Hello people!
I decided to try and move through the story now that is so close to the ending, despite my mental fatigue. Writing still help me de-stress after all, and is not THAT bad. But if you think that my quality of writing dropped like a stone and should take a short rest you tell me. I am only human, after all
Ok back to the story
Chapter 22
Preparing for the assault.
C-sec precint. 13 18 Citadel hour.
This was not a good day for Shepard.
The commander swore lightly as he darted his steps toward the C-Sec precint, two of his companion just behind. He batted away people in his wake such was the hurry on his moves, but no one dared to notice this among the passersby.
Because his eyes spoke for him, and tell of a disaster. And they were right because a priority call had previously reached his Omni-tool, a call from Bailey about the prisoners inside his brig.
Of course, hearing this, Shepard raced toward the C-Sec praesidium alongside Tali and Miranda once hearing these words, fearing the worst.
All his prevision proved true when grim-faced guards stationed at the entrance forbid him and his squad to pass. Never seen displays and scanners quickly activated as it checked Shepard's trio as the commander barked his Spectre's status to no avail.
The precint itself was a hive for activity, as Shepard's eyes noticed. Detectives and prosecutors alike scanned every inch of the building with state of the art devices, as if they expected the wall to attack them. Agents brought samples of any kind to the appropriate experts in a great hurry. Guards in full armour made double checks on everyone that came in or out the precint, their guns ready as they scanned every guest it came with untrustworthy eyes. Bailey was at the centre of this tornado, directing agents and moving personell to their appropriate positions as he barked orders like a drill sergeant.
"I don't care if you have to beg your way through the red tape. Grab these new scanners!" Shepard heard Bailey bark "I want every inch of their damned belongings analyzed to the last molecule." an orderly, an Asari Maiden in light armour, quickly hurried away to do whatever he told her to do.
"News about our third package?"
"The doctor just gave her the all-clear. Whatever killed those two did not come for her."
"Good, but I will take no chances: keep her still on solitary confinement, three guards day and night. Anything that goes inside, even a bloody Tampax, must be triple checked. Clear?"
A Turian warden nodded and moved to obey. As he did so, he quickly passed over Shepard.
"Bailey, what the hell is going on there?" asked Shepard as he saw that the chief was not swamped by people for a second.
"Shepard, good to see you." answered Bailey amused "Let him enter officer, he is clean."
The Turian currently busy checking Shepard's armour for secret pockets grimaced at these words.
"But chief, what if he"
"He has nothing, and I know I can at least trust him. Now let him in."
The Turian officer grimaced but swallowed his remark, and let Shepard's squad in
"Humans" he merely shrugged.
Bailey approached the small group without saying a word, the frown on his face proof enough of his tiredness.
"Not here I said." he shrugged as Shepard tried to speak.
"Inside my office. Now."
Shepard and his squad silently followed Bailey inside his own office. A small, rectangular place filled to the brim with Data-pads regarding reports, cases and unsolved mysteries. Three chairs were in front of a brown desk as shelves upon shelves lined up on the wall. A weapon rack with a Phalanx and some armour vests waited on the right. The whole place stank of tiredness and work.
Bailey quickly took one of the chairs for himself as he rummaged inside his desk, taking out some glasses and a bottle.
"I am going to need it." groaned Bailey with a grimace. "You too, I am afraid."
"Bailey, what the hell happened?" demanded Shepard already out of patience.
"Why the message, why the new guards, and equipment? Don't tell me that Cerberus managed to break these three out?"
"They didn't Shepard, they couldn't," answered Bailey. "The moment you left, I turned my goddamn precint into fort Knox. Sentries at every juncture, new scanning pieces of equipment, traps inside the software. I left every possible snare for any would-be rescuers, In case I could get them red-handed. But no one came."
A soft groan escaped from Bailey's lips as he drank another mouthful of drink.
"The precint became as quiet as a rock, and I thought that no one would come for our three guests, but I still kept a tight guard on them, just in case they broke under pressure."
