Cass trailed behind her mother and Miranda, the two women ahead of her in conversation. From what Cass could make out, ever since they landed on Illium, was that something was up with Miranda's sister. The older women had been discussing it ever since they landed, but every time the teen tried to listen in or get close, they'd shoo her away, which begged the question of why she was going along in the first place? Clearly, if they weren't going to tell her anything, then what use was she going to be?
"Okay, what is going on?" Cass growled, shoving her way between the two conversing women.
"Cassandra." Shepard warned; her eyes narrowing at her daughter.
Cass just rolled eyes in response. "Seriously, all of the secretive talk! Why am I even here if you're not going to tell me what's happening."
Miranda frowned, and looked to the commander. "We think, that if needed, we might need someone to the same age to speak to Orianna, so it's less, um, odd for her."
"She's your sister, isn't she?" Cass rolled her eyes once more; Miranda always seemed like the most put together women, but when it comes down to this, she can't even face the option of speaking to her sister.
"She doesn't even know who I am. I-"
"Clearly don't have to balls to talk to my own sister." Cass finished dryly, earning another warning glance from her mother.
"That's not-"
"Whatever, Miranda." Cass brushed past them. "Just debrief me so we can start this family reunion."
Shepard and Miranda just followed with gaping expressions; had they just been bossed around by a teenager?
"Why couldn't I sit in the front?" Cass whined, feeling like a thoroughly scolded child in the back seat of the sky car.
"Maybe you could have sat in the front if you weren't mouthing off earlier." Shepard replied, keeping her eyes front as she drove.
"I'd hardly say voicing my right to know the mission plans is mouthing off." Cass grumbled.
"What was that?" Shepard frowned.
"Nothing." Cass scowled; this was going to be a long night.
Cass stretched as she climbed out of the car; frowning as she saw the Eclipse mercenaries coming their way.
"Since you're not firing yet, I trust you know who I am." Miranda stated, walking over to the man who appeared to be in charge.
"Yeah, they'd said you be in the car, you're the bitch that kidnapped our boss' little girl." The burly man replied.
"Kidnapped?" Miranda scowled. "This doesn't concern you, I suggest you take your men and go."
"You got it all lined up, huh?" The man smiled, "Captain Enyala's moving in on the kid already; and we know about Niket, he won't be helping you."
Cass could see Miranda pale; as did Shepard.
"I'm giving you one chance to leave, that's more than most get." Shepard stated, stepping forward.
The man smiled. "Captain Enyala ordered that we give you one chance to walk away, and this entire time that we've been talking, my men have been lining up shots. When I say the word we unleash hell on your squad-"
Cass rolled her eyes, in her experience, especially on Omega, Mercenary's always had a flare for dramatics. Glancing around the warehouse, a fuel tank was being lifted over a large number of his squad; running her finger's over her pistol, Cass smiled, things were about to get interesting.
"-So I suggest you walk away nicely or things are going to get ugly." The mercenary finished.
The teen smiled, she was probably going to get in trouble for this later, but if her mother was as good as she thought, well, hopefully she'll be able to take out the man and his Salarian companion while she basically took out the rest. Raising the gun in her hand, the girl fired on the carrying device. The commander and Miranda both turning in shock, but recovering quickly as the two men in front of them began to move. Cass flinched as the fuel tank dropped and watched as her mother and the XO took out the last remaining mercenaries in the room.
Shepard, holstering her weapon, turned around to see her daughter grinning; the mother's eyes narrowing dangerously. "That was incredibly-"
"Amazing, awesome, really really-" Cass started, but was interrupted.
"Reckless!" Shepard exclaimed, stepping toward the girl and grabbing her arm.
"Well, obviously." Cass replied cheekily.
"Obviously? Then why'd you-"
"Like the three of us were going to be able to take out the 10 of them when they had already had their guns out, and clearly talking wasn't working." Cass explained, pulling her arm out of her mother's grip.
"No, we could-" Shepard began.
"No, she's right, Shepard. We would have never been able to have won that fight without a little help." Miranda stated seriously.
"Fine." Shepard relented, "But you need to give us a little warning or something, you can't just make decisions like that; you're a part of a team right now, Cassandra."
Cass nodded, "Right. Sorry. "
"Okay." Shepard sighed, knowing that they were going to talk about this later. "Let's move."
"This entire place is crawling with fucking mercenaries." Cass groaned, stretching once their team was in the elevator.
"Language." Miranda and Shepard said at the same time.
Cass grinned sheepishly. "Sorry."
"Okay, so we should be coming up on the right floor; we should be able to cut them off here… and see what's happening with Niket." Miranda stated sadly.
"Miranda; who is Niket, anyways?" Cass asked, leaning against the wall of the elevator.
"He was, or, is a friend. I've known him for a long time; he was the one good thing that came from my father…" Miranda trailed off.
"Oh. Why is he here?"
"I'm not sure, I never involved him with this, he only found out about Orianna recently."
Cass went to reply, but stopped as the elevator doors glided open.
"I'm sorry sir, but until the issues resolved in the cargo terminal, no passengers can be rebooked or boarded." An Asari ahead of the doors was explaining to a thin looking man, along with another irate Asari garbed in Eclipse garb.
"This isn't worth my time Niket, I get paid regardless of how the girl gets there." The angry looking Asari grumbled from her seat on some loose cargo.
"No, I was told that I could handle this my way, any more than we need-" Niket stopped, as the threem women stepped out into view. "Miri?"
"This should be fun." The mercenary Asari stated, drawing a heavy shotgun into her hands, the Normandy team raising their weapons in defense.
