PROPHECY
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO:
TERRORISTS AND FAMILY MATTERS PART TWO:
September 6, 2185
1721 hours.
Elevator, Docks, Nos Astra, Illium.
First Lieutenant Miranda Lawson, Soldier Grunt, Second Lieutenant Jacob Taylor, Mercenary Veteran Zaeed Massani, Justicar Samara, Professor Mordin Solus.
The glass windows of the elevator shattered as the bullets streamed in and Miranda simply stood there. But, without her realizing it, her body was already reacting. Her arm sprung up on reflex and instinct, bringing with it biotic power as a barrier appeared before the small squad. Heavy anti-infantry rounds battered against the field, but did nothing, having repelled the gunship's assault. Element of surprise gone, the gunship was now ripe for attack.
Waiting for a break in the gunship's attack pattern, she battered away two rockets and finally found the break she was waiting for. But before Miranda could even jump upon her advantage, Grunt had already moved. And his version of 'take down the gunship' was entirely different to hers. To theirs. It was crazy. Just like a krogan.
The eclipse pilot had made the brutal mistake of getting too close, and now he or she was about to pay for that mistake. With a loud war cry, one that could probably be heard through the howling winds all the way at the top of the tower, Grunt charged out the window and leaped four meters. The pilot, realizing the krogan's plan, tried to reverse but was too late. The krogan supersoldier landed heavily on the mercenary vessel, smashing into the right wing and leaving a massive dent, the weight causing the gunship to tilt and start spinning away. The whole time, Grunt just laughed like a psychotic child on a rollercoaster.
The elevator continued its ascent like nothing had happened, the only thing changed being the shattered glass and the sound of the howling wind outside. They all looked outside to watch the gunship continue to spin, Grunt's howls of laughter ever present. They heard a shotgun shot rip through the air and the form of the krogan leap into one of the offices below just as the gunship smashed into the building, but with no explosion, possibly crashed.
"Call him stupid, you might," Zaeed whistled, "But that little krogan is a badass, if you ask me. That was some Die Hard shit he pulled off just then."
"Krogan prone to stupid attacks," Mordin piped up, "But, term 'badass', oddly fitting. Foolish for salarian. Impractical, but effective."
"Indeed," Samara nodded in silent agreement.
"Come on, Grunt can catch up," Miranda ordered, "We're almost at the level where we meet Niket. We'll ensure the escort went well and then defend the take off from any of my father's hired guns."
"Killing Eclipse is like shooting fish in a goddamn barrel," Zaeed grumbled, "At least Grunt gets to fight through a swarm of them to get back to us."
"I believe that because of Grunt's reckless counterattack," Samara pondered, "That we may have just 'lightened the load.' Grunt will most assuredly deal with the majority of the eclipse company. And with us so far inside the building complex, the gunships will be unable to stop us. We've secured an advantage without us truly realizing it."
"Ever the words of wisdom," Jacob added.
"Heads up," Miranda interrupted, ending the conversation, "We're reaching the RV point."
The cerberus operative was true to her word. A moment later, the elevator ceased ascent with a ding sound and the doors slid open to reveal the top level of the docks building. The room was crawling with eclipse, but that's not what caused Miranda's jaw to drop. In front of them were two asari and a human; the human had a short beard along with light stubble. His black hair was cropped and his skin smooth but pale. He wore a fitting blue shirt, with matching blue jeans. One of the asari held a datapad and seemed to be talking with the other two, while the asari sitting on the crates was wearing standard eclipse body armor. Enyala.
But that's still not what made her jaw drop. It was the identity of the human that shocked her. She drew her SMG, aiming it at his head, "You traitor."
Niket turned around, his black eyes meeting hers in a nanosecond and his look changed to one of terror. Noticing the change in atmosphere, both asari turned to them, and Enyala's face turned grim as she leapt from her crate and extended her scimitar shotgun to aim at them. The asari dockworker just looked on in confusion while the rest of Enyala's mercs in the room pointed weapons at the group.
"Miri," Niket said simply, trying to back away and only seeming to bump into a crate behind him. Enyala showed no such fear, her features creased in concentrated...frustration? Her hands didn't shake, her shotgun aim was steady and precise. And ready to kill, she noted. Finally having decided the tension was too much for her, the dockworker attempted to run away, but Enyala quickly disposed of her with a single shotgun blast to the back before focusing back on them. Miranda's team already had their weapons raised and ready to fire.
