…
"Time is a great teacher; unfortunately it kills all its pupils."
(Hector Berlioz)
...
Serenity Valley, March 29th, 11:21 AM, 2186
...
Sitting quietly in my home, I appreciated the stillness of the atmosphere around me as I dug into the Cerberus data Lydia had ripped from those servers back on Imaneya, in addition to what we took from the computer core on the Iquitos. Admittedly, the information from the ship didn't add much to what we'd already recovered, but the base had been a goldmine. Everything was beginning to shape up in a big way, and The Illusive Man's motives were becoming clearer the farther into the files I delved.
Ever since Shepard destroyed the Collector Base on the other side of the Omega 4 relay, The Illusive Man has been forcing many of his agents to undergo highly experimental "upgrades" to improve their combat efficiency. These implants, as we had determined already, were copies of those used by the Reapers to create their shock troops. These reports suggested that, over time, those with the implants would begin suffering major neurological breakdown as the lack of a Reaper signal corroded the lobes of the brain, most notably the frontal lobe, forcing the subjects to eventually become entirely dependent on the signal to survive. Long-term withdrawal resulted in total brain failure as the implants shut down, taking whatever was left of the individual with it.
It was easy to see the writing on the wall here. Now that Cerberus had these "upgraded" troops, they needed Reaper signals to keep them active. If the condition of that base and its logs were anything to go by, they hadn't developed proper containment procedures for these artifacts yet. That, or the artifacts grew more active in the presence of more… condensed or numerous Reaper signals. We had no way to know for sure without running tests on one ourselves, but I wasn't willing to risk anyone's lives on a hunch. The dozens of bodies down on that planet had been proof enough that any sources or "conduits" emitting a Reaper signal needed to be destroyed as soon as they were discovered.
Richard was looking into ways to nullify or block the signal as a protective countermeasure for our men, but he had no true way to test it without risking someone's life. Instead, he, Lydia, Mineko, and Hans had dedicated most of their free time into what they clandestinely referred to as the "ORION Program". Based off of the work Richard had done with his Geth-derived cybernetics and Minkeo's gene therapy experiments, he and his medical team had set out to develop a counter to these Cerberus commandos in the form of a fusion of gene therapy, cybernetics, and physical augmentations. It was all in the preliminary stage at the moment, but from what little he had shown me, it looked impressive. Still, it was a long way from being a viable option, which meant we had to fight these commandos the old-fashioned way for now.
Having grown disgusted looking at the autopsy photos of the poor people Cerberus experimented on, I switched over to the files recovered from the ship, knowing whatever came from there couldn't be nearly as grim.
As it turned out, most of the twelve ships that attacked our battle group above Imaneya had been recalled from a long-range recon mission in the edges of the Terminus. They had been ordered by someone named Raymond Ashe, apparently under direct orders from The Illusive Man, to bombard the facility until nothing was left but a smoldering crater. They had no idea we were there already, and weren't ready for the fight we had given them. Raymond's ship, the Yokohama, had attempted the ground assault on our positions, but quickly retreated once his escorts had been thrown into disarray and our ships started firing at the descending shuttles.
I was beginning to suspect the Yokohama had been the only ship carrying those shock troopers, because no Reaper signals had been detected from any of the other ships during the fight. If that was true, it suggested not all of Cerberus may have been aware of what The Illusive Man was trying to force onto them.
It could prove to be an advantageous piece of "intel" when we brought Kira Hayms in today for a chat.
Hearing heavy footfalls coming up my stairs, I quickly walked over to the front door, opening it to reveal Dimitri, still as giant as ever.
"Hey, I haven't seen you in awhile!" I greeted with a big, stupid smile, taking a step to the side. "Come on it, take a seat. I've got a hot pot of coffee waiting here for some lucky gentlemen to drink it."
"I am perfectly happy to assist you in that endeavor, thank you." He nodded, returning the smile with a full grin as Finn and Darcy ran up to him, sniffing his boots. Finn chanced a jump, barely moving the man. "They have become quite… feisty is word, right?"
"I suppose that's one way to describe them. They'll calm down in a few minutes." I shrugged, walking behind the kitchen counter and pouring two cups of coffee. "They've gotten so big that I can barely tell them apart from the pups they used to be."
"Yes, very good dogs." He said as he sat down, petting both behind the ears as he looked back up at me. "I admit, I am still unsure as to why I am here. Progress is proceeding well on Turviss, it feels… counterproductive to bring me back on short notice such as this."
"Well, that requires some explaining." I danced around the subject, walking back over and handing him the steaming cup of joe. "I remember you telling me about Torfan a few months ago, back on the Discovery."
"I recall conversation, yes." He nodded, taking a sip of the coffee before going on. "How does Torfan relate to my being here?"
