One of my beta readers was able to connect all the dots and figure out what's going on. So far, no one else, though I've gotten a few emails from readers who've come close. This chapter is not for the squeamish. Stockholm syndrome is one of those strange things in life that's difficult to understand for those on the outside looking in. I thought it was covered to a certain degree in the first season of the series "Homeland", of course this situation is entirely different, and in many ways, worse.

"In situations of captivity the perpetrator becomes the most powerful person in the life of the victim, and the psychology of the victim is shaped by the actions and beliefs of the perpetrator."

Judith Lewis Herman

April 27th, 2188

Dr. Gavin Archer

The screaming went on all night long. Gavin covered his head with his pillow to no avail. His own human empathy was like a raw nerve turned against him. The torture that went on behind the wall in that hellish cell was like alcohol being poured over that nerve. Lawson's torment, though diminished by space and otherness, reached him. It brought him night terrors—memories of all the similar things he'd endured.

It was in direct conflict to the fulfillment of his purpose, the purpose set forth by the noise, the noise that came from Shepard. She, it, was cognizant of Lawson's presence, still had ties to her. Lawson's well-being was a concern for the entity that Shepard had become, or was becoming. It still cared. Perhaps loved was a better word. Its feelings for Miranda Lawson were powerful. Miranda's suffering became Shepard's suffering, became Gavin's directive. He had to stop it, though he did not know how.

Worse, Nicholas made him party to it, if only to remind him how close he was to returning to his prone position beneath her almighty boot heel. She was a monster, undiluted, uninhibited by morality or empathy of any kind, and as far as Gavin could tell, unrestricted by duty. What she was doing was getting her no further to her objective, Petrovsky's objective. In fact, it was only getting her further away.

That was the key to making it stop, Petrovsky himself. However, Gavin couldn't go to the man with unsubstantiated charges. He had to prove that Nicholas's failures were created by resistance to her duty rather than misguided exuberance. The question was, why did she resist? How is it that someone engineered to be perfectly capable could fail in every single task she was given? The answers were there, somewhere. If he could only find them he might be free of her at last.

He heard it again, the discordant buzz. Unlike the machine hum that came from Shepard, this noise was distinctively organic. Somewhere in his cell was an insect, perhaps a mosquito of a kind. He couldn't find it. It hadn't bitten him, not yet, but it was a constant pest. It disrupted his thoughts and distracted him from his task. It had become a growing annoyance.

He'd first heard the sound when Nicholas had returned. No doubt, her team had failed to decontaminate themselves before coming through the airlock and into the facility. Where had they been? Benning, he had heard. They probably had mosquito larva on their boots. Damn it all, it was the last thing he needed. It reminded him too much of Aite.

The insects were thick on Aite, especially near the wreckage of the Geth ship. There were caves beneath that wreck, a labyrinth of lava tubes that went deep into the planet. A few members of his team wanted to explore them, but Gavin had forbidden it. The Illusive Man was in a hurry, and failure was not an option.

At first, they protested his restrictions, but when the one team that disobeyed orders was lost to them, they fell in line. That team, Conner's team, vanished from contact only hours after setting off into the labyrinth beneath the Geth wreckage. They were probably killed by accidentally breaching a magma chamber. It would explain why security couldn't even get static when they tried to establish contact. At least it was a quick death for Conner. He deserved a good death, if any death was good. The kid was brilliant despite his crazy theories.

Dr. Conner Watts believed there were ancient races still living in the galaxy, races that had hidden from the Reapers over the cycles. He also believed that the Reapers were always on the hunt for these races. He collected strange artifacts, cave paintings, and mysterious orbs from ancient dig sights. The Illusive Man let him indulge in these fantasies, and ultimately it led to his undoing. He was convinced that the Geth were on Aite for a reason, perhaps searching for one of these missing races. Sadly, Conner never got his answers.

Gavin sat up, listening. At last there was silence. It seemed that Nicholas was finally satiated for the night. Either that or Lawson had already succumbed to the inevitable. After all, the human body and mind was only capable of so much punishment. He sat at the edge of the bed and waited. The knock came. It was Nicholas.