"Niket," she greeted back emotionlessly, "You sold me out." Jacob moved to her side while Samara lead Mordin and Zaeed to her right, all weapons drawn and aimed at the group. Miranda just couldn't understand why Niket would betray her to the Eclipse and her father. He helped her escape last time! She need to know. She stepped forward, making sure her SMG was still aiming directly over the man that betrayed her.
"Why Niket?" she began, "You were my friend. You helped me get away from my father."
Niket shook his head, "Yes! Because you wanted to leave. That was your choice. But if I'd known you'd stolen a baby-"
"I didn't steal her! She's not property!" Miranda snapped, "I rescued her!"
Niket's face was skeptical, "From a life of wealth and happiness? You weren't saving her! You were getting back at your father! Nothing more, nothing less."
"How did Henry get you to defect?" Jacob asked, knowing her father's name.
"They told me you'd kidnapped your baby sister all those years ago. They said I could help get her back peacefully. No trauma to the family. I told them, you'd never do that. That they could go to hell. Then you finally told me what you'd done. I called them back that night."
Miranda scoffed, "Why didn't you call me, Niket? We've been through a lot! You could have at least let me explain."
Niket shook his head, stepping forward to punctuate his next statement, "I deserved to know you had stolen your sister, Miri. I deserved to know you were with Cerberus. But I had to hear it from your father first."
Zaeed laughed unempathically, "I bet Enyala's getting paid a shit load for this little job. This Henry sounds like a rich bastard. So come on, spill it out. How much?"
"Zaeed," Enyala greeted.
"Amazing girl," Zaeed greeted back with a shit-eating grin.
Enyala seemed about to answer when Niket answering the merc's question, "He offered me a great deal. And I rejected it all. I took the job because Oriana deserved to be returned home."
"Damn it Niket!" Miranda shouted back.
"He's getting paid the exact same as me," Enyala added, "Nine hundred thousand credits. And that's just me."
"Always were the bitch to kill for money," Zaeed grumbled.
"Not like you're any different," Enyala spat back.
"Difference is that I picked the right side," the bounty hunter growled, turning his rifle to aim at Enyala, who's grip stiffened on her shotgun, "What that man is paying you can't be worth fighting me. You know what happens to people who fuck with me."
"I fucked with you, and I seemed to not only get pleasure out of it, but I kept my head too," Enyala grinned.
Samara, Mordin and Jacob seemed to raise eyebrows at Zaeed simultaneously. The bounty hunter noticed this and simply shrugged, "So, I bedded her. She offered it first. It just means I'll get some nostalgia out of raping her fucking corpse."
"Never knew you for a necrophiliac," Enyala hissed in disgust.
"You didn't know me at all," Zaeed growled back, "You can bed someone without having to know them. That's why sluts exist."
"I'm not going to let you kidnap Oriana, Captain Enyala," Miranda declared.
"So you're okay if I rescue her? Oh, well that's nice," Enyala bantered before turning to Niket, "Let's just get this kid and empty a shell into this bitch. My men grow impatient."
"Take your best shot," Miranda bounced back.
"I was just waiting for you to get dressed," the asari chaffed, "Or does Cerberus really let you whore around in that outfit?"
Jacob need to end this, "If Henry knows about Oriana's new relocation coordinates, then we need to find a new solution. I'm sure the Illusive Man could find a new location. Somewhere discreet."
"That's not entirely true," Niket admitted bashfully, "I never transmitted any updated information because I didn't see the need. We thought you'd be delayed by Enyala's troops long enough for Oriana to be taken to your father. We didn't anticipate you bringing friends. Your father doesn't know about the reallocation. The only way he'd know, is through me."
Miranda grimaced grimly, tears welling in her eyes, "Then that makes you the only loose end," the grip she'd been loosening was now tightened, SMG rearing back to aim directly at Niket's forehead, "I'm sorry it had to end this way Niket, I really am."
Before she could pull the trigger however, he felt a hand shove it down, and looked to see Jacob holding her hand down, "Don't do this, Miranda. Niket's a reasonable man, you know that. He'll see reason and discover that Oriana is better off on Earth than with him. You don't have to kill him."
