Well it had to happen sometime. I recently got orders to deploy, and I'm heading off to Sand Land. Hello, 140 degree weather.
With this, we are done with ME2. Please let me know what you think of the ending!
Chapter Forty-eight
The Olympus, Secure Communications
"Hold on, start over from the beginning," Hackett ordered. "Agent Lawson sent you what, exactly?"
"About twelve hours ago, we received a burst transmission from Agent Lawson," Pressly explained. "The message only contained some encrypted data, and we asked our friendly neighborhood geth to crack it. According to EDI, it was more of a data fragment, part of an archive that she thinks Agent Lawson attempted to copy from somewhere. She only got a couple files from it, if the geth aren't selling us a bridge and hiding the real message."
"What are the files?"
"That's the interesting part, sir. They read like experiment logs, and the names of the subjects are very familiar to us."
The fleet admiral thought for a moment and groaned. "Please tell me one of them isn't Saren Arterius."
"I'm afraid I cannot do that, sir."
Hackett slapped his forehead and dragged his palm down his face, already feeling the impending migraine. "Great."
"The other name is the more troubling one, sir. Hierarchy Captain Vyrnnus. According to the Spectre, he was later demoted to Commander and discharged. He's the last of the major Culexus subjects at large."
Hackett blinked. "If the file refers to him as a captain, then it must date from a while back."
"EDI's estimation is that the file dates back to the Second Contact War and the period right after Admiral Drescher retook the planet."
"Wait just a damned minute. Are you saying that these are Alliance experiment logs?" the admiral demanded.
Pressly's holographic figure shrugged. "I can't say myself, sir."
"I was the captain of the St. Helens," Hackett recalled. "We held the prisoners in our brig. Nothing was supposed to happen on the carrier without me knowing about it." His brow furrowed. "Wait, Miranda was operating in the Terminus Systems. Why would anyone there have a file like this? And who did she get it from?"
"You would probably know better than I would, sir. I take it that Agent Lawson's work is compartmentalized, and we don't have a need to know."
Hackett ignored him, thinking back to his previous conversation with Dr. Vahlen and General Summers. Then he looked back up. "Where are you now, Commander?"
"We're holding position inside of the Citadel. The Spectre got a tip that Vyrnnus headed to the Citadel, and we recently heard that Citadel Security HQ was attacked. The Spectre, the Quarian, the Captain and the marines went down to investigate and-" Pressly turned away to acknowledge something on his end. "Sir, we just confirmed the identity of the Embassy attackers. They're under attack by the Vex. The Relief Detachment is en route to evacuate them."
"The 'Vex'?" The older officer parroted.
"Long story short, renegade geth allied with the Reapers. Sir, I'll have to cut this short. The situation over here just went really pear-shaped."
"Keep me informed." The hologram winked out, and Hackett stepped out of the room. "Commander Chen!"
The officer in question ran up to him. "Sir?"
"Have we had any contact with Agent Lawson recently?"
The woman pursed her lips and shook her head. "No sir. Our last communique was over two weeks ago. Her last report was that she was about to attack the Shadow Broker's ship."
"Get ahold of her right now," Hackett ordered. "Emergency orders to communicate. I want you to let me know the moment you make contact with her."
"Right away, sir!"
Citadel, Alliance Embassy
General Summers snarled again as his attempt to rip apart the humanoid abomination in front of him was aborted in favor of shielding himself from another determined assault. One on one, even as an unaugmented human, he would have had little trouble dismembering his opponent. The problem was the geth surrounding him on all sides, supporting his opponent by continuously bombarding him with bluish plasma. The situation was not helped at all by the arrival of geth Crawlers and Baller units. Now his psionic shields were constantly battered and barraged by enemy fire from every side. But the moment he tried to summon up a rift to shred the geth, this damned enemy biotic got right in his face.