"Well, the Captain of the ship that surrendered to us above Imaneya… she used to be part of the Alliance Marines. Her record says she fought on Torfan, just like you did." I explained as a look of surprise and uncertainty took hold of his face. "I was thinking you might talk to her, try and find some kind of common ground we can use to get information out of her."
"She… what is her name?" Dimitri asked quickly, suddenly taking a very big interest.
"Kira Hayms." I answered, getting his eyes to light up. "Why? You know her?"
"She led unit that recovered me and two surviving squadmates from Sector 12a bunker complex." He answered as he stared into space, a brief look of pain appearing on his face before he turned back to me. "She and I had… personal correspondence after the conflict had concluded."
I had never seen Dimitri so shaken up before, not once all these years. Clearly he had a deep, intimate understanding of this woman.
"You had a relationship?" I guessed, getting him to sigh deeply.
"That is one way to describe it." He remarked, tenting his fingers. "She and I started to see each other once I recovered, but after few months… I decided to retire from Alliance Marines."
"She didn't like that, I'm guessing?" I continued to urge, fascinated by all of this. He never mentioned anything like this before now.
"She and I talked several times after discharge, but we stopped few months before you and Dr. Nemo arrived on Aldrin Station." He went on, sounding surprisingly and understandably sad. "She never developed liking for scientists, suppose she could not reconcile my becoming one."
"And now, years later, she turns up as the Captain of a Cerberus destroyer." I finished, leaning my head back as I drank deeply. "Any idea why she'd choose to join Cerberus?"
"No… that is strange part." He shook his head, drinking his entire mug in one go before moving on. "I know her, she would not abandon Systems Alliance without cause."
"Then maybe it's time we have a chat with her, bring her in and discuss this all in detail." I suggested as his face lit up with a sudden burst of energy.
"No!" He said with a raised voice, surprisingly me. "If you or anyone else is present, she will not say anything. It must be her and I. Alone."
I stared into his eyes a long time, wondering if this really was the correct way to tackle the situation. It was very clear that Dimitri cared deeply for this woman, but I was worried about him being… emotionally compromised. I've always made it a point to keep an eye on the likes of Dan and Richard, but I had no experience dealing with Dimitri like this before. Unfortunately, I wasn't really in a position to refuse his terms either way, considering this could very well be the only way to get the information we need out of her.
That, of course, assumed she knew anything of value to begin with.
"Alright, I'll permit it, but everything that's said gets recorded. No exceptions." I agreed, holding out my hand.
"That's acceptable." He nodded, shaking my hand as we both stood up, walking out of the house.
This would be quite the conversation, I imagined.
…
Camp Dolor, March 29th, 12:09 PM, 2186
…
Watching the display as I put on a pair of headphones, I sat down at Camp Dolor's security station and scrolled through the numerous cameras until I finally spotted Dimitri walking through the camp. Various people stopped to look at him, but none dared to speak a word or try getting in his way. He walked up to Unit 07, forcing me to switch to the unit's internal camera. Kira was sitting inside with several of her officers, eating and drinking, but the moment the door opened and they met each other's eyes, the whole room froze.
"Dimi?" She spoke in a shocked tone, turning to face him completely.
"Greetings Kira." He greeted in a gruff, but stern voice as he adjusted his belt where the microphone was hidden.
"It's been awhile… a little grey around the edges, but still keeping in good shape I see." She observed, standing up and walking in closer.
"It has not been easy, but I've managed to find time." He replied, sounding slightly nervous.
"You've apparently found the time for other things, too… like hopping in bed with a bunch of aliens instead of helping your own people." She remarked with obvious venom, getting Dimitri to sigh deeply. "Care to explain any of that?"
"I would certainly be happy to, but not here." He shook his head, looking back at her officers. "Alone."
She repeated the motion, looking at them for a moment before rubbing one of her eye sockets.
"Fine, lead the way." She remarked dismissively, waving her hand towards the exit. "It's not like I have anything better to do, sitting here on my ass all day."
"You really have not changed." Dimitri mused, with a quick smile, leading her towards the front gate where a marine was standing guard. "Unlock it."
"Sir?" The marine questioned, sounding quite uncertain.
"You heard me, unlock the gate!" He repeated with significantly more force, nearly getting him to jump back.
"Y-yes sir!" He quickly complied, opening the gate and allowing the two through.
Outside of the compound, I could only listen to the pair as they walked to Camp Dolor, outside the range of my cameras.
"So, is this part of some plan your cohorts concocted to lull me into a false sense of security?" She asked, not making any attempts to conceal her motives from the sound of things.