"He's right," Niket piped up, drawing looks from both of them, "This isn't...I only wanted to do what was right. I'll tell him that we failed."
Enyala was furious as she spun to face Niket, "But that wasn't the deal! The deal was that I turn in Oriana and I get paid! The Eclipse never turn down a deal!"
"You'll have to today," Niket declared, turning to face her, "Because I'm not handing her over to Henry."
"Fuck you," Enyala spat, levelling her weapon on him, "Fuck the whore. Fuck the kid."
Enyala was violently shoved into a crate by Samara, sending her tumbling. Niket turned to the justicar and nodded silent thanks before turning to Miranda, features softening, "Miranda I-"
"I never want to see you again, Niket."
A shotgun blast echoed through the room and Niket's head exploded in a maelstrom of gore, body tumbling to the ground dead as Miranda looked on in shock, blood smearing her usually milky white uniform. She quickly escaped her stupor, turning to face the source. It had been Enyala holding the shotgun in one hand, "Done. Now if you don't mind, I've got a shipment to deliver."
Miranda was enraged as she charged the asari, biotics flaring, barrier forming infront of her, "YOU BITCH!" Miranda boomed as she crashed full on into the asari commander, knocking her shotgun aside and entering a biotic stranglehold with the asari. The rest of the eclipse in the room didn't need an invitation; they immediately opened fire on the team, and the squad quickly retaliated. Bullets tore through the room, hitting walls and crashing into flesh and shields as both sides sought cover.
The Eclipse seemed well-trained, but it was obvious they weren't prepared to fight veterans. The first squad that tried to cross the room quickly found themselves butchered by Zaeed and Jacob as they mounted a coordinated defense. A salarian engineer was killed by a cryo blast from Mordin and three asari battled Samara, all three ending gruesome ends with Samara suffering a single bullet wound to the chest, barely missing her heart.
During this, Miranda and Enyala continued to fight in a biotic brawl, occassionally attempting to kill the other with a biotic fist, but being repelled by a barrier. They knew the two of them would have to tire eventually, but they knew it would be Miranda who fell first. Asari were always more powerful in terms of biotics.
Seeing a human merc about to rush over his cover, Jacob leapt up to meet her, grabbing her by the collar of her armor and throwing her into the ground, omni-blade activating has he did so. With a downward slash, he drove his energy blade deep into her throat. Ripping it out, he merely watched as her blood boiled from the molten hot energy and the woman choking on her own blood from her crushed windpipe. He barely heard the sound of maniacal screaming from the room beside them.
But Zaeed heard. And when he did, he immediately turned to the source just in time to watch as the wall exploded in a storm of nice, debris, explosions and the screaming of coughing engines. Samara immediately leapt out of the way as the wall caved in on itself and a mantis gunship, eclipse colors, impacted the ground, it's right wing being crushed from the weight of the impact and its nose slamming into the ground as it slid across the ground, crushing multiple mercs before they gained the wits to leap out of the way. When the gunship had finished crashing through the wall and had slid across the ground, it came to a stop at the edge of the room, flames trailing its path, engines dying. It left a path of destruction in its wake.
And emerging from the wreckage, covering in soot and scorch marks and laughing sadistically, was Grunt.
Enyala and Miranda barely seemed to notice the carnage; they simply continued fighting. Grunt wasted no time, immediately pouncing on a nearby salarian and crushing him under the krogan's immense weight, before lifting his claymore and ripping apart his human comrade. Pretty soon, the fight continued. This time, it didn't last very long.
Grunt had been busy apparently. Upon joining him, Grunt had explained how he had survived the first crashing gunship, had used its ripped off main gun to tear apart an eclipse response team, used C4 to blow up another gunship and finally used this gunship to smash into the room. Without realizing it, Grunt had gone on a blood rage; a nearly unstoppable state for a krogan. And in that span of time, he had decimated Enyala's forces. Zaeed loved that krogan. Within a minute, the remaining eclipse forces were either dead or on the retreat, discovering that Miranda's father's money wasn't really worth tackling a krogan on a blood rage. When it was over, Grunt stood tall over the corpse of a dead asari Samara had killed.
"Battlemaster promised blood!" Grunt cheered, kicking the mutilated body, "He did not disappoint! This battle was glorious!"