The woman was always so calm after torture, so at ease with herself. Her serene expression was not unlike that of a newborn that had just taken milk from its mother's breast, and that was the most harrowing aspect of all—the degree to which human pain and suffering satisfied her. It wasn't just mental illness. There was something deeper, more sinister at play.

If this was Cerberus's idea of improvement, the future face of humanity, then it was worse than anything the Reapers were trying to accomplish by destroying the species altogether. Gavin shuddered at the thought of more creatures like Nicholas being brought into existence. It would be an abomination, an entire race of super predators. Gavin could easily envision Nicholas and her ilk sweeping across the stars on behalf of humanity, crushing every alien species before them.

Physically, she was stronger than a Krogan, perhaps as strong as a Yahg. Her biotics were beyond anything he'd seen, even from an Asari Matriarch. Her intelligence was also highly developed, perhaps not quite a match for a Salarian, at least not yet, but what about the generation that came after her? The galaxy would be as helpless before them as it was the Reapers, and this time there would be no secret weapon to save the cycle. Somehow he had to stop her. No, that was a foolish thought. He'd only fail.

Nicholas snapped her fingers. "Go to the dispensary, retrieve some hygienic supplies and medical kit and report to Lawson's cell. Render assistance and get her cleaned up. I want her fresh and alert in six hours. If she's not, and I'm forced to let her rest, then you and I get to spend a little quality time together in your old cell. Would you like that, Gavin? I'll make sure it's just like it used to be."

Her responded respectfully. "Yes, Ma'am, no Ma'am."

She tilted her head, regarding him with that casual expression that betrayed a generous amount of contempt mixed with amusement. There was also just a sliver of longing, like a child would regard a toy that they had broken and cast aside for newer and better instruments, but no matter how disused the toy had become, the urge to play with it one more time would always return. Gavin trembled as he watched the longing play out in her expression.

Nicholas grabbed hold of him and bit into his neck, drawing blood. After she removed her teeth from the wound, she licked the blood from his flesh as if it were honey, savoring every drop of it. He responded sexually, against his own will. That was always the worst part, the way his body betrayed him every time she touched him, no matter how repulsed he was by her presence. He hated her, but he couldn't resist her. Whenever she did this to him, that's when the real terror would begin, that's when he wished he could end himself. There were so many times he wanted to die.

Nicholas mused. "She's harder to train than you were. You were always such a good boy, Gavin, so eager to please. I bet you were nothing but a disappointment to your parents and superiors, no real talent, nothing but a lapdog. Is that about right? Lawson won't give me what I want. She's too proud, too well trained, unlike you. Men like you are simple, so much more responsive to the right application of pressure."

Gavin shuddered as her hand slipped into his trousers and found what it was looking for. Nicholas knew everything about him. He had no secrets from her, save that one thing, that one solitary thing. She didn't know, and he couldn't let her find out. But what if she sensed it? Dammit, she would know. She always found out. He had no defense against her.

She leered. "Do you want to be a good boy for me?"

His head bounced up and down in affirmation like a puppy wagging its tail. She said something about giving him a treat, which made him happy, again, against his will. Why did it make him so happy? He hated her. He never felt right after being with her. The sexual release was always followed by guilt and pain. She moved in close. He flinched, but didn't try to get away. It was no use.

Her body radiated heat like no other woman he had known. It wasn't natural. He missed her sweet smell, hated the stench of her breath, loved her caresses, and cringed at the feel of her skin on his own. His heart began beating wildly. He tried to think of things that would prevent his arousal, but instead he gasped as her fingers brushed against his genitals ever so delicately. Gavin felt ashamed because he didn't want her to stop. He hated that the evil bitch could make him feel like this, make him dance like a puppet on a string. She forced him against the wall, then unzipped her uniform, guiding his mouth to her beautiful breasts. He went mad with desire.