A long time ago, he'd refused gene mods as a matter of personal principle, swearing to defeat the Ethereal menace as a baseline human to prove that it was possible. At the time, it was meant to inspire his comrades and subordinates. Later, when he'd been revived, he had again refused, but on the basis of his future position as a general officer, too old and injured to take to the field. Now, he was beginning to regret that choice. His aged human body, even with the more crippling effects of time reversed through medical treatment, was simply incapable of holding up well enough in the face of this extended fight. The only thing keeping him moving, and therefore alive, was his psionic abilities, and those would give out, sooner or later.
It was only a momentary lapse in his full attention. His eyes were drawn to the somewhat familiar screech of an Alliance Skyranger overhead. In an instant, he stepped back in time. He was wearing carapace armor once again, one hand clenched firmly around a pistol scavenged from a dead comrade, and desperately fighting his way to the LZ for evac. He flicked his eyes back, and for that instant, he saw not the glowing blue eyes of the strange human biotic, but the dead glassy eyes of a chryssalid-infested corpse.
The corpse swung its arm, and he instinctively raised his arm as he'd done almost two hundred years ago. The impact sent him flying.
And now history and the present diverged. In his memories, he'd scrambled back up and fired a lucky shot right to the solar plexus that destroyed the egg, dropping the corpse to the ground. Instead, he found his chest was inexplicably heavy, and the corpse was standing over him. He blinked, and just as the image cleared, bringing him back to reality and revealing the strange enemy biotic, the world flashed blue.
There was no mistaking the figure on the ground as the enemy withdrew from its strike. To her credit, Lieutenant Colonel Nagase remained professional, even as she witnessed the death of the Alliance's Chief Military Officer.
"Friendly down! Friendly down at the Embassy!"
"Hot drop!" Shepard ordered, rising to her feet.
The Arkbird ejected the cover plates as it passed over before slewing around, already opening the rear door and unraveling the ziplines.
"Go, go, go!" the gunnery sergeant bellowed as he and Shepard led the charge off the ramp, swinging down to take cover behind the plates just as the Vex turned their attention and fire onto the newly deployed marines.
"Unidentified tango!"
"I'll handle it!" Shepard roared, leaping forward to intercept the charging figure as the Skyranger turned and unleashed its plasma projectors.
"All units, this is Lieutenant Colonel Nagase, callsign Arkbird. We are deploying reinforcements from the Normandy under the orders of Captain Shepard. We have established a fire position near the main building! Check your fire!"
"This is Warden. Please authenticate. Lima Romeo Two."
The colonel swore as she glanced down at her kneepad. "Whiskey Niner Delta!"
"Arkbird, say your exact position, over."
"Warden, I have a squad of marines and Captain Shepard holding at the wreckage that used to be the main Embassy building! I'm running overwatch with a Skyranger, but we got geth pouring out the ass over here!" Instincts forced her to jerk her craft to the side as a bolt of biotic energy sailed past from the melee down below.
"Copy. Your position is at the main building. Be advised, I am sending our heavy armor unit up from behind. Be on the lookout for any survivors."
"Hate to tell you this, Warden, but there ain't gonna be any survivors! The fucking geth just killed the General!"
There was an excruciatingly long silence over the line. "Arkbird, say again. Repeat your last transmission."
"General Summers is confirmed KIA! We are dealing with the force responsible!"
The speaker on the other end voiced the thoughts of every marine in earshot. "God damn it!"
Citadel, Evacuation Route
Captain Anderson groaned and rested his forehead on his palm, drawing a concerned look from the corpsman behind him.
"Are you okay, sir?"
The captain looked back. "I'm fine. It's just…hell, General Summers is dead."
The petty officer paled. "The general?!"
"He may be dead, but this isn't the time for us to worry about that," Anderson said sharply. "Lieutenant, I assume you heard the radio chatter. There's nothing we can do about that right now, so focus on the task at hand. We need to get the civilians to the docks, understood?"
"Loud and clear, sir," Kyle Shepard answered nervously.
"Arkbird, this is Vanguard. We are escorting the civilians to the docks for extraction. Do you have anyone there to meet and greet?"