A final shout echoed through the room and everyone turned to see Enyala thrown back and stunned. Before the asari could recover, Miranda had shoved her onto her knees and rose a biotic fist. The asari tried futiley to get up, but whatever Miranda had done had worn out her remaining strength. With a cry of fury, Miranda's fist descended and Enyala's death was marked with a sickening crunch as the asari's skull most likely exploded from the impact, body falling limp to the ground and purple blood oozed from her broken nose.
Breathing heavily, Miranda turned and almost collapsed, if it hadn't been for Jacob catching hold of her, "When did Grunt get here?" She asked through ragged breaths.
"Via the express route," Zaeed pointed behind him to the gunship's wreck.
"The Illium's city council won't be happy that we literally turned the docks into a post-war battlefield museum," Jacob stated.
"I think its an improvement," Zaeed expressed.
"Recommend we leave," Mordin piped in, "Before police arrive. Awkward questions to answer. Much prefer not to answer." With a nod, the group left the building, heading for Oriana's transport, leaving what's left of an evacuating eclipse mercenary force to answer for what happened. Eclipse would have a few less mercs now.
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September 6, 2185
1753 hours.
Docking Cradle 106, Docks, Nos Astra, Illium.
First Lieutenant Miranda Lawson, Soldier Grunt, Second Lieutenant Jacob Taylor.
There she was. Oriana Lawson, Miranda Lawson's sister, with her family. She really was growing up to be a beautiful young woman. She had short brown hair, with lopped unchecked around her head, with loose strands falling into her face that were now tucked firmly behind her ears. She wore a fitting long red dress, that was far more modest than Miranda's, doing better to hide her sizable cleavage. She had shining blue eyes and smooth, ample cheeks to fit her kind personality. Just like Miranda, grown to be perfect. And yet she wasn't. Noone was. And unlike her sister, Oriana didn't know or particulary care.
Miranda watched from a hidden bench many meters away. Oriana talked happily with her mother and father, saying goodbye to friends and residentual family as she and her family prepared to leave Illium. She giggled, laughed and gossiped, completely oblivious to the betrayal, deaths and destruction that were done to ensure her leave was safe. That her unknown father had tried to abduct her with Eclipse mercenaries and failed. All because of a sister she couldn't remember. Tears stung Miranda's eyes once more and once more, like the well-trained operative she was, she bit down on her lip to keep from crying.
Jacob sat with her, Zaeed taking Mordin, Samara and Grunt to wait at Eternity. They would be stuck on Illium for a while yet and Liara had contacted them, letting them know that she was going to let the group rest the night at her personal apartment complex. Miranda had thanked the asari over vidcomm; she was very helpful for someone she didn't know. The operative sighed as she watched Oriana prepare to board the transport, walking with a positive bounce in her step; an exuberance Miranda knew she could never possess. Oriana had a life she wish she could have.
An elbow nudged her in the ribs. She immediately turned to face Jacob, who looked at her with a smile, motioning to Oriana, "Go."
"'Go' what?" Miranda asked.
"Don't, just don't," Jacob stated sternly, "You've never talked to your sister in proper conversation. God Miri, the last time you saw Oriana was when she was...what? Five? She's a grown woman now; she deserves to know who her sister is. Go talk to her. Say hello. Hug her. Anything."
"I can't just waltz into her life like nothing happen," Miranda replied, tears once again stinging her eyes. A tear streaked past, "What do I say? 'Oh, hi Ori! I'm that big sister you knew nothing about and didn't even know existed! I just saved you from a company of eclipse out to kidnap and return you to a psychotic father who grew you from a test tube!' That's one hell of a greeting."
"Did I say to give her a summary of unknown events?" Jacob stated, "Just go up and hug her, tell her you love her. It'll do Oriana good to know she has a sister looking out for her."
"A sister working for Cerberus?"
"Who cares?" Jacob asked, "If Oriana really who you say she is, then you won't give a fuck whether you work for the damn fish and chip shop. Go. Otherwise I'll have to go all Cerberus Emergency Protocol #196 on your ass."
"Okay, okay. You've made your point," with that, the woman nervously stood up and began moving towards Oriana and her family, who had their luggage and were preparing to go onboard. Miranda's steps were slow and disjointed, awkward and off. She felt like a poorly-handled puppet, the master trying to move the strings but not doing it well enough. Her mind battled over whether this was the right thing to do. Should I just walk away?
