When Maddie woke, she noticed two things.
The pain that had been scraping at the hem of her brain had dulled; and that she wasn't alone.
Next to her, in the gleaming white ward, was the dishevelled and twisted soon-to-be corpse of Major Seer. She knew, even as she blinked her sleep from her eyes, that he was living on borrowed time. There seemed to be a thousand things keeping him alive and just as many people crowded around him.
Maddie recognised some of them. There was Katya and Duggan, as well as another face she knew, pouring over a data pad just aside from the group.
"Uncle Nate?" She asked quietly, looking up at the man her mother had called a brother. He seemed to sense movement and his eyes flicked towards her before frowning and taking leave of the others.
"Madeleine? You're awake." He stated, "I was worried when I realised it was you. It upset me when you stopped talking with your mother, too." He added in an awkward monotone sort of way.
Maddie didn't take offense; she knew uncle Nate well. He'd even saved her life on Skopje, helping her and Drake gain access to the vault that changed her life. Nate was a high functioning autistic, incredibly good with numbers, patterns, and computers but Nate, more than anything, was family. He had a creative streak that came from his desire to learn and understand the world around him, even if he struggled to find his place in it.
CDS, for all their dodgy dealings, had given Nate his own life and a chance to succeed. Leaving Skopje had been difficult for him, but it had also been the making of him, too.
"I'm sorry, Uncle Nate. Mum… she did a bad thing, something unforgivable."
"We are all capable of unforgivable things, though." He replied, pointedly. Had he not been so clearly reflecting on himself; Maddie would have sworn he was talking about he decision to cart Maggie off for experimentation.
What I did to Maggie… is that unforgivable? Even if I saved her life, I decided for her, did the one thing to her that I hated being done to others. Nicola, Myself, Naomi, and Maggie, we'd all had our choices taken from us, Nicola had been denied a future, Naomi had been denied a normal life, Maggie too had been carted off at my direction to be carved up and experimented on…
Maddie wondered if the choice had truly been hers; the thought wasn't a pleasant one, though.
Duggan had been denied a father by the same people I had joined up with, too…
"You should speak to her when you can. She misses you." Nate said, staring past her.
"Nate…" Maddie replied, softly, "I know it must be hard for you, stuck in the middle like this but what my mother did? I'm not sure I will ever have the strength to forgive her."
Nate dared a glance at her, "not difficult. I just want everyone to be happy. There aren't many of us left."
She swallowed. It was true, her family had dwindled to the two people in this room, her sister far away on earth, her two brothers and her grandfather. Her mother was alive, of course but Maddie didn't see how her mother could abandon her dad and still call her part of the family.
"I know." She replied, glancing back at the group surrounding Seer. Katya was getting chewed out for something, the look on Seer's face as he spoke to her suggested that something was up. Nate had returned to his data pad, leaving Maddie to watch the others.
It was curious that she hadn't instantly noticed it but one of the men stood by Seer was dressed in the familiar black overalls of ONIs esteemed operatives.
"Hey, uncle Nate?"
"Yes?"
"Who is that ONI agent?" She asked, tilting her head in his direction.
"That's Lieutenant Haverson. He's been working with us since the start of the siege." Nate replied, his nose buried in his pad.
Maddie pursed her lips and shrugged to herself. She wasn't surprised to see another spook in the bunker but it did confirm that ONI knew about this particular Chalybs Project. That was good. It meant she could reach Drake if she needed to.
Focusing on the mission made things easier, Maddie groaned as she forced herself up. It was then, as Nate rushed to her with a nervous look on his face, that she realised that the other figures were in a partitioned room. She could not hear them, only Nathan's panicked jittering could be heard.
"You're not supposed to get up. Doctor Habsi said-"
"Uncle Nate, I need to check CDS' database. You know, the stuff I was never going to find upstairs." She replied, hauling herself to her foot. The other was encased in a cast.
"I really don't think you should be up. The Lieutenant wanted to speak with you as s-soon as you woke up." He said backing up slightly.