"Did they?" asked Tali
"The girl, Kelly, cried and sniffled all the time. Have to say, does not look like Cerberus material, but any interrogations we did brought nothing. The couple, not at all. Silents as stones. Regardless."
Bailey grabbed a data-pad from his desk.
"Roughly one day ago, a guard heard a strange sound coming from the couple's cell, like a rattle. Intrigued, my guard came inside the cell block to see what was happening, and found those two Cerberus people on the floor, spitting blood. Of course, he immediately called the doctor and a patrol, but it was already too late when the Doc arrived. Dead by lung failures, both of them."
"They poisoned the food?" asked Miranda. Bailey smiled bitterly.
"I wish, lady. The food was fine, we make sure to always check on it before distributing. The poison was in the cutleries. Fork and spoon. Some kind of sludge invisible to normal scanners absorbed by the skin. They never had a chance."
"Clever" murmured Miranda.
"And Kelly? What about Kelly?" demanded Shepard.
"Nothing, Shepard." muttered Bailey "Surprised even me, but her cell was clean. Of course, after a stunt like this, I ordered to take her on a VIP block. We also double-checked every inch of space she used, just to be sure. Although I fear that there is no danger for her now."
"It is a fair assumption." admitted Miranda "The Illusive Man must not see her as a menace. Unlike the two spies."
"Damn straight. Now what, Shepard?"
Shepard swore, cursing himself for not expecting Cerberus to pierce the C-sec defences as he massaged his temples. He had underestimated their grasp, so focused had he been on Trelyn. Even there, at the core of the Citadel power, they could strike.
-So much for extracting intel on them.-
"Can I speak with Kelly at least?" asked Shepard "I wish to ask some questions."
"If you were another person, no." answered Bailey "She is a targeted prisoner right now, and people like that are locked tight, more than the Citadel's archives. But you are a Spectre, so is not like I cannot stop you."
Bailey sighed.
"I will prepare an insulated chamber for the two of you, but don't take it too long and please, if you find something, give it to me. My superiors are already breathing down on my neck for this mess."
"Will try," replied Shepard as he quickly rose up from the chair.
"Miranda, go back to the ship and tell your boss that I need to speak with him." whispered to her CO.
"Will do Shepard."
"Let's go then, Bailey. Time to meet Kelly."
43 minutes later.
"So, this is what they have done because of me," said Kelly in a dejected voice. Her hands went to her face, covering it to try to stop tears coming from her eyes. Much of her body was still bandaged and treated from Lena's attacks happened mere days ago, from the repaired jaw to the bandaged hand, and her battered body was covered with a blue prison cell's uniform.
"These videos you showed...I helped them."
Shepard felt pity for her. Being a Spectre and Alliance Ops made him a good judge of character, and looking at Kelly, he saw less of a shadowy agent and more of a girl caught in something far bigger than herself.
"Don't go too far, Kelly." said Shepard gently "I will not deny that you played a hand at this disaster, but you were not the one that tore up a child's chest and played with it like God."
"But I am the one that gave them the material to play God," replied KellyKelly.
"This...is true." conceded Shepard "At least, until a little something called guilty conscience urged you to stop."
Another video stored inside Shepard's Omni-tool opened up, revealing a scene where the now-dead Abigail Kane and an orderly argued with each other.
A: What do you mean no more shipments? I need those samples, you idiot.
O: Apparently, the person responsible for bringing the samples inside Shepard's ship is refusing to perform. The Illusive Man is working for a countermeasure.
A: We'll tell him to work harder, you moron. We are already working at the half-output as it is, and without new genetic tissues and blood, I will be forced to stop the experiments! Just kill the courier and replaced it with another if he is behaving like an idiot
O: She
A: What?
O: The courier is a she
After these words, the video became fuzzy until it stopped under a hail of confused readings.