The intercom decided for her, "Final Boarding Call to all passengers. The MSV Saratoga leaves in seven minutes. Final takeoff checks being made. Board when ready." With that, a swarm of people converged on the ship and Miranda knew it was now or never. Damn whatever logic dictated.
And suddenly she was jogging, jogging hard and fast until she erupted out of the air infront of Oriana, the surprised look on the woman's face causing a smirk to break on her face.
"Um, hello? And who might you be?" Oriana asked in her usually cheerful voice, reaching out a hand to her, "My name is Rebecca Richards."
You think it is, "My name is Miranda Lawson," she took the woman's hand and shook it before hugging her tightly, surprising Oriana even further, "And I love you, sis."
Oriana quickly pushed her away, "Sis? I don't have any sisters..."
"Not that you know of," Miranda addressed, "Your real name is Oriana Lawson."
"That's not true!" Oriana shouted, suddenly angry, "How dare you-"
"It's true, Rebe-I mean Ori," her foster mother interrupted, causing Oriana to whorl on them, "Rebecca Richards is a name we made up so you would be safe from your father. Your real father. He wants to do bad things to you, but this woman saved you."
Oriana immediately turned to Miranda, tears in her eyes, "You saved me? Your my...sister?"
"Yes, Ori. Yes I am," Miranda smiled hugely for what felt like the first time in a decade.
Oriana laughed happily, "I have a sister!" The young woman suddenly leapt forward and embraced Miranda, and the operative did not hold back. She kissed the top of Oriana's scalp, smiling the entire time, "Yes, Ori. And I will protect you for as long as I live."
And for the first time, Miranda forgot she worked for the Illusive Man. For Shepard. For Cerberus.
She was with her sister. And she was a woman now.
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September 8, 2185
1109 hours.
Offices, Parliament Subcommittee of Transhuman Studies Headquarters, Byzantine, Constantinople.
Commander Marcus Lee Shepard.
The blackness that had been Marcus' slumber was abruptly interrupted, and it wasn't forced. As his eyes fluttered open, he drunk in his surroundings; The office was small and cluttered, with pale yellow walls, and messy terminal desks. The air was stale and without smell, so stale that it almost made him gag at first. He blinked three times to clear the bluriness that had covered his sight, the world becoming much clearer in an instant. He noticed a single man guarding him, one of the human biotic terrorists, back to him and hands clasped behind his back firmly, not wearing the armor he had been before.
Trying to move, he became abundantly aware of the cuffs binding him to the office desk and that he was no longer wearing his armor. With a groan, the stiff pain in his back came back to him in an instant, and he groaned. His captor merely gave him a passing glance before turning back to stare at the same wall once more, letting a bitter laugh escape his lips. The captured spectre took no notice of him, instead focusing on the present. He quickly realized that his squad was nowhere to be seen.
Got to get out of here. And what about Tali? Is she safe? If they've hurt her, I swear I'll kill them...
A overly generous voice, not one befitting of intimidation, rudely broke through his musings, "It would seem the great commander has finally awoken. You sleep fast; you're other comrades still slumber."
He turned to the source of the voice and saw his guard standing aside as Rahna strode in. Her steps were graceful, fluid and scripted, moving with a grace he had only seen in Tali and Liara. Her hair flowed like a river down the back of her body, brown locks glistening in the room's lighting. Her eyes were sapphire blue, with rose red lips. Her skin was smooth, with a scar along the side of her head. Obviously tried to rip out her implant.
"Rahna," Marcus groaned, his voice hoarse.
"You know my name," Rahna responded, sitting cross-legged infront of him, "A prisoner who knows his captor's name. Good. You'll remember who captured you then; Commander Shepard, Hero of the Citadel and Slayer of Saren Arterius."
"You're not very intimidating Rahna, so don't bother," Marcus responded more harshly than he had intended, "I didn't come to hurt you. Only to settle this situation."
"The Alliance sent you to clean up. I know how alliance operations work," Rahna hissed, eyes narrowing.
"Normal Alliance operation, you mean. This is above and beyond the usual MO," The spectre replied, "Why else would they send me after you? What, a young girl terrorist? You think the man who defeated hordes of deadly synthetics, destroyed a Reaper and killed the greatest spectre to serve the Council would waste his time killing a frightened girl? How low do you think I am? I came to help you. Well, more so to help a friend help you."