Maddie chewed her lip and pouted like she always had growing up. "Look, he's really busy, let me find what I'm looking for and he can come see us when he's ready, okay?"
She didn't give him much of an option as she hobbled out of the room and into the quiet, brilliant white of the medical lab.
"You can't-" Nate stammered.
Maddie frowned.
Come on!
"There's no data kept here that will suit your needs." His eyes darted about, "there's my terminal, some messages from Upper Echelon about the status of various projects."
He led the way to his office begrudgingly, snaking through the bunker with hurried pause. He nodded awkwardly at the other researchers who spoke with him, an impressive feat considering the man used to be so shy. The bunker itself was immaculately kept, high tech, and efficient. There were personal touches that would never appear in a military or government funded operation like chairs lined with fabric or leather, and decorations that weren't bought from a flea market.
Uncle Nate took a card from his pocket and clicked open the door, standing watch as she stumbled in and sat at the large chair behind the desk.
He leaned over and entered his password. "Why am I helping you? He asked himself. "I could get into so much trouble."
"Because I need it. I'm on to something big, something that might end the war." She lied, hoping he'd believe her.
"You're after ICARUS." He said, quietly.
"I've not heard of Icarus." Maddie replied, looking at him, suspicion clouded in the woman's mind.
"Well, you came for the distress signal. The Nazari's are hiding on a base. They're working on that project." He stated, "Mr. Nazari spoke with me about it. He was very excited."
"Guessing he didn't share many details?"
Nate shook his head, "CDS operates in cells, like ONI; as director of ELYSIUM, a project on our "home" planet, I had privileges that the other directors didn't get."
"Such as?" Maddie asked, cocking her head, slightly.
"Direct contact with them." He fiddled with the keyboard and booted up a program that enabled secure communication across the company's intranet. "These are all of the messages and files I received about the project. I will watch out for the Lieutenant but you need to be quick."
Maddie smiled sweetly but cursed her luck. Walsingham was stuck inside her helmet, which was god knows where. She tracked through the draws, looking for a small data chip. There were a few but Nate wasn't an organised man and it took several agonising minutes to find an empty one big enough to transfer everything onto.
Maddie looked up at Nate who had stuffed his face into the gap between the door and its frame. She plugged the drive into the laptop and began the transfer, the bar slowly grew at a steady rate and she returned to the mailbox, running idea's through her head.
Okay need a summary… 'ICARUS OVERVIEW'?
Nothing came up.
Profit Projections, ICARUS.
Several quarterly reports shot onto the screen and Maddie's eyes lit up. This would at least help her establish a scale. With a quick glance she clicked on the link and opened the message.
To: Upper Echelon Director's
From: Dima Nazari
Subject: Quarterly Report for Q1 (Earth) 2544
Director's,
It is my pleasure to announce a new era for Chalyb's Defence Solutions!
While this may seem a little extravagant for an internal quarterly report, it is imperative that you all understand the general direction that our company is headed.
To begin with, I must allay the fears regarding the Covenant's encroachment on colonies housing regional, and galactic Headquarters. With the last major outer colonies glassed, the notable exception being Meridian, we are forced to consider relocating key industries to the fortress worlds of Reach, Tribute and those in the Sol System. UNSC HIGHCOM predicts more frequent and larger ground engagements in the future, with planets such as Actium and Draco tipped for extensive campaigns. As such, the Scorpion tank and other key products shall continue to see credits keep us and your projects afloat for the foreseeable future. We also expect extensive revenue resulting from your own projects. The work to reverse engineer Covenant plasma technology by teams ELYSIUM and HAMMER have ensured that at least one pay-out from NAVCOM will be sent our way.
It is not this that is the main cause for excitement however, I am pleased to announce that a team on Skopje has made a series of discoveries that will shake the human race to its core. I shall not divulge specifics to any of you but I will say that Project: ICARUS is NOT to be discussed openly to any effect. Anyone caught divulging any information regarding the project will have their contract terminated immediately.
I simply wish to make you all aware that this project shall take precedence, and is likely the cause of budgetary discrepancies. This is unlike anything I have ever asked of all of you, I know, but this project MUST remain a secret from HIGHCOM, the lower echelons, and, of course, the office.