"And that is everything we managed to recover of that particular feed. Looking at the data, It happened just after Ghasvin attempts Lena's kidnapping on Illium. Was that the bump that reawakened your conscience, Kelly?"
"No." answered Kelly "My conscience always remembered me that what I was doing was wrong but..." a frown marred her tired lips. Shepard urged her to continue with a sign.
"That day, it exorcised my fears."
"Fears of what exactly?"
"Of Cerberus. Don't get me wrong, I want to help the people in the Terminus sector, that is why I stood once discovering who was truly calling the shots in this mission. Still, I also wanted to have a secure career instead of being forced to slave as a professional psychologist's attendant for years before starting my own studio. I know I am good at my job, and someone at Cerberus must have noticed too because what they offered me was so enticing: work on one of their ships for the duration of one mission, a mission under the command of Spectre Shepard no less! And receive in exchange a studio of my own and contacts for influential clients on the Citadel, it was like a dream come true."
"You received an offer and took it for your own good." mused Shepard
"Nothing wrong in this."
"Truth to be told, I discovered that it was Cerberus only after signing the contract. They used one of their cover societies for the deal. For me and many others here on the Normandy apparently."
"And what happened after discovering this little dishonesty?" pressed Shepard.
"I...I was angry for a time, but the more I spoke with the other ensigns and officers, the less they appeared Cerberus material. Joker, the doctor, Gabby, Kenneth, Gardner, all the others! They were all so...friendly. So open about aliens. I thought that maybe it wouldn't have been that bad. Besides, with such an important mission, it felt wrong to step back."
"They look friendly because they needed a smokescreen. Murmured Shepard "A mirror to dazzle my judgement. Cerberus, the true Cerberus, is far different."
"In hindsight, it is easy for me to see it now." laughed KellyKelly bitterly. "And I started to suspect it when I received a call from a cryptate channel -asking me- to spy on you, Shepard. I... I am sorry."
"I know that already." Shepard smiled "No offence, but you are a better courier that you are a spy. Too naive. When did they ask you to bring Lena's samples?"
"...Korlus. The second day after Lena's near-death experience."
Since then, eh? A long time for them. How many shipments?"
"Three, until they demanded me to send Lena's arm alongside the usual blood samples."
"After Tuchanka then." estimated Shepard.
"Exactly!"
"What happened after your rebellion?"
"Nothing and this surprised me. But whoever was in charge was angry at my choice. I understood by the mails I received. The tone was scared, unnerved. They wanted answers. I...I thought I was about to die."
"Then not the Illusive Man." murmured Miranda "He's not the type to lose patience for trifles like this."
"And yet here you are, alive and well. Do you know what happened to your two inmates?"
A dark look furrowed Kelly's face.
"Yes...I know."
"Then how do you explain you being still alive?"
"I...don't. When I heard the guards shouting...I thought it was my turn. Now?"
A thick silence enveloped the room, and the people inside. Shepard's eyes shifted focus as he mulled about Kelly's words while the girl's hand fidgeted in fear and confusion.
"A mystery for another time." declared Shepard finally "Tell me something else then. Why didn't you came to me before it was too late?"
"Sorry, Shepard, what?" asked Kelly, confused.
"Why didn't you come to me. Asking for my help. Why burying all of this by yourself. Why refusing to ask for help."
"I...I" stuttered Kelly as fear drained her face.
"I didn't know who to trust, who to speak of. Your fame precedes you commander and working with you...I know that you are not like them, but...I." a tear escaped from the girl's eyes.
"I betrayed you. I betrayed Lena, and all the others by proxy. How could I confess this sin and hope to stay on the ship?"
"So you decided to keep everything inside you and pray for the best?" taunted Shepard back.
"I just...I just wanted to make things right."
"And look what this had done to you" shot back Shepard as he suppressed a sight.
"You made a mess, Kelly. A damn mess. Life is not a cheap police drama! And you are not the heroine of a fantasy movie."
Both hands covered Shepard's face as he furrowed his brows.