Rahna raised both brows at this, "A friend? I fear I do not know of this friend you speak of. All my friends are here, with me, fighting for a good cause."
A good cause, but risking your lives too, he thought, but thought better of mentioning it, "His name is Kaidan Alenko."
The name caused a spark of recognition for Rahna; he could see it in her eyes. She seemed to freeze for a second, not knowing what to say, before hiding the emotion behind an emotionless wall and moving to quickly stand, looking down on him. With a shake of her head, she turned to his guard, "Uncuff him and bring him outside. Order the National Guard representatives to meet us outside. Bring all our hostages, including Shepard's team."
The guard nodded and Rahna departed, sparing Marcus a dismissive glance before disappearing, the spectre feeling the man's hands uncuffing him before roughly picking him up. Marcus had superior biotic training and augmented muscles, but Marcus thought better of killing this man. He was doing what he did to make his own life better; to end his pain. Marcus could understand that. He didn't deserve death. Marcus let him guide him along as he was taken outside.
Upon moving outside, he noticed that Constantinople had moved into its night cycle, but it was the next day, he knew that for sure. This planet's time tables could really get to his head if he wasn't careful. Pushed along, he waited there, his hands left unbound as the guard stood behind him, pistol unholstered. These terrorists were pretty confident, he'd give them that much. It wasn't long before the hostages joined him, followed by his crew. They were lined up single file and Thane quickly joined his side, with Garrus next to the drell. Looking further left, he spotted Tali just past Garrus and they both met each other's eyes, Marcus giving the quarian a warm smile to reassure her before turning back.
The National Guard took their time arriving. They stood there for a full hour before they finally arrived, and in force. A convoy of Makos arrived, but neither side opened fire. Marcus noticed the troopers keeping their distance and glanced behind him, seeing that every one of the prisoner's had a terrorist behind them, weapon ready. He turned back around and gulped. If this goes downhill, they're going to execute us. He looked for Kaidan among the prisoners, but couldn't find him. What has Rahna done with him?
His question was quickly answered. As quickly as the thoughts had been voiced in his mind, he heard the familiar voice of Kaidan's grunt coming from behind him and the man was quickly thrust in front of him, Rahna personally leading him forward with a pistol. He only stopped once Rahna grabbed him by the arm, using the other to press the pistol barrel into the back of his spine.
"Which one is the leader of this little band of soldiers?" Rahna demanded, her voice reaching an extremely loud crescendo as she spoke so she could be heard across the main yard. Many moments passed before the phalanx like formation of troopers in the yard parted to let a single soldier out, the group commander.
"That would be me," the woman declared, "Commander of National Guard Detachment Byzantine Station. To who do I address?"
"That is of no consequence and is not important," Rahna stated firmly, "I've come to make a demand. I've got your great commander on a leash. If you want him released, you'll give us the reparations. You'll also find our parents and send us back to them. Conatix Industires must pay for what they did to us."
The woman hesitated, but Rahna noticed this, immediately turning to his group and ordering one of them pulled out, "If you don't," Marcus watched in horror as Tali was brought out and shoved onto her knees, the man guarding her shoving a pistol into the back of her head. Fear shot through his muscles as he contemplated what to do. What if Rahna kills her as an example? No, she won't. She can't.
"If you don't, I will start to kill the hostages, one by one, starting with the great Tali'Zorah," Rahna declared, not even smiling. Marcus gave a silent sigh of relief, thanking hashem for sparing the love of his life. He looked up and his eyes met Rahna's, but she quickly looked away. She had seen his reaction to Tali being taken and she knew what it meant. He silently cursed himself. Before anything else could be said, Kaidan's voice spoke up.
"Rahna, don't do this...," he begged, "You're not a murderer and you're not a terrorist. You can get the reparations, but you don't need to do this to get it."
"They won't listen to us! That's just it!" Rahna shouted back, both confusion and anger in her voice. She was battling her own logic within, "I had to do this because they refused us! That son of a bitch denied us what we rightfully deserved! It was ours! You, of all people Kaidan, should understand this! Conatix destroyed us!"
"Of course I know. I killed Vrynnus to stop him from hurting you," Kaidan responded, "But there's always another way. Violence isn't the answer. You know this Rahna; you scolded me for killing Vrynnus!"
"Are you calling me a hypocrite?"