"Vanguard, this is Pixy. I got a bunch of marines raring to go at the docks, and I am headed your way to provide overwatch."
Anderson grinned, in spite of the growing bruise on the side of his head. "Hello again, buddy. Just like old times, eh?"
"Open line, Blackhorse. That stuff is still classified, remember?" A short pause. "Heads up. I got three Citadel Security air transports heading your way."
"About time they showed up," Anderson growled. "Try and make contact so we can coordinate with them."
"Not answering hails. All three of them have some kind of battle damage though."
The captain frowned. "What the hell happened at C-Sec?"
"Orders, sir?" Kyle asked.
The senior officer thought for a moment. Meanwhile, the communications sergeant made his way forward. "Sir, we just copied a hail on the usual channel we use to communicate with C-Sec."
"Stand by, Shepard," the captain ordered while gesturing to the sergeant to switch channels. "This is Captain Anderson of the Alliance Navy. Who am I speaking to?"
"Sir, this is Lieutenant Halven Reken of C-Sec. You may have heard that our HQ was attacked a while ago. We just heard the distress call, and we came to render assistance. Unfortunately, our radios are kind of patchy. Could we have a face-to-face?"
"Sir, protocol requires a straight run to the docks," a Staff Sergeant reminded the officer.
"Circumstances can change," Anderson replied. "Lieutenant Reken, we'll find a place to hole up for a chat, but time is of the essence."
"Understood. We'll follow your lead."
The comms sergeant switched back. "Shepard, find a clear spot. We're going to partially disembark. Secure the perimeter, but do not let the civilians leave the transports. We'll chat with C-Sec, and then we'll keep moving."
"Copy that, sir."
Two minutes later, the armored transports settled down to a stop on the street. Onlookers fled as heavily armed and twitchy Alliance Marines erupted from the vehicles and manned the machine gun turrets. Overhead, a C-Sec transport passed and landed ahead of the convoy. Not ten seconds later, the Alliance Skyranger settled down, and Captain Silva made his way over to the officers and senior enlisted men in charge.
"Glad to see some friendly faces around here," Anderson said, extending a hand. After a pause, the turian lieutenant shook it reluctantly. "What happened at C-Sec HQ?"
"We don't know," an asari officer replied. "We were doing patrols out on the streets when we heard the distress call."
"When we came close to the Embassy, we saw all the gunfire and figured there was no way we could safely get in there," the lieutenant explained. "Our transports aren't rated for heavy assault."
"Lieutenant," Shepard turned toward the comms sergeant. "We got a signal from C-Sec Headquarters."
Anderson raised an eyebrow as Shepard moved off a bit, closely followed by a salarian police officer with a shotgun cradled in his hands. "You were doing street patrols in an airborne transport?"
"We were en route to a drug sting," the turian said.
"Yes?" Shepard answered the radio.
"This is Acting Executor Decian Chellick. I just got a handle on C-Sec Headquarters, and I'm sending guys your way to help with the evacuation."
"Thanks. We just ran into some of your guys already. We'll take all the help we can get."
"Wait what?"
"Yeah, a Lieutenant Reken just landed here to help out. He heard the distress call and-"
"Reken is there?! No, listen! Reken isn't there on my authority! He's the one who attacked C-Sec Headquarters!"
Shepard turned slightly, eyeing the turian more than ten steps away. "Say what?"
"Get your men out of there now! Reken is a traitor!"
Shepard's eyes widened in realization as Captain Anderson's instincts alerted him early. The captain whirled forward, drawing his pistol and bashing the turian lieutenant across the face with the butt, crushing the right eye socket before drawing a bead on the asari cop next to him and firing a crimson beam through her forehead. "AMBUSH! AMBUSH!"