"If only you had come to me, we could have invented something. Maybe even stopping Lena from beating you to death."
"That was inevitable" whispered Kelly with regret.
"Oh?"
"Shepard, did you forget the nature of my job? I worked with Lena for months, far before." The girl stopped for a moment, as she looked at her bandaged hand. "Far before it stopped being work and became a pleasure. Her view of the universe is skewed, almost ancient in its simplicity. An eye for an eye is the only law she truly understands, and her moral and customary values are old, almost medieval in their crudeness. Furthemore, she seems to acknowledge some kind of warrior code deeply ingrained inside her mind, probably from her puberty. A betrayal of this kind could only end in blood. In fact" laughed Kelly "I am amazed that I am still alive. Thanking Raina for this."
"...If you say so," admitted Shepard. "Now, back about you. I will ask Bailey to let you go back inside the Normandy."
Kelly couldn't stop a hiccup from escaping her mouth.
"Shepard?"
"You heard me. Between your words, and the proofs I gathered on the laboratory, I feel reasonably sure that you are not a Cerberus agent, but only a girl inside a mess far bigger than herself. You will still to submit to an Alliance courtroom after this of course, but I am positive on the results."
"But...but Lena, the others"
"Will get over this." concluded Shepard "The others still need you, especially Kasumi, and Lena will obey my command, chiefly after seeing the videos of your attempts of getting out."
"She will never forgive me for this!" despaired Kelly
"And I never talked about forgiving, though I think you deserve a chance. Unlike that bitch, you seem to have a soul. I am talking about acting like a professional."
"Shepard...are you...really meaning this?"
"...Yes, Kelly. I mean it. I want you back on my ship."
"I...I...commander!" Kelly hugged Shepard as tears flew from her eyes. The commander was almost kicked on the ground by her enthusiasm.
"Thank you, Shepard! Thank you for this second Chance. I promise that I will not betray you. No matter the cost."
Shepard replied to the hug as KellyKelly kept crying in both happiness and fear.
"That is not what I fear right now."
he whispered to himself
Shepard's cabin. Normandy sr-2. 2 hours after the interrogation.
Lena's eyes were fixated on the screen as the images flashed across her silver eyes. This was already the third video the Claymore witnessed with Shepard on his cabin, and the girl still gave no sign of either annoyance or regret. She simply stood on the couch alongside Shepard, expressing nothing to the commander.
A:"I don't care if that fool grew a conscience right now! Find a replacement! I need those samples!"
Screamed Abigail's voice before the video stopped, leaving in Lena's hands a spent data-pad and a silence as thick as the Claymore's sword.
"This is the last one," announced Shepard.
"So, what do you think."
Lena turned her face toward Shepard, and the commander saw nothing inside her silver eyes. No rage, no surprise, no sadness, only emptiness.
"Why did you want me to look at these videos, Shepard?" simply demanded the Claymore.
"Kelly is guilty. No matter what happened after it, justice must be delivered. You should have let me kill her."
Shepard grimaced at the sheer smoothness of Lena's words. The Claymore was not screaming out of rage, or hissing in contempt, merely stating a fact.
-I am starting to think that Kelly is right about Lena being stuck in the past.- he thought worried.
"What you say is partially true, and this is the reason I ordered Bailey to detain both her and the two thieves as we moved toward the laboratory. To gather proofs first, and interrogate them later."
"Why?" asked Lena "The crime was clear for our eyes: betrayal. Death is the only true answer. If you had wished for more answers, you could have tortured them. Torture always untangle a tongue."
"Lena, Lena." chided Shepard as he mentally recoiled. "No offence but, are your views of the universe truly so narrow? Is life only black and white to you?"
"Yes, What about it?" growled Lena "It is not much different from Samara, or Jack, or you. I was there when you executed Abigail."