At this juncture, all I can ask of you is to trust in us.
Regards,
Dima Nazari, Co-CEO of Chalyb's Defence Solutions
Maddie sat back and sucked air in through her teeth.
So, Mister Nazari… you knew about the forerunners as early as 2544, did you?
Her head bounced and she checked the transfer again.
80% complete.
Nate remained still at the door, a little jittery but still watching the hallway for someone to come looking for her.
How about something more informal… maybe between the directors?
"ICARUS, RUMOURS." She hit search and streams of email chains rolled along the screen. The amount of speculation on these channels alone was immense but it was the email from Dima Nazari himself that caught Maddie's eye.
To: Upper Echelon Director's
From: Dima Nazari
Subject: Regarding the rumours.
Director's,
It is my sincere displeasure to learn of an incident regarding an employee working on ELYSIUM and their unfortunate obsession with the specifics of the Icarus Project. Your email chains have been fascinating to read, and you consistently remind me why you are all at the top of this company. That being said, ICARUS has entered a critical stage and we can no longer afford to approach this project with such a carefree attitude.
My Advanced Implementation Group (AIG) has determined that systemic misdirection and deception must be used to quell the rumours circulating between lower echelon staff. Attached is a file containing instructions. You will read them and execute the orders to the highest standards, failure to do will result in contract termination.
Primarily, anyone caught remarking or speculating on things such as 'the old ones', 'progenitors', or "forerunners", are to be listed as HIGH RISK on security documentation. I understand that context is important but my team shall handle the minutia of such a task. These terms, while seemingly innocuous, are key to ICARUS' success and must not be propagated as rumours.
Naturally, you have all been designated as HIGH RISK and shall each undergo extensive and regular checks to ensure your dedication to the company and its ideals.
Dima.
The thumb drive flashed and Maddie ejected it, piecing the information together in her head.
So, ICARUS is a project about the forerunners. That's a lead at least.
Something gnawed at Maddie. It was a feeling that something wasn't quite right. She didn't know any more than before, she tried to establish a timeline at least.
So, in 2044, internal projections skyrocket after something is found on Skopje. That, of course, could mean anything. However, ICARUS is dependent on information regarding the forerunners remaining a secret, which suggests that ICARUS is what, a research operation?
Maddie shook her head as she slipped the drive into her pocket. She glanced at the screen again. Her eyes widened and she smiled.
Sent in August 2547! That puts it being sent right around the time I unlocked the vault on Skopje.
She drummed her uninjured foot.
"So, what changed..." she whispered to herself.
A new discovery? Unlikely. The message is too blunt, if it were cause for celebration, Dima would have said so… A failure? A dead end? If it were that important, which it probably is, Dima isn't going to broadcast it to his employees… but why would he then be more worried about leaks than losses?
Maddie ran a quick search for the quarterly reports around that time.
Absolutely nothing… unless...
Maddie chewed on her lip before smiling.
Yeah, that's got to be it. They aren't worried about failure at this point. They're worried about ONI.
No doubt half the emails she would read would be panicked musings about 'the office's' intentions with ICARUS. It would certainly confirm that they were on the right track at least.
"Maddie. Are you done?" Nate asked, hurriedly. "Someone's coming."
Maddie stood and came to the door as quick as she could. "Hey, it's okay, alright? We just need to tell them we were catching up. Okay?"
"I shouldn't have done this." he said glibly. "it was bad enough going against my boss but I don't want to be caught in the middle of a fight between two ONI-"
"Hey, you saved my bacon." Maddie said, touching him on the forearm gently. "I tell you what, as a thank you, I'll talk to Mum, okay?"
This was a lie. Maddie had no intention of seeing or hearing from the woman again, but lying was part of her job, now, and she needed to be the best she could be. It hadn't been enough so far, she'd lost men, time, and intelligence to the covenant, who had plenty of time to hack into the data troves in the main building above ground. Maybe this finds, this lead, could turn things around for her, and salvage her reputation.