"Niket, you sold me out." Miranda growled, her eyes narrowing in anger.
"How do you want to handle this, Miranda?" Shepard asked, her gun still pointed.
"Why Niket? You were my friend. You helped me get away from my father."
"Because you wanted to leave; you had a choice, but If I'd known you stolen a baby-" Niket stated.
"I didn't steal her! I rescued her." Miranda interrupted.
"From a life of wealth and happiness? You weren't saving her; you were getting back at your father."
"If Niket knows about Orianna, then your father does too. How do you want to handle this?" Shepard said, glancing at Miranda out of the corner of her eye.
"Miranda's father has no information about Orianna." Niket replied. "I knew you had spy programs in your father's system, so I kept the information private. I'm the only one who knows. "
"Which means that you're the only loose end, " Miranda sighed, aiming her pistol, "this isn't how I wanted it to end Niket-"
Cass winced at the pain that could be heard in Miranda's voice; her back going rigid as she continued to point her gun.
"Miranda, wait! You don't want to do this." Shepard interrupted, slipping to Miranda's side, taking the arm with the offending weapon in her own hands, canceling Miranda's line of fire.
"It has to end here, Shepard, my father will keep trying to find Orianna." Miranda replied fiercely
"Miranda, maybe Niket can help, he can tell him that you got here first-" Cass interrupted, stepping forward, lowering her gun.
"Right- I can tell him that you hid her, that I can't-" Niket sputtered.
"I never want to see you again-" Miranda started, but stopped as gunfire pierced the silence of the room, the Mercenary captain shooting Niket in the back, Cass couldn't help but flinch as the man fell, but raised her gun in defense.
"Done. Now if you don't mind, I have a shipment to deliver." Enyala stated, raising her weapon once more.
"You'll pay for that, Bitch!" Miranda shrieked, her biotics flaring, sending the Asari across the room.
Cass sprang into action alongside Miranda and her mother, as eclipse mercenaries began flooding into the loading dock. Leaning past the cargo she was taking cover behind, she could see Miranda take off after the captain, while her mother picked off anyone in the XO's way. Cass, maneuvering to the opposite side of the dock engaged a few of the remaining eclipse men; flying forward, the girl released a biotic wave; an unsuspecting Salarian and man taking the hit and falling to the ground, both unconscious. As the teen rounded the corner of a large freight piece, she staggered backward, a round of bullets piercing her shield and hitting her square in the chest and shoulder; her armor taking the brunt of the damage, she let lose a painful shout, as a round snuck it's way between her chest and cauldrons piece, embedding itself in shoulder. The girl, raised her pistol in her right, unaffected arm and fired quickly upon the Asari who caught her off guard, the alien dropping to the ground and she was barraged with the remainder of the teen's clip.
Cass holstered her emptied weapon, not bothering to reload as the gunfire had all but ceased, and held up her now free hand to her injured shoulder.
"Cass!" Shepard's voice called out.
"Over here." Cass managed weakly, shuffling down pass the last of the freight to the elevator where her mother and Miranda stood.
"You're hurt." Shepard frowned, rushing to the girls side, shoeing the teen's hand away from her injured shoulder, and began probing the wound gently with her own fingers.
"Hey-ow. Don't touch it!" Cass cried, tears threatening to creep out.
"What happened?" Miranda rushed over from the elevator.
Pushing away her mother's hands, Cass winced. "They caught me off guard around a turn, my shields and armor took the brunt of it; this was a lucky shot at best."
Shepard sighed, reaching for her daughter once more, and applying pressure to the girl's wound, as they walked to the elevator and stepped inside.
"Shepard, what do we do now? Cass was supposed to speak to Orianna, but she certainly can't now, without arising some sort of, well, suspicion."
Cass, the pain making her irritated, scowled. "Just grow a pair and talk to her yourself!"
"I can't, she-" Miranda stuttered.
"Is your sister, and you can talk to her." Cass finished, wincing as she pulled away from her mother once more. "Mom?"
"I- She has a point, Miranda." Shepard stated, once again reaching for her child.
"Stop it." Cass growled, stepping away into the corner of the elevator.
"You're hurt." Shepard frowned, stepping closer.
"I'm fine." Cass scowled, feeling much like an injured animal being cornered.
"No, you've been shot." Shepard stated, moving closer, her right hand applying pressure, and her left hand holding the girl in place by her uninjured shoulder.
"Mom."
"Stop squirming."
Miranda frowned, looks like she would be talking to her sister after all.
"Mama, I'm fine." Cass whined, squirming on the bed. Her injured shoulder had been expertly bandaged by Chakwas, and she was now "resting" in her mother's cabin, resting meaning being held hostage by an overly worried mother.
"No, Chakwas told you to rest; you're not leaving the bed until I say so." Shepard said sternly, standing at the end of the bed.
"I am rested." Cass whined, wincing as the pain spread from her shoulder as twisted on the bed.
The mother, catching the wince, rushed to the girl's side frantically. "What's wrong? Where does it hurt? Tell mommy."
"I'm fine!" Cass whined, crossing her arms over her chest in a pout, grimacing as she does.
"You're not fine." Shepard replied, watching the girl's expressions.
"I am though!"
"You're not."
"I am!"
"You're not."
"Mom, come on!"
"Cass." Shepard warned her face growing stern.
"Ugh, fine." The girl relented, dropping against the pillows; she was pretty tired anyways.
AN: Okay, so, up next, Lair of the Shadow Broker, and then we'll be coming on the last few missions and the end, and possibly arrival. Please read and review! Thanks!