Their bodies slammed into the wall, thrashing about wildly. She peeled off her uniform and let him drink in all of her perfection. There was no woman on heaven or earth more beautiful than Michelle Nicholas. It was all by design of course, she was engineered with every desirable genetic trait, created to be not only the perfect woman, but the perfect human.

Gavin would not be surprised to find out that Petrovsky's team included a Y chromosome in her genetic matrix, it only made sense, since that particular strain of DNA was more susceptible to mutation. Life forms that evolved more quickly, the Asari and many other species on Thessia, for example, never developed the male mutation gene. Their quick adaptation allowed for more efficient methods of reproduction. Gavin wondered if Nicholas would be the same. Would she even require a male to reproduce?

She pressed against him, her pheromones overwhelming his senses. Gavin surrender to the inevitable. He belonged to her. God, he needed this. He needed release. She put her mouth to his left ear, the good ear, the one she hadn't chewed off yet.

"Tell me you want me, that you'll do anything for me," she whispered.

He went cold. No, no, no, this was always bad, but if he didn't say what she wanted, there were repercussions, and they were almost always dire. He surrendered at once. He'd deal with the shame later.

"I want you, I'll do anything," he promised.

"Help me with Lawson," she demanded.

Gavin stammered. "I, I don't know how."

"Tell her what you're hiding from me," said Nicholas.

Gavin's hopes were crushed. She knew, somehow she knew. She was going to make him destroy his own last shred of humanity and Lawson's along with it.

He tried to act innocent. "What do you mean?"

She laughed. He'd failed. Nicholas locked his head in a vice grip with one hand and started squeezing while lifting him off the ground. She stared into his eyes. He'd forgotten how tall she was. She towered over him.

"Never lie to me," she said.

The pressure was intense. Nicholas could crush his skull with her one hand if she wanted. She was more than capable. He tried to squirm out of her grasp but it was pointless.

The machine sound in his head started buzzing, but it was drowned out by… damn, there was that insect again. Where was it hiding? He opened his mouth to betray Shepard, betray himself.

Nicholas set him down and put her finger on his lips. "Not yet, when it's time. Tell Lawson first, tell her all your plans. Tell her what Shepard wants you to do."

"Why?" wondered Gavin.

"I want her to believe she's going home, and then I want to crush her," said Nicholas.

Gavin shook his head in dismay. "What's the point?"

Nicholas kissed him. It was thrilling. He needed her.

"Do you love me?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered.

It was a lie. It wasn't a lie.

"That's what I want from her," said Nicholas. "Before I kill her."

Evil, pure evil. It was all so hopeless. Why had he let himself believe he could beat her? Why had he let Shepard play him for the fool?

"What else do you want?" he asked.

She showed her teeth, apparently satisfied with his answer, at least for now. She was in a playful mood, but that didn't make her less dangerous. In fact, Gavin was always in the most danger when she wasn't angry. Nicholas pushed him onto the bed, then pulled his pants off and bit into his leg. He winced. He hated it when she was in a biting mood.

They had vigorous sex. Nicholas enjoyed herself more than usual, at least three times by his count, but it was never about him as she so often liked to remind him. He was but a tool at her disposal, an object of flesh and bone that she could use as she saw fit. She never let him truly enjoy himself. Whenever his time approached she would choke him out, or hurt him in some way before she proceed to use him again. Ultimately, the only way he was allowed release was to submit himself to a particular brand of perversion that spilled out of her deranged imagination. Just when he thought she couldn't degrade him any further, she'd find something new.

She was never tender or affectionate, never loving or warm. She took everything from him and offered nothing in return, save the occasional reprieve from his torment. If she would only smile at him, give him the smallest token of dignity, then he should love her like no man had ever loved a woman. At this point it was all he wanted, really, but she was never going to give it to him.

Afterwards, she stood over him while he lay on the bed, exhausted and once again, humiliated. He worried that she hadn't had her fill, but as soon as she reached for her clothes, Gavin felt a flood of relief. Fortunately, her eyes were downcast as she pulled on her panties. If she'd seen his expression, he would have suffered for it.