Kyle Shepard never had the chance to raise his weapon as the salarian officer jammed the muzzle of his shotgun right up against his chest piece and fired at point blank range. The air in weapon that was encapsulated by the mass effect aura before being flung down the barrel augmented a hail of sand-sized shrapnel into a devastating blast that obliterated the lieutenant's diaphragm and severed his spinal column. Murdered and murderer stared at each other for an instant that lasted an eternity before the lieutenant's torso began to fall, tenuously held by threads of flesh to his pelvic area.
"Shit! They made us!" another turian officer yelped before a pulse laser turret evaporated several fist sized holes in his torso.
The comms sergeant screamed with rage before vaporizing the salarian's head with his rifle. "The lieutenant is KIA!"
"Pixy! In the air! Now now now!" Silva roared as a sudden surge of metallic humanoid shapes erupted from the side streets.
Citadel, Alliance Embassy
Shepard roared as she slammed the strange human into the ground by the neck before forming a drill-shaped aura around her left fist and punching the head with all her might. The head exploded in bits of tissue and electronic components, but the enemy used its remaining arm to fire a blast in her face, shoving her off. But Shepard rolled with it, clearing out as the now blinded unit was vulnerable to a strafing from the Arkbird. The putrid scent of roasted flesh permeated the battlefield, but the enemy struggled to its feet, only to be obliterated by a hardened plasma round from one of the four tanks that now surveyed the compound.
Various pieces of the Vex attackers lay strewn around the Embassy grounds, intermixed with several marines who'd perished during the initial onslaught, feeding the collective rage of the defenders. With no remaining enemies nearby, Shepard allowed herself to collapse against the metal cover plate, nursing an ankle that she knew from experience would soon swell to the size of a grapefruit under her armor. Her vision swam from exhaustion and sweat as she keyed her radio. "This is Captain Shepard. Our position is clear of hostiles. Recommend we secure the front gate area and start the sweep for survivors."
"Copy that ma'am. Sweepers en route."
"Well that took you long enough, Shepard."
Shepard looked up from her position and laughed dryly. "Stuff it, Massani. This isn't Jaeger school."
"It's 'Finn' right now," the man retorted with a smirk. "I'm undercover."
"Yeah? What are you doing here anyway?"
'Finn' leaned over and patted her cheek. "That's classified, sweetheart. You know how it goes." He straightened up and his expression turned more fatherly. "In case you're wondering, your little brother is safe."
"Oh that's a relief," the red-head sighed. "Where is he?"
"He's escorting the convoy with Captain Anderson. Nothing exciting so far."
At that moment, the radio erupted again. "This is Pixy! The convoy has been ambushed by C-Sec and Vex! Requesting immediate assist!"
Both soldiers froze and stared at the comm, and then there was a sudden absence of red-head against the cover plate.
Citadel, Council Transport
"This is an unmigitated disaster," Sparatus muttered, sweat gleaming on his face. "An attack like this on the Alliance Embassy by Vyrnnus's geth? And traitors in C-Sec?"
"It is quite the predicament," Valern agreed. "And then there's Irissa. With Tevos dead, she's the strongest contender for the Asari seat, but her views and ideas are…of questionable benefit."
In the front area of the transport, Garrus and Tali sat sullenly against the wall. For the former, the shock had passed, and now his rage was searching for a clear target. He was assigning blame. Mordin certainly had his share of it. If he hadn't made the decision to release the Culexus subjects, his family would still be alive. But there was what Vyrnnus had said. Was the Alliance really responsible for Saren's behavior? He would like to think otherwise, but the Alliance was quite capable of pulling off something like that. And from his own experience in Blackwatch, he knew very well how people on the muscle end were often ignorant of the big picture.
Tali nervously watched his face, reading his thoughts, and worrying about the impending explosion. She tentatively put a hand on his arm. "Garrus?"
The quarian flinched at the stormy and murderous expression on his face, which softened into some shame as he remembered where he was. "Sorry, Tali. It's just…Vyrnnus said some things, and I want answers. I want…I want to know the real reason my family died." His hand tightened on the muzzle of his rifle, which he'd held onto like a lifeline in stormy seas.
