make amends to all the people he had hurt.

"I joined the Alliance when I was eighteen, and never looked back" Kaiden sighed. "Now that you know my dirty little secret, I wonder what you must think of me." Cortez gripped his hand and kissed his cheek.

"What I think of you hasn't changed, mi amor…I think you are wonderful man" he said. "You made a mistake in your past, what person hadn't? The important thing is that learned from it, no matter what I believe in you" Kaiden smiled and pulled him in for a kiss.

The Old Docks

Later in the day, Kaiden was in a boat with Liara and Javik to investigate the Reds. They headed for the harbor quietly using the current as propulsion. "Thanks for coming with me, guys"

"It is no problem Kaden, we were happy to do so" Liara said.

Javik snorted. "Speak for yourself, Liara"

The asari raised a brow. "Oh so you had other plans then, Javik?" The prothean crossed his arms and grumbled to himself. "I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help, Kaiden…the Broker had no files on these Tenth Street Reds, my guess is that they were two small to be noticed" The boat hit the pier and they went up to the harbor. Kaiden peeked his head up, and saw the guards all over the place. With such heavy traffic, they had to be hiding something big…one of the guard stepped into the light and saw a familiar weapon in the guard's hands.

"A Collector particle weapon, how the hell did they get their hands on that?"

"They must have salvaged it from battlefields, either way that explains the disintegration" Liara said. "Where to?"

"We head for the storage houses" The team went ahead, sneaking past the guards. They headed to store houses and searched the contents of the boxes inside. So far nothing was really out of the ordinary until Javik called them. "You found something, Javik?"

"Yes" Javik opened the box, Kaiden and Liara eyes went wide. The box was full of reaper weapons, barrier engines, and implants. He gave Kaiden a data pad, the spectre read the pad…the Reds was planning on selling the reaper tech on the black market. "The fools believes they can control such power"

"It says here that the tech's been here for months" Liara said. "Could they be indoctrinated?"

"Probably, alright lets destroy these things…Anderson and Hackett will want to know about…" The lights in the store house turned on, and the team went to attention. They then heard a deep voice.

"Long time no see…traitor"

Kaiden looked up and frowned. "Finch"

Kaiden vs. the Reds! Next Time! As always Review and Comment!