"Yes, I am!" Kaidan scolded, "Don't do this! Shepard can help you!"
Rahna rounded on Marcus, looking him deep in the eyes, before waving a pistol dismissively at him, "I don't think so. The only way they'll listen is if they have their own people cuffed up and tortured until they do listen. And because of your unwillingness to answer, we will now inflict the first injury. Joffrey," she turned to Tali's captor, "Shut off her bacterial filters. Make her a little bit sick."
Marcus whirled on him in an instant, realizing what this would mean. Tali was already sick from their pre-mission activities; if she got any more bacteria...he had to stop them from killing her. He immediately all the strength he had in his biotics and shoved a warp field at the guard. Just as he reached the quarian, the warp threw him into the ground with a grunt. One of the guards tried to grab him, but he quickly knocked him back with his cuffs, heat burning his face from the omni-cuffs.
He fell to the ground, dodging a warp field as best he could as he rushed towards Tali. He slid to her feet, raising a biotic field around them. Good she's safe. Now-
"I imagined you being smarter than that, Shepard," Rahna's voice threatened. He turned and saw her holding Kaidan, pistol pressed to the side of his head. He heard Lia's sobs and turned to see the rest of his team in similiar positions. You fucking idiot.
"Drop the field or I'll kill him," Rahna demanded. Tali had stopped trying to rip off her cuffs, stopping all movement and looking blankly at Rahna. Marcus felt the fear he felt before vent out, realizing Rahna was bluffing. He'd have to take a risk and call her out on her bullshit. It wasn't risky, but there wasn't a viable alternative.
"No you won't," Marcus stated. Tali's look shot to him, but she trusted him. He had a plan. She could tell. She just hoped her faith in him was enough. She coughed.
Rahna's eyes widened. He knew it, "Yes, I will."
"No you won't," Kaidan replied, realizing Shepard's plan, "You won't shoot me because I'm your friend. I saved you from Vrynnus. I even loved you. And you? I was your best friend Rahna! You had a big circle of friends, but I was your number one!"
Rahna seemed to be fazed. Her grip faltered on Kaidan, but it was still strong enough to control him, "That doesn't change a thing."
"It does," Kaidan corrected, "I know what you've been through. I've learnt to live with it, but I'm not asking you to do the same thing. I'm asking you to do the right thing. You won't kill me because I'm the only high-ranking alliance member who knows what you went through. The only one who could make a difference. You won't kill me, because I can make them change their minds."
That destroyed the remainder of Rahna's resolve. The pistol collapsed from her grip, clattered to the ground like a broken toy. She let go of Kaidan and the biotic, the only one without cuffs, turned towards her, opening his arms, "I can help."
Rahna burst into tears, dropping what was left of her terrorist act. She collapsed into his arms, crying hersterically into his shoulder, the words 'I want it to stop' and 'make the pain stop' occassionally being said through the sobbing. Marcus dropped his field and turned towards the National Guard, who had backed off, weapons raised, but were now lowering them. He turned to Tali, "Are you okay?"
"Only my dignity has been pained, Marcus," Tali responded, smiling behind her helmet as the spectre chuckled. He stood up, helping the quarian to his feet before approaching the duo. Rahna had stopped sobbing, motioning for her friends to release the hostages. As soon as he was released, Chairman Burns ran towards the Guard unit and hid behind the commander, pointing at Rahna.
"Kill her! She's insane! They're all feral! If you don't give them what they want, they become uncontrollable!"
"Then give them what they want."
Burns immediately turned to Kaidan, who looked at him in silent fury. Burns hesitated for a second before responding, "Excuse me?"
"You fucking heard me," Kaidan growled, "Give them the reparations. Its what they deserve. Quit playing around and give it to them."
"You don't give me-"
"What would happen if Admiral Hackett heard of this?" Marcus queried.
"Admiral Hackett does not own the Transhuman Studies industry," Burns dismissed.
"No, but his friends in parliament do," Marcus responded, "And what about Councilor Anderson? I'm sure he'd be absolutely pissed to hear about this. See that they get the reparations, or your career as a researcher is over, Burns."
"You're bluffing-"
"Don't call it," Marcus hissed and an awkward silence followed. Neither side said anything but before he could break it, Burns spoke, "Very well, you will get your reparations. Did I mention how much I hate biotics?"