Tali blinked behind her mask. "But didn't Reken kill your father because he was a senior officer of C-Sec?"
"I can understand that part," Garrus growled. "but my mom and my sister too?! They were innocent! They weren't even supposed to be there!"
"Garrus, I…"
"She was recovering!" the turian went on. "After all these years, we were finally going to be together again! I wanted to have more time with her! With dad and Solana! And now they're…" Tali had to lean in close to hear the last word. "…gone."
Tali felt a pang as she remembered that her father had similarly been killed recently, but she was at a loss for words.
"Sir," the copilot swiveled around and leaned over toward the couple. "we just got word from the Executor. The Alliance evacuation convoy is under attack. Reken was spotted there."
Garrus jumped to his feet. "Get us over there on the double. I want that son of a bitch!"
"Um, sir, the traitors launched an attack, so anything with the C-Sec emblem is going to be shot at on sight."
"Get us within five blocks. I'll head over there myself." The Spectre looked at the quarian. "Tali, stay on the transport."
"Garrus…"
"It's too dangerous!" the turian shook his head. "You two!" the other two C-Sec officers turned their heads. "Make sure she stays on the ship when I leave."
"I can handle myself!" Tali objected.
"No! I won't allow it!"
"Garrus!"
Tali was caught off guard as the turian pulled her into a hug. "I can't lose you too…" he whispered. "Please stay here."
Citadel, Evacuation Route
Almost before the ramp had opened, Shepard was already diving off the Arkbird, using her psionic armor to protect herself from the fall.
The site was a mess. Vex and C-Sec bodies all around. Two wrecked transports straddling the path forward and back, blocking the vehicles from going through, and one of the convoy vehicles lay on its side as marines hauled the injured out of the doors and corpsmen hurried between patients.
The attack had been fought off, and Captain Anderson sat on a wing of the third C-Sec transport, which was crumpled against the overturned convoy vehicle. Next to him, Captain Silva stood in silence, his face grim as the senior Staff Sergeant gave the officers a rundown of the situation.
"Ma'am," Silva snapped a salute on pure instinct, which Shepard ignored as she ran up to Anderson.
"Where's Kyle?!"
Anderson made a pained grimace holding his side. "Shepard…"
"Where is he?! Where's my little brother?!"
Wordlessly, Anderson looked at the Staff Sergeant, who uneasily jerked his thumb at the row of covered stretchers. The three men watched as the female officer's world shattered.
"No…" Anderson shot to his feet to catch his former subordinate as she fell against him in shock. "…no…" she continued weakly, as the group slowly moved over to the particular stretcher.
"Corpsman," the petty officer looked up, and then his tired eyes widened and he snapped to attention. "Where's the lieutenant?" Anderson asked.
"Um, over here sir…ma'am," the man answered uncertainly as he walked over with the senior staff in tow, stopping in front of the body in question.
Anderson gently turned the red-head around to face the body. "Shepard?" the junior captain nodded stiffly, eyes staring into the distance, still in shock.
The corpsman slowly rolled back the sheet, exposing exactly what Shepard was afraid to see. Below his shoulders, the cloth was stained a very dark crimson.
"Kyle…" she breathed, falling to her knees next to the stretcher.
"There was nothing we could do," the petty officer told them. "If it's any consolation he died almost instantly from blood loss."
"Thank you corpsman," the Staff Sergeant said, waving him off.
"Captain Anderson, perimeter contact. IFF says it's one of ours, registered to…Garrus Vakarian."
Anderson looked at his radio, but Silva beat him to it. "This is Captain Silva. Let him through. My authorization."
"One of ours?" Anderson queried.
"Since he deployed with us, the techs made him a set of HADES armor," Silva explained. "He's put it to good use."
The Spectre walked over, rifle slung over his back and flanked by two marine escorts. Silva waved them off.
"Vyrnnus?" Silva asked.
"He won't be bothering anyone again," the turian replied harshly with a dark glare.