"Lena, by following your code of laws, I should have executed Jack the moment we met her because of her list of past crimes. And Samara, I respect her, but it is clear that hers is a life-code set on the past, the ancient past. And me" smiled Shepard "I used my Spectre authority to kill Abigail Kane, and I will not deny that I enjoyed this, but ask yourself this: did I ordered her death the moment I learned about her presence on my ship? Didn't I looked at every file we gathered on Trelyn in search of shreds of evidence? Didn't I allowed her to speak before pulling the trigger?"
"Yes, you did!" replied Lena, annoyed. Her hands fidgeted as Shepard saw something emerging inside her eyes. Rage? Regret?
"So what? The end was the same. She is dead."
"Yes, but how I reached the end is what change everything Lena." patiently explained Shepard.
"One thing is possessing the authority for killing someone, another is abusing it. Even Samara, with all her pitiless judgements, follow a code. But you? The moment you learned about Kelly's involvement, you stormed the mess hall and almost beat her to death! You didn't even try to listen to her reasons. This is not the right way Lena: people are innocent until proved guilty, not the other way around."
Lena's eyes blinked in annoyance as Shepard's words sank inside her.
"Are you saying that I should forgive her?"
"Don't put your words inside my mouth, Lena" warned Shepard.
"Whether you forgive her or not, is up to you. What I want for you is to stop seeing life in such...extreme ways. Killing anything you think might have slighted you is not the way we do things here. We have tribunals, laws, right! And if you truly feel impotent, go ask a Spectre like me to take a look. We stopped taking justice in our hands as a whole centuries ago!"
Lena's teeth gnashed in frustration as Shepard's words cut deeper than her sword.
"All this crap is heralding for something Shepard. What is it?"
"Kelly is coming back to the ship."
The table next to Lena almost shattered as the Claymore hit her with a foot.
"WHAT?! I cannot believe what I just heard?"
"Calm down Lena"
Lena didn't even listen to him.
"You can preach all the equality that you want, it does not change that she is a traitor! Would you bring a serpent inside your garden because it was sorry?"
"I said, calm down, Lena."
"At this point let us free every single person stuck in a Jail, or tell the scum of Omega that they are free to wander in the galaxy, why both"
"Enough!"
This time Shepard shouted, with enough authority in his voice to make the Claymore sit on the couch. Lena saw Shepard's green eyes blazing with rage as his whole body tensed, like a cat ready to pounce.
"Are you done with your sermon, Lena?" snarled Shepard. "I said that Kelly will be back on the ship, NOT that she is forgiven. Sorry or not, she committed a crime but, unlike that damn woman, she appears genuine in her grief to the point of defying Abigail's orders when urged to comply. These, in our societies, are called extenuating circumstances that WILL be considered by a tribunal, but for this to happen, she needs to reach it, alive."
"If you are so afraid of her dying, why not instaurating a process here, on the ship. As a Spectre, you can do it."
retorted Lena
"I am a Spectre" answered Shepard "But I am also her captain, and her friend, while Abigail was a perfect no one for me. I cannot judge her. An alliance tribunal once this mess is done will do."
"Meaning that once paid the supposed price, she will be free do to as she please," mumbled Lena.
"Oh, are you really that ignorant Lena?" snarked Shepard back. The quizzical look Lena gave in response was enough of an answer.
"You must know that there is a little thing called criminal record in our society. A handy list of crimes made by people that stalk them for all their lives. Kelly is marked for life now! Everyone will know that she worked for Cerberus, meaning that no one, outside of Alliance space, will accept her job appliances as a therapist. Or anything else to be honest.
Her dreams of working alongside aliens are now gone! She is stuck on Earth now, assuming she will not be harassed by people even there. People as blind as you."
The explanation actually stung in Lena's mind, and this time she found no more snarky remarks against Shepard.
Flashes of people shunning and harassing her back on the island for the mere crime of being a Claymore suddenly came back to haunt her memories.
"I see this shut you up" commented Shepard as he rose from his chair "Good. Now, I need to speak to someone, so I am leaving you. You know the road for your quarters."