Nate seemed to brighten, "oh, okay. Yes. That's good, and Eliza too? She misses you both a lot." he stammered.
Maddie nodded and stepped out into the hall with Nate. A glance down the corridor saw Katya and their other Spook, Lt. Haverson, striding towards them. They looked resplendent, which was impressive for Katya, who had just had a building dropped on her head. Behind them, Duggan trailed like a lost puppy, not escorting the pair but not trailing them either.
Haverson was a tired looking young man with red hair and the disposition of a ghostly and ethereal General. He walked with purpose, though not with malice like Katya often did. She wore another furious expression, similar to the one in the tent, which meant she had worked out Maddie knew even more about the job than she did.
"Major Seer is back in a coma, the Doctor's believe there's a slim chance he will live but his days in command will be over." Haverson said, holding out his hand with a weary smile, "names Elias, it's good to meet you in the flesh, Lieutenant Harper."
Maddie took his hand and looked pointedly at her Uncle, who stared at the floor while pleasantries were made.
"It's good to meet you too, uh?"
"Lt. Elias Haverson. Section one deep cover operative." His grip was firm despite the fact he seemed seconds from sleep. "That is good to hear, you're somewhat of a celebrity to ELYSIUM."
Maddie cringed a little and didn't dare look at Katya. "Why?" She said, feigning ignorance.
"All anyone knows is that the "official" story from CDS, ONI Section 2, and the colonial authority is a lie. Whatever you found there; it made the work on ELYSIUM and ICARUS possible. CDS had a timeline in place that was cut short by almost fifty years during the fall of Orestis." He replied, shrugging, "Lt Volkovskaya here tells me that you're looking for ICARUS."
"How do you know about that?" Maddie asked, frowning at her colleague, who was smirking with a keen sense of satisfaction.
"I filled her in." Haverson interjected, likely sensing the tension that simmered like fried meat in the atmosphere of the corridor. "Part of my job at ELYSIUM was to work out the wider goals of CDS. Two years ago, the upper Echelons of the company were running fifteen high profile projects on numerous worlds. A month after your discovery, three were gone. Six months after that, only ICARUS, ELYSIUM, and two others remained."
"H-Haverson persuaded me to cut ties with Chalybs after that. We've been running dark ever since." Nate spoke gravely and sadly; he'd likely had friends among those other projects and he hadn't heard from them since by the sound of things.
"They were fired?" Katya asked, eyeing Nate with a curious glance.
"Scratched off." Maddie replied, shaking her head, "the Nazari's were cleaning house."
Katya folded her arms, "seems a little excessive."
"Not if you've dealt with CDS before it doesn't." Maddie noted, itching the cast on her arm.
Katya looked to Haverson, as though in the hope that he might contradict Maddie's assessment but he shrugged in agreement.
"I need to rest a little, gather some strength before we plan our next step" Maddie said to the small group.
Duggan straightened. He'd been hanging a way down the hall and seemed glad that the clandestine meeting was finally at an end. Haverson and Nate also relented and the pair began to move away.
Katya wasn't finished however, her hand shot forward and gripped Maddie by the arm, just above the cast. It took all Maddie had not to yelp in pain at the sharp and precise move.
"Skopje. I'm finished being a damn lost puppy, I won't be dragged around this doomed colony as some kind of test for you to overcome." She hissed.
"Ahn.. you bitch. What the hell are you doing?!"
Katya smiled and looked back at Duggan and the others, "don't mind us, I just need to speak with this…" she stopped herself, "with my colleague, about something in private."
Maddie was concerned by the look of hunger on Katya's face, and she backed up a little, despite being locked in her grip. Nate didn't look at her face to see if anything was wrong, and Haverson shrugged as he turned away. Duggan looked at her arm and the way that Katya gripped her for a few seconds before deciding to let it go and following the others down the hall.
"Right, you got me alone. What do you want?" Maddie spat, not backing down despite the pain Katya was causing.
Katya glared at her, "the truth. Skopje. What happened and why am I being made to follow your lead."