"Well that's good," the marine officer said, taken slightly aback by the glare.
"Did the Alliance experiment on Saren?" the Spectre demanded.
Anderson and Silva looked at each other in confusion, but before they could answer, Shepard's voice beat them to it.
"How did you-?!" Garrus snapped his head toward the shocked red-head, who abruptly realized what she'd just said. "I-I mean who-"
"So it's true," Garrus growled. "It's true what he said, isn't it?"
"Who said what?" Anderson asked.
"Before he died, Vyrnnus told me a little story that involved him and Saren Arterius being brainwashed by the Alliance," Garrus rattled off without taking his eyes off the emotionally broken woman.
Anderson squinted slightly. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Garrus, it's not like that!" Shepard protested, getting to her feet.
"Is it? IS IT?!" the turian yelled. "Then tell me what it's really like! Tell me exactly why Vyrnnus and you both know something when you couldn't have ever talked to each other! Tell me exactly why my family is dead! Tell me that you aren't responsible for Saren going off the rails!"
"Alright that's enough," Anderson cut in. "Mister Vakarian, I don't know what you're talking about, but I assure you the Alliance has nothing to do with it."
Garrus snorted. "That's not what Shepard says," he snapped.
"She's in shock right now, and she's not thinking straight! That's her little brother lying under that sheet!"
"And my entire family is lying in their own blood back at C-Sec headquarters!" Garrus retorted. "I want to know the truth!"
"The truth is that the Alliance has never brainwashed either Vyrnnus or Saren!"
"You'll forgive me if I don't find that good enough, especially when Shepard seems to know what I'm talking about!" The Spectre paused for breath before continuing. "One way or another, I will figure out the truth, and you better be right. Because if you're not, then the next time we meet, I'm going to shoot on sight."
The Olympus, CNO Office
Hackett grumbled to himself as he looked through the old personnel files regarding his former command. It had taken him considerable time to personally track down the files without relying on his staff, but it couldn't be helped. If EXALT had pulled something on the Trafalgar involving the prisoners, then that was just more proof that they held influence at the very highest level of the Alliance military.
He scowled when he heard the knock on the door, but kept his voice neutral. "Enter."
Commander Chen stood in the doorway, hands clasped in front of her waist nervously. "Sir, you said to let you know the moment we got ahold of Agent Lawson."
"And did you?"
The officer shook her head. "No sir. She has not responded to the emergency orders. The locator beacon for her ship has been disabled. We cannot find her."
Hackeet stood up from his desk, his prior concerns forgotten. "What are you saying?" he demanded.
"Sir, it is a very real possibility that Agent Lawson has gone rogue."
2189
In the aftermath of the Embassy Assault, Councilor Udina's comatose body is recovered from the wreckage of the main building. He later awakens after nearly nine months of treatment.
The death of General Marcus Summers stuns the Alliance populace, while the circumstances of his death infuriate them. Per a deal with the newly reconstituted Citadel Councilors, the knowledge of the Culexus Project is covered up, leaving weak excuses that do little to assuage the public anger. Earth is the site of a massive funeral ceremony as humanity's greatest hero is given a final sendoff into the sun. The entirety of the Muton and Cydonian fleet contributions to the Alliance are present for the ceremony.
The Alliance closes its Embassy in the Wards and withdraws its permanent presence from the Citadel, heralding very tense and tenuous relations in the wake of the attack. Prior to this event, the interim ambassador relayed the Alliance Chairman's demand for a thorough investigation of C-Sec due to the involvement of traitorous officers in the attack that claimed the lives of twenty-nine marines and sixteen Alliance officials and civilians. Arrangements are made for official communications through the Embassy on Shanxi, ensuring that physical security of Alliance personnel will no longer be an issue.
Major Armando-Owens Bailey is relieved of his position as Embassy Garrison commander and subject to extensive investigation by Alliance Intelligence for possible misconduct. This very public investigation ends quickly when no less than Fleet Admiral Hackett intervenes, censuring several civilian officials who ordered the investigation for attempting to ruin the life of an outstanding officer who was merely placed in a very difficult situation.