"Make sure to give Miranda hope," she said. "Tell her something she wants to hear."

Gavin was at a loss. "Like what?"

Nicholas sneered at him and turned away. He felt like an idiot.

After she finished dressing and left the room, Gavin went back to hating her like he had hated no other. She was a monster, an anathema, but he had to obey her. What he was about to do to Lawson was nigh unforgivable, but he really had no choice in the matter. The former Cerberus Operative would understand the same soon enough.

He washed in the sink, filling it and splashing the cool water over his belly and groin so he could get the stench of her sex off his body. During the height of his torture she would never let him wash. He'd been forced to stew in her filth, often for several days. It was her way of reminding him that he was owned, body, mind, and soul.

Gavin left his room, set on doing exactly as she'd told him. He stopped by dispensary and asked the attendant to retrieve the supplies he needed. The woman nodded grimly and went to work. Morale appeared to be lower than ever. Gavin wasn't sure if it was due to Nicholas's failure, or other concerns. Of course, ever since he'd first arrived he noted that the Cerberus personnel at this particular base weren't exactly the happiest bunch he'd seen.

One man in particular, the chief security officer, was always glum. At the moment he sat in the commissary just across from the dispensary, in his usual spot at the bar, drinking. He worked for Nicholas. Why wouldn't he be drinking? Gavin watched the man curiously as he waited for the attendant to find all that he needed. The man turned to Gavin and made eye contact, then returned to his drink.

Once Gavin retrieved the supplies, he left for the cell block. As he passed the commissary, the man at the bar got his attention with a gesture. It was probably prudent to pass on by, but Gavin couldn't help himself. He so rarely had the freedom to interact with anyone outside the lab.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

The man waved him over. Gavin complied, glancing about to make sure no one saw. Fortunately, all security cameras had recently been removed from the base upon Petrovsky's insistence. The General never explained his reasoning, but Gavin suspected he was becoming paranoid. Perhaps he was worried that if they were raided, and data was retrieved, it could be used as evidence against him. At least that was a theory.

The man spoke. "You're Dr. Archer, aren't you?"

Gavin nodded.

He stared at Gavin's prosthetic arm. "That's an improvement over the last time I saw you."

Gavin glanced down and flexed his artificial fingers. "Yes, Nicholas wanted the best for me."

The man mocked Gavin with sardonic laughter. "Best for you, eh? You poor bastard."

Gavin was uncomfortable. This could be a trick by Nicholas. He dared not say a word against her.

The man sighed. "Yea, I get it, you are so beaten down by now that you may actually believe that shit."

Gavin said nothing.

The man took another drink. "Don't mind the supply clerk, she's had a hard day. She somehow managed to lose a whole blood supply stock. The General isn't happy."

Gavin started to move on, but the man waved him back.

"I saw them bring Miranda Lawson in, is she, I mean, how bad is it, Doc?" he asked.

Gavin stared at his medical kit. The man's expression changed to one of pain. He shook his head miserably and drained his glass.

"I joined this crew because it was obvious the Illusive Man had lost it, gone over to the Reapers, but is this any better? What are we even doing? They tell us that mankind is facing a bigger threat than before, so I go along with it, play the loyal soldier. Also, I mean, where else am I going to go? I stayed with Cerberus too long. I'm basically a war criminal now, so I'm stuck for good, but I don't like it anymore, not at all, and they don't tell us what the hell is going on in this facility," he said.

"Research," said Gavin.

"I can only imagine, considering you're here," said the man.

Gavin cocked an eyebrow inquisitively.

"Yea," said the man. "I remember you, Operation Overlord was it? Shepard had to bail your ass out. I heard about all that evil shit you did to your own brother. I wonder who the poor bastard is in that lab of yours, another autistic kid?"

Gavin's head hummed with the noise of the machine. He was supposed to say it, but why? Perhaps the machine saw this man as an ally. Before he could stop himself, the word's spilled out.