The door of the cabin hissed as Shepard punched the opening button. The corridor's light hit the commander's frame, making him appear different from what he was in Lena's eyes. More similar to a warrior of her past.
This time her image did not bring hatred, only shame.
"And by the way Lena, by following your code of law, you should have died months ago. You served two years inside an underground arena, something forbidden by Citadel laws."
"That happened because!" shouted Lena as she rose from her seat, enraged.
"You were enslaved? Forced?" interrupted her Shepard "You mean to say that you had reasons for doing it? Like Kelly?"
Lena's rage evaporated like mist.
"Think about it."
The door of the cabin closed, leaving Lena alone save the darkness of his mind.
Illusive Man's meeting room. 19 53 Cerberus's main base hour
"Shepard, I am glad to see you. I needed to speak with you."
"I wish I could say the same about you."
The illusive man took a long sip from his impeccable cigarette as he looked at Shepard's holographic image in front of him. He had expected his displeasure and already knew how to contain it.
With all his flaws, the commander was a soldier at heart after all.
"Your reason for being irritated is understandable, maybe even justifiable, but this is not the reason you are there. Your job is stopping the Collector, not arguing about the sanctity of our actions."
"My job is protecting people, all people, for the monsters that lurk within and without the society, you included." the commander's image sighted.
"But you are right, this is not the time. What do you have for me?"
Another long puff from the cigarette came before the Illusive man's answer.
"Your incursion on the Collector ship proved to be far more successful than expected. It took weeks for my expert to decrypt the data they received. When they finally succeeded, they found a treasure trove of information regarding the Collectors, their physiology, their weak points, how their weapons work and, most important of all, this."
A gas giant's hololitic image appeared in the middle of the room, showing a rushed image of something orbiting a brown dwarf. At Shepard's uncertain glare, the Illusive Man answered by increasing the image quality, and this time Shepard sighed in shock.
"Correct Shepard. A Reaper. To be precise, a derelict Reaper orbiting the brown dwarf of Mnemosyne."
"How...how old is it?" asked Shepard still in shock
"37 million years old, according to the team I sent there. My people believe she is the survivor of a massive mass accelerator round fired by one of the many Reaper harvested races during their cycles. For its actual discovery, it happened two weeks ago."
"...And why no one ever noticed something like this?" asked Shepard sceptical.
"The planet is suffering under a minor gravitic anomaly that makes travelling inside its orbit problematic. Many science academies proposed to go and investigate the phenomenon, but they always ended in nothing. Maybe a signal sent by the husk that discourages people from investigating. A lucky occurrence, for us."
"So it seems." mused Shepard "But why are you telling me this?"
"For two reasons, Shepard. The first one is that my people discovered that it needs an IFF recognizer if any ship wishes to pass through the Omega-4 relay. Without it, any ship would be reduced to atom, and my team believe that you will find one of such objects inside the derelict Reaper."
"And the second reason?" demanded Shepard
"I sent one team to collect the IFF from the Reaper two weeks ago. Everything appeared to be fine, but four days ago Dr Chandana stopped sending reports. I am afraid something had happened to them, and I wish you investigate this."
"You sent" stuttered Shepard before covering his face in annoyance.
"Why am I not surprised. Any idea of what might have befallen upon them? Pirates maybe?"
"I am afraid the problem might come from the inside." warned the Illusive Man.
"I suspect that the Reaper, while dead, is not inactive, and might have attacked the crew. Be careful once inside."
"This didn't stop you from sending a team I see." hissed Shepard.
"Whatever, send the coordinates to my computer. Anything else you wish to add."
"Only one thing Shepard." said the Illusive man "In the future, I would be grateful if you stopped destroying my assets."
Shepard, already half disappeared from the pedestal, abruptly stopped before turning and facing the Illusive Man again.
"You mean your little circus of horror on Trelyn? Well, sorry to disappoint you, but I won't. Or did you forget the only reason I am sticking with you?"