Spectre Garrus Vakarian returns to Hierarchy service in his former capacity as a Blackwatch officer. He is immediately promoted to Major and placed in charge of developing anti-Alliance tactics. Despite his reputation as an Alliance sympathizer, he surprises many by rapidly coming up with hardline tactics using new equipment under development by the Hierarchy and the Union.
Irissa takes the Asari Council seat left by Tevos. To the surprise of many, Matriarch Aethyta announces her support of the hawkish asari. Stunned observers wonder what would push the enigmatic matriarch to reenter the field of politics, though more savvy and knowledgeable operators whisper that she is merely hoping to curb the new councilor's more extreme ideas and policies.
Despite strong efforts at information control, a recording of the battle between former Commander Lethe Vyrnnus and Spectre Garrus Vakarian leaks out onto the Extranet, complete with patchy and suggestive dialogue. A firestorm erupts across Citadel Space, raising new tensions between humans and the other races and providing the Alliance additional incentive to close down their embassy compound. Influential firebrands declare the Alliance withdrawal as further proof of guilt.
Due to rising tensions, a general mobilization of the Citadel races' military forces is ordered. This is mirrored by the Alliance, increasing the tension between the two galactic superpowers. Onlookers on both sides dub this the "Galactic Cold War."
Tartarus
"I see the assault is going well," Dr. Core noted.
"By all accounts, our men have found some very interesting data in the station archives," Harper replied. He turned to regard his second in command. "I'm glad you helped me change my mind about the assault."
Core smiled triumphantly, noting the faint green tinge in her old friend's eyes. "Well, you've always said I have a way with words."
Dossier: Sean 'Mickey' Finn (aka, Zaeed Massani)
Born on the streets of Dublin in 2003, Sean Finn scraped by living as a thief, stealing and panhandling from the populace to feed himself and some of his friends. During his teenage years, he found his way to London with a crew of hardened vagrants, just in time for the Ethereal War to begin. Caught out in an alien warzone with destruction on all sides, he sought refuge in the London Home Guard, where he first learned to shoot a rifle. He quickly proved to be a natural with weapons, and possessed a keen eye that landed him a position as a scout.
He would distinguish himself by aiding the Home Guard, and X-COM by extension, when they went abroad in Europe, hunting government officials and unsavory characters who collaborated with the invaders, and earning the nickname 'Mickey' for his skill at discreetly tailing and subduing his targets in bars with a sedative concoction of his own design.
After the war, he was one of the first to volunteer for the newly created Alliance military, having become a hardened young lad and willing to take the fight wherever it may have led. Upon completing his initial training, he was given a new name and sent out to perform similar tasks to his wartime jobs, hunting down any remaining traitorous individuals for trial.
Decades later, he was loaned to Alliance Intelligence as a Chief Warrant Officer (one) on a semi-permanent basis, where he has remained ever since, performing special duties and serving as an instructor and field operative for Cerberus on occasion. His date of rank as Chief Warrant Officer (four) is 2100. He held his previous rank for over sixty years, stubbornly refusing promotion until the very beginning of that year.
Addendum: Subject is a member of the Prometheus Initiative, a group that predates the Jaegers as anti-psion hunters.
Oh boy. Dr. Core has done it now!
And here is the culmination of the Reaper's pre-invasion plans. They have jammed a massive and solid wedge firmly between the Alliance and the Citadel races. Once again, divide and conquer. Of course, certain shadowy parties didn't do the galaxy any favors at all by making underhanded long term plays.
With the exception of the people I handed out spoilers to, can anyone figure out the whole story behind Vyrnnus and Saren?
For anyone who is still too obtuse to see it, Tali/Garrus is official. *ominous chuckle*
And as for Miranda, what is it that made her so concerned? What did she see or hear in Kasumi's memories?