"It's Shepard," he said.

The man froze. "Is that your idea of a fucking joke?"

"No," said Gavin. "I'm deadly serious."

The color drained from the man's face.

Gavin flexed the fingers on his artificial hand. "I'll get worse than this if anyone finds out what I said to you."

Before they could exchange another word, they were interrupted by a passing guard. She halted and glared at them.

"Hadley," said the woman. "You know better than to talk to him."

"Hey," said Hadley. "I had to find out if Lawson was still alive. She used to be my boss, you know. Doesn't loyalty count for anything around here?"

The woman shook her head and frowned. "Don't, she's meat, Hadley, let it go or Nicholas will have you in an adjoining cell."

He sighed and stared at his empty drink.

"Yea, that's it," she said. "Order yourself another drink, Hadley, you can bury yourself in the bottle as much as you want, just remember to keep your mouth shut while you do it."

She turned to Gavin. "And you'd best be on your way. I'd rather not have to tattle on you to Nicholas. You're running out of shit she can cut off."

Gavin hurried away. No matter what else happened, he'd at least pulled off one act of defiance. It probably wouldn't amount to much, telling some drunk the truth, but at least he'd done something. Now he was about to betray Lawson, which washed his brief interlude with righteousness away.

The guard let him into her cell. He set his kit down, then went out to the closet and retrieved a cleaning drone. After he returned, he glanced around. The chair was empty. Where was Lawson? He finally spotted her in the corner of the room, naked, soaked in sweat, and curled into a fetal positon. The odor of the room was nauseating, a horrible mixture of human waste and burnt flesh. He'd been through this himself, so he knew just what to do. He'd made sure he brought the right chemicals and supplies.

Gavin activated the cleaning drone and let it go to work, freshening the air and cleaning the room. He approached Lawson and went to work on her without permission. Under normal circumstances he would have tried to coax her into letting him near. He would have worried a prisoner might attack him, but he knew her state from firsthand experience. Once Nicholas had spent a few hours with a person, they were all but helpless. He could have done anything to her and she might not have noticed.

Taking a breath, for fear of what he might see, he turned her over. She flopped like a useless doll. Her eyes were open, face fixed in a grimace. A quick check of her extremities revealed less damage than he expected to find. Nicholas was getting better, more refined. She'd inflicted the maximum amount of pain with the minimum amount of physical damage. Gavin wasn't sure if he was better or worse for the fact that he was her learning curve. Often, her excesses allowed him longer periods of respite because she feared he would die.

A quick check of Lawson's extremities revealed burns on the tips of her fingers, toes, tongue, and other more sensitive areas. All hair follicles on her body had been scorched off. Her teeth were blackened from burning saliva, and the skin on her ankles, wrists, chest, neck, and lower spine was marked by Lichtenberg figures.

Her breathing was shallow, but her pulse steady. He listened carefully to her heartbeat. She was free of fibrillation as expected, so she wasn't in danger of imminent death. He then ran an echo, an ECG, and an EP via his Omni-tool. There were no prominent arrhythmias, no signs of scarring, and only a faint murmur. It would be a problem later in life, but it wasn't as if she would live long enough to deal with it.

Her pupils responded slowly, and a close examination of her eyes indicated some blood vessel damage, as well as early signs that blister cataracts were forming. At this rate, she'd be blind in a few months, but the chances were she'd be dead or broken well before that happened so it wasn't a major concern, yet. It was all very impressive if one admired the sadistic application of electrical current. In that respect, Nicholas had transformed herself into an artist.

Gavin felt something, perhaps pride? Yes, he was proud of Michelle, how far she'd come. For a brief moment he reveled in her accomplishments, and then nearly choked in horror when he realized what he was feeling. Goddamn, what had she done to him? He shook off the spell and returned to work.

He washed Lawson gently using his good hand without a glove, and a soft cloth. He knew from experience that what she needed most was compassionate and dignified human contact. Someone who was trying to help her, and not harm her. Later, when she began to respond, he would give her distance. Often victims of this method of torture were docile until the shock wore off, and then they would become combative, crazed even. Before that happened, she'd be put back into the chair and restrained.