For the first time during this conversation, the Illusive Man sighed as he looked at Shepard with his queer eyes.
"I will not deny that doctor Kane's methods were not moderate and that people died under her care, but the payout prospected from her research would have been invaluable. Thanks to her now we have a far greater insight into the human physiology and how it can be improved. Such knowledge can be the difference between victory and defeat against the Reaper."
"You make it all look so easy, eh?" grumbled Shepard back.
"The end justifies the means. All for a just cause. I guess you ordered the termination of those two for the same reasons: they knew too much and had to be killed for the good of Cerberus. Didn't ever come into mind that something is simply too dangerous to be pursued? That we are not ready, as a society, to follow certain paths? You speak of power, but what power might come from creating crazed beasts? Because that was what we found inside that damnable planet. Monsters from our darkest nightmares!"
"The first experiments proved to be...too unstable, I admit it." conceded the Illusive Man "But doctor Kane was close to a breakthrough. Just imagine Shepard, soldiers with your expertise and the power of agent Lena. The strength of technology with the savagery of her blood. Nothing could stop humanity with soldiers like this. We would be safe from the Reapers."
"It would be torture." reacted Shepard "Lena was clear about this, and I do not doubt her word for a second: having that beast within is agony, not a blessing. Also, safe against the Reaper or safe to enslave anyone at our leisure? Even if all our footsloggers would become like Lena, their ship still outmatches ours in space. And what if people like Lena and up brainwashed by them? We don't need to play God with our flesh! What we need is to convince the galaxy of the real threat and band under one banner! That is what is going to save us, not mimicking Frankenstein!"
"Your optimism and naivete is noted, and understood." murmured the Illusive Man back.
"Anything else?"
"Just one question? Why didn't you ordered Kelly killed?"
This time the Illusive Man took three long seconds before answering, a pause quickly noticed by Shepard despite the man's apparent glacial composure.
"Demanding Miss Chamber's collaboration for such a task was a foolish idea." he finally admitted "Knowing your reservation about our cause, I thought...unwise demanding Miranda's help for such an endeavour. Losing her in a fit of your rage would only jeopardy your mission. Miss Chambers, being the closest one to you, and a friend of agent Lena, seemed the most optimal choice. I see now the folly of my decision, that is why, Shepard, you can assure Ms Chambers that no attempt against her life will ever come from our people. She needs not to fear us."
"Didn't feel so generous toward your friends, though." snarked Shepard.
"They knew too much about Cerberus and about our bases. I had to do it." again, the look on the Illusive Man remained glacial. Shepard wondered how he could do it.
The cigarette was gone, utterly consumed now. It was quickly replaced by a second one.
"They knew the risks."
"I wonder if they truly did."
Shepard disappeared after saying these last words. The bright blue light of his presence was now gone, leaving the room shrouded in darkness, except for the Illusive Man's dim light from the cigarette.
-Ah, Shepard- he thought. -So great and powerful, and yet so naive! Truly the best and worst that humanity could offer.-
Calmly, the Illusive Man grabbed a data-pad placed on a table next to his chair and pressed some buttons, making a call to a specific cell. The answer was almost immediate.
"Report!" barked the Illusive Man to the voice he knew he was now listening.
"We have found the corpse of the creature dubbed -awakened being- killed by Shepard." answered a voice. A masculine one.
"61% of the mass gone. Proceeding for extraction now."
"Good. Send the shipment to these coordinates, dismissed." the First voice disappeared without a sound, replaced by a new channel. This time a feminine and youthful voice came out from the pad.
"Machines ready, sir. The team is eager to begin."
"We have the sample. Use it to reclaim doctor Kane's work. Maximum security this time. The codename for the project, Claymore."
Just to warn you, folks. I think that 7-9 chapters, and the story is at his epilogue, where Shepard shall meet the other Claymores and shed SOME light in their existence in his world.
See ya