Maddie gulped; she knew that Katya would be inextricably tied to her if she divulged the information. Maddie was committed to avoiding that outcome, being tied to this psycho any more than she already was, was enough for her. So, playing on the idea that Katya would hate the consequences as well, she made her move.
"Look, you remember first year, the espionage basics course, right?" She said, slyly, her eyes twinkling with a little mischief.
"Do you think I'm stupid?" She growled.
"Well, you did fall for that joke during our last trip to Mars in second year." Maddie shot back, trying to stifle a laugh.
"That was you?!" She seethed, "that little stunt cost me three weeks of my spare time."
Maddie did laugh now, which earned her a painful prod in the shoulder.
"Let's start with this then, shall we?" She grinned, pushing her fingers against the raw wound on her shoulder.
"Ow ow!" Maddie gasped, " I can't say anything, if I did tell you, you'll be stuck on this mission until I see it through."
"Compartmentalisation. That's your excuse?" She shook her head and laughed, "if there's one thing I can give you credit for its the fact you have balls, Harper."
Maddie didn't know if that was a sign of respect or not. Either way, having a woman as dangerous as Katya hate you and respect you was an unsettling thought. Maddie decided not to push it. Katya stared at her for quite some time, likely wondering what to say. Katya looked conflicted for a moment, her eyes softening briefly before zeroing in on Maddie's face.
"You think that all I want is to be rid of you?" She bit her lip and relaxed her grip. "There was a time that I would have been thrilled to be here with you, you know?"
Now Maddie really didn't know what to say.
"From the moment we met in Sydney, you were like an idol to me. Everywhere you went was in the wake of greatness. The rumours about SPARTANS and the Aliens, the ODST and the showdown with the zealot. You were so lost in your own world that you had no time for the rest of us." She spat that as though she was foolish for believing it.
"What are you talking about?" Maddie asked, softly, her voice breaking a little as she nervously tried to understand the strange shift in Katya's behaviour.
"I'm telling you that I used to admire you. That you don't know anything about me because you never cared to ask or find out." She smiled triumphantly, "I eventually got your attention though, didn't I?"
Maddie nodded, "when it was clear you were the only one in my way."
"You never stopped once to think I might just want to be friends." She spat, "the more annoyed I got, the more bitterly we contested that competition. You didn't change for a moment, you adapted, fought hard, and debased yourself and me in order to win."
That irritated Maddie.
It was never about her!
"You're right. We don't know each other." She conceded, "so don't spring all of this on to me after all that's happened and expect me to call you friend."
"That opportunity was gone the moment you let the Dean slither inside of you." She spat. The revulsion on her face was plain to see.
"You wouldn't understand the pressure that's on me to perform. Do you think that Parangosky helps me out of a sense of charity? That she dotes on me because she never had children of her own?" Maddie was really angry now. Katya had no right to judge her, she had done what she had to do to survive and to save her family. "This war has taken almost everything from me. I've seen shit you wouldn't believe. I'd done unforgivable things long before I beat you to second place and I'll do what I have to do for as long as it takes to win this war."
"I don't care about your sob story. We've all got a story, what we don't all have is a chance to make things right." Katya was scathing and relentless. Maddie soon realised that she wasn't going to let this go.
A long silence descended.
"Fine." Maddie said, throwing her uninjured arm in the air. "I'll send you the-"
"No. I want to hear it from you first."
Maddie considered this but she was quickly becoming aware of the fact that her body really did need to heal. "Help me back to bed, I'll tell you on the way."
Katya nodded and looped Maddie's arm over her shoulder, bringing the two closers than they ever had done before. Maddie could feel her breathing, stoic and constant as they made their way through the halls.
"Before we do this, I just want to say sorry." She blurted, shocked at the sincerity and the nervousness in her voice.
Katya raised a brow.
"I am. Really. I never stopped to think about you, or anyone, in the last four years. I've made no friends, cut ties with my family, and I've added a number of enemies to a growing list as well." Maddie confessed. It had been a long road to this point and Maddie didn't regret that she'd achieved something impressive. What she was starting to regret, was what she might have missed out on. How many times had Katya tried to be her friend? Or someone else for that matter? She'd been called an ice queen at their boarding school and only now did Maddie begin to see it for the insult that it was.