For now, he cleaned her wounds. Applied balm to all the entrance and exit burns, save those that invaded her privacy, and gave her an injection of medi-gel. As soon it hit her system, her breathing increased and she began to cry, then wail. This was always the most difficult part, returning from a near catatonic state and being plunged back into a world of despair and hopelessness.

From what he'd heard, she'd survived a week of torture before finally breaking down like this. It was impressive, truly, but it didn't do her any favors. Sometimes bravery was worse than cowardice. This was one of those times.

"Can you hear me, Lawson?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Listen, you need to stop resisting her," said Gavin.

"Bullshit," she whispered.

"You've got to stay alive," he pleaded.

Lawson closed her eyes. "No…"

"Just do as she says," said Gavin.

"Can't," said Lawson. "Can't give her anything she wants, not one opening to exploit."

"Listen," said Gavin. "Shepard is in control, but she needs time. Do you understand?"

Miranda turned to him, blinking. She was listening now.

"There's a Geth in her," said Gavin.

That part was true at least.

"She and the Geth plan on getting into our systems. From there, the Geth can propagate into any on-site computer, including our security mechs, and then we take this base and wait," said Gavin.

Lawson was quite interested now. "Wait for what?"

"Jack is on her way," whispered Gavin. "She's putting a team together—Zaeed Massani, Kasumi Goto, Justicar Samara, James Vega, and a Spectre, named Williams. They've got a ship, and they're looking for us."

"How do you know that?" asked Lawson.

"Shepard used a backdoor signal to get through to Jack, to tell her where we are. Now it's just a matter of time," explained Gavin.

Lawson's distrust did not falter. "There's no backdoor signal. It's a lie, impossible…"

Gavin cut her off. "There was a message from Jack, something, about 'mine', and she wasn't going to let Cerberus take you away."

Lawson's eyes filled with tears. There it was, hope. For some reason something he'd said struck a chord. She believed him. Why? He'd just made that up. It had just popped into his head in desperation. Still, she believed, and that was good enough. He exploited it, though not without shame.

"Give Nicholas everything she wants, give in to her every whim, that way you can be close to Shepard. She'll let you into the room. Then you can help me enact the plan," he promised.

He watched Lawson's face. She weighed his words against her better judgement, then faltered, clutching to vain hope instead of her reasoning and training. She surrendered to the lie.

"Ok," she said.

Gavin glanced around. "I'll be back when I can, hopefully soon."

He gave her a small blanket for additional comfort so she could sleep. She was still too weak to act, so it was safe. In a few hours the guards would remove her to the chair and take the blanket away so she couldn't use it to suffocate or strangle herself.

Tomorrow, Nicholas would start on her. Lawson would begin to resist before ultimately breaking and giving in. She would tell herself that she was doing it for Shepard, that help was on the way, and that soon she'd be free again, but unfortunately, all she was doing was moving one step closer to being another one of Nicholas's puppets, just as he was.

As soon as Lawson fell asleep, Gavin left the room. Nicholas kept her distance until he was safely away from the cell. She waited for him in the main hall. As he approached, he was afraid she would punish him for what he had withheld for so long, instead, she smiled. It was the first time she'd ever looked at him with affection. It utterly thrilled him. She reached out and stroked the side of his cheek with tenderness. That simple act made his heart swell with joy.

"Excellent work," she said.

She left him there in the hallway, exhilarated, exuberant that he'd finally managed to please her. The organic buzzing filled his ears. He swatted at empty air to no avail. Nearby, he thought he saw something strange in the hallway, a heat shimmer. Worrying that the environmental controls might be malfunctioning, he checked the ventilation. There were no output vents nearby, puzzling.

'I must be tired,' he thought.

Gavin went back to his room and fell asleep. Periodically he would awaken to check for mosquito bites, but there were none he could find.

Up Next: Josslyn Shepard's final trip down memory lane.