"Did I mention how much I hate politicians?" Marcus responded.
Burns was outraged, "No, you didn-"
"That was rhetorical," the spectre replied harshly, "Now get out of here."
Burns, annoyed, turned and left, along with the other hostages. Marcus nodded to Kaidan and allowed him some time with Rahna to say goodbye. He followed his squad back to the hammerhead; sure that the vehicle's power would be restored by now.
Seeing Marcus and his squad leave, Kaidan turned back to Rahna, "You're welcome."
"Shut up," Rahna replied, but there was nothing left of the harshness in her voice, only playfulness, "This is...just so sudden. I haven't seen you in ages, Kaidan. I admit it...I missed you. It wasn't right how I treated you..."
"I had just killed our teacher," Kaidan said with no humor in his voice or on his face, "I'd be scared of myself too."
"It's good to see you again," Rahna admitted, holding an arm bashfully, "Really good. I know the situation isn't exactly the best for a reunion, but...I figured I'd just say it. You know...for old times sake."
"Touche," Kaidan replied, smiling, "Look, about what I said about loving you. I did mean it, but that was years ago."
"I know," Rahna replied sorrowfully.
"I met someone else, and I loved her too," Kaidan admitted.
"Can I meet her?" Rahna asked, a warm smile on her own face.
Kaidan smiled weakly, "Wish you could. She's dead. Her name was Ashley Williams, Heroine of Virmire."
"Oh...," Rahna said, hugging him, "I'm so sorry."
"Don't be," Kaidan responded equally, returning the warm embrace, "It's a well-healed wound, two years in the making. I've come to terms with it. I really loved her, but I never got the chance to tell her in person. I wish we could talk more, but I've got a mission with Shepard to get back to. People to pick up on Illium and an army of collectors to stop."
"Collectors?" Rahna asked, breaking off her embrace, "Aren't those just a myth?"
"I wish they were, but I've fought them Rahna, and they are real, and scary. They abducted an entire colony in a ship so massive, I think it eclipsed Sovereign by a kilometer," Kaidan thought, turning to the hammerhead, "I-I should get going."
"Of course," Rahna stated, turning back to her own team, "I should get these guys out of here before Burns decides to do a 180 on us."
"Trust me, with Shepard watching him like a hawk, he won't. And if he does, it won't end well for him," Kaidan joked, "We'll keep in touch via the extranet?"
"Old exmail address?" she asked.
"Old exmail address," Kaidan asked in turn and before he could turn and leave, Rahna grabbed his arm and turned him around, "Yes?" he asked dumbly.
He didn't see it coming until it happened. Rahna moved forward, pressing her lips against his. Lips locked for a second before Rahna pulled away, "Something to remember me by. I've wanted to do that for a while you know."
Kaidan was shocked, "You actually felt the same way?"
"Yep," Rahna winked, "Maybe you'll remember that." Before he could say anything else, she was gone, headed towards her group, a new bounce in her step. He chuckled as he headed back to the hammerhead, smiling the entire way. The day had turned out better than he imagined.
And all thanks to Shepard.
"I do remember Rahna after that."
- Garrus Vakarian.
"Wasn't it during the Reaper War?"
- Tali'Shepard pav Rannoch.
"Indeed it was."
- Interrogation Subject 001.
"Must we keep calling him this? We already know his name. Enough with the pseudonym."
- Tali'Shepard pav Rannoch.
"Whatever."
- Commander Reia'Inas pav Earth.
"So, what happened next?"
- Garrus Vakarian.
"The Collectors did."
- Marcus Shepard.
A/N:
WHERE ARE YOU GUYS!? I only got ONE review last chapter! Did you read it and not review, or not at all? If the latter, PLEASE COME BACK. I need reviews for sustenance. I need my fix of feedback, positive or negative. GIVE ME. GIVE ME GIVE ME GIVE ME.
This chapter didn't turn out the way I wanted it to, Kaidan's loyalty mission wise. Miranda's conclusion felt satisfying, but Kaidan's...I don't know, I felt like I rushed it. I went back and tried again, but nothing came to mind. So in the end, this is the final copy. I hope you like it either way.
So, as you can gather from Shepard's cryptic words, the Collectors are up next. What do the collectors have prepared this time? And yes, Lia has a loyalty mission, although it isn't anything big.