"What's this about? You better not be expecting me to forgive you." Katya growled, tensing with teeth bared.
Maddie shook her head.
"If I tell you, you will know what happened to me. Every single sordid detail...l"
Save for the worst one.
"All I want is to be judged fairly. I know that is a lot to ask, and I also know that it's more than I deserve but…"
Katya turned her face away as they entered the clinic and Maddie paused, wondering what she might be thinking. The smell of soft cotton and disinfectant breached her nose and Maddie sighed in relief.
"... look, it's a long story and I'm tired, so ask what's important and Drake can hand the files over when we get out of here." Maddie groaned as she lay in the bed, waving away the attendants as Katya cleared the room. In the bed next to them, Seer slept soundly, a twisted look of resignation on his face and he likely dreamt about the life he'd led.
"How did you meet the Captain?" She said, flatly.
"It was an accident. Our convoy was heading into the city, they were down on men, had civilian militia in their ranks too. I had been saved by Davenport during a gunfight and he roped me in to help." Maddie said, trying to read Katya's face. When she realised, she wasn't going to get anything out of her, she continued. "The convoy got hit hard and the Captain held Davenport, Braeburn, myself and…"
What was her name?
"He, um, he held us back, sacrificed us to escape with the rest of the survivors. Drake happened to be in the command tent when I was asked to testify about the mission report."
"And he just took a liking to you, did he?" Katya's eyes narrowed and she folded her arms.
"No, he recognised me. I'm Admiral Harper's Granddaughter." She said, sheepishly.
"Hmph." Katya scoffed, "that couldn't be more obvious."
"Yeah, so I've heard. That's why I kept it quiet." Maddie replied, shaking her head. "I'm my own woman, I didn't want my family getting in the way of things."
Katya remained silent for a while.
"The Siren's. Is that story true?"
Maddie nodded, "mostly, but you can read the file on that…"
"I want it from your mouth." She hissed, "you owe me that much at least."
"It's just…" Maddie trailed off, remembering the month of terror and torture at the hands of the covenant. She shuddered violently and closed her eyes. "I didn't spend the month on the run. I was captured."
Katya frowned for the briefest of moments. It occurred so quickly in fact, that Maddie was only half sure that she had seen it.
"The Covenant army on Skopje had even more grunts in its ranks than usual. I escaped when they revolted."
"Why didn't they kill you?" Katya asked, a look of curiousness finally broke through the mask.
"Because of what Drake and I had found in a vault" Maddie spoke softly, hoping to avoid the subject of her torture. "CDS had discovered a sort of beacon, hidden in the system's asteroid belt with a message from the forerunners. Of course, they didn't know that, only I did… when I touched it."
"And that's what this is all about?" Katya said, leaning against the wall beside her.
Maddie braved eye contact and shrugged in agreement. "The message led me here. Supposedly, the forerunners left humanity a gift."
"They left us a gift?" She replied, open mouthed.
"Believe it or not, yeah." Maddie understood her scepticism. The Covenant God's were the whole reason that humanity was being hunted like animals throughout the stars so to any human, the idea that their God's might favour them in some way was quite a revelation. "The Nazari's have been onto it for year's apparently, even managed to keep ONI in the dark about it all as well."
"That's… quite something." Was all she could say.
Maddie nodded, "I've got some data on a drive, hopefully I can use it to give you some places to look."
"For what, though? Do we even know what it is that we are looking for?"
"I believe we're looking for a tomb of some kind." Maddie yawned, stretching as the bed called for her. "If I knew any more than that, I would tell you. All I know for sure is that we are in the right place, and that following Dima Nazari and his wife is our best lead right now."
Katya sighed and rubbed her eyes. She nodded a few times and stood straight. "Alright, rest up, I'll contact Drake and get us out of here."
Maddie wanted to nod, but sleep had her, pulling her under the blankets with its lazy haze.
She drifted off into a long and restful sleep, feeling as though a weight had been lifted for the first time since her home had been attacked.