"Not at all. I just wish to talk away from others." He replied, obviously trying his best to remain civil. "What did you do, Kira? Why join Cerberus?"
"I joined Cerberus because they're the only ones that gave a damn about the Reaper threat after Shepard died! They decided to do something about the them instead of sitting on their hands!" She answered with fire in her voice, the two of them stopping from the sound of the gravel beneath their feet going quiet. "I guess you decided hiding in some unknown system with a bunch of petri dishes was a better way to make use of your time and skills."
"That is not true and you know it!" Dimitri shouted back, one of them either stepping away or towards each other. "I do not know what manner of lies Cerberus has told you, but they are not people they claim to be!"
"That's what everyone says, the Council, the Alliance, and now this… Confederation you seem to be a part of." She dismissed, not sounding at all cooperative. "Cerberus has never lied about their motives, and I haven't seen them commit any wrongdoing these last few years. You expect me to believe they've managed to lie to me the past few years?"
"Kira… you need to give me chance to explain what has happened to my team and I since 2181." He practically begged, obviously wanting nothing more than to convince her of the truth. "You know I would never lie to you. Just give me chance."
There was a brief pause between them, leaving me on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next.
"Fine, you get one chance to convince me I'm wrong, ONE!" She remarked, making sure to put plenty of emphasis on Dimitri's chance.
"Fine, благодарю вас." He sighed as they continued walking. "Do you know of the fate of Aldrin Station, our previous facility?"
"No, but I do remember you telling me about your projects there." She admitted, seemingly more friendly. "What happened to your facility? I seem to remember you praising it and the people you were working with there."
"We were attacked one day by commandos, boarded after own access codes had been used to bypass station defenses." He went on in further detail, doing his best to keep the plot in order. "Most security and support staff were murdered, while myself and other project leads were captured. They revealed themselves to be Cerberus operatives, and tried forcing us into working on their projects."
Kira stayed silent as Dimitri told our story, leaving me in the dark as to how she may have been expressing herself.
"Dr. Michaels, who had been wounded in the attack and hospitalized, managed to break us out at great risk to himself. We fled from what we later discovered was Minuteman Station, and we traveled to Eden Prime where Admiral Catherine Parangosky had waited for us." He continued, the sound of an overhead transport ship drowning out his voice temporarily.
"Parangosky… what did she do to you over Eden Prime?" She questioned, sounding somewhat confused. It was fairly obvious she was well aware of who that slimeball was.
"She used Alliance men and women, our own people, to try and kill us Kira." Dimitri answered, creating a brief rift in the conversation. "We did not know she was Cerberus operative at the time, and it drove us to believe the Alliance had abandoned and tried to kill us."
"So that's why you and your friends are all friendly with the bucket heads." She put together, coming to some understanding of what happened. "Why didn't you rejoin the Alliance after you learned the truth? Why stay here? The Alliance could have used someone like you before the invasion."
"We built something here, Kira… we gave Quarian people ability to live normal lives again, liberate them from isolated lives forever experienced looking at bulkheads and computer displays." He said as they both stopped again. "After spending so many years with them, they have become companions, friends, trusted colleagues. We have helped each other build a home here on this world."
There was another maddening pause in the conversation, leaving me anticipating what would happen next. I couldn't stand it.
"You really do care about these people." She accepted, sounding somewhat surprised and relieved at the same time. "Maybe I'm willing to listen to more of what you've got to say."
"I have more than words to offer." Dimitri ramped up, sounding quite relieved. "We have recently come across information that might interest you regarding Cerberus and more… recent activities they have partaken in. Might you be willing to have friend of mine share it with you?"
"Sure Dimi." She agreed as the audio suddenly went dead, something blocking the microphone on Dimitri's belt.
I had no idea what had happened, but I simply shrugged and took off the headset, knowing I'd have to get my files ready to show our guest once they'd arrive in twenty minutes.
Maybe we'd be getting somewhere with her after all.
…
Camp Dolor, March 29th, 12:37 PM, 2186
…
Sitting inside of some barracks I had cleared out, I held a portable terminal in my lap, waiting for Dimitri to arrive with Kira. I had mentally prepared myself for the difficult conversation ahead, knowing it wasn't likely to be a friendly or peaceful one.
I wasn't going to hold anything back with her, same as I had done before with the likes of Miranda and Dixon. I'd give her access to everything. Cerberus' dealings with other groups, their unethical experiments, and what they were currently doing to the same people she'd thought she'd been protecting this whole time. The gloves were coming off, and I refused to be gentle about it.
Even so, my few concerns may have been unwarranted. She seemed fully capable of handling herself.
As my mind raced, Dimitri and Kira finally arrived. Both had red faces, and Kira's hair had become unkempt since I last saw her on the cameras. It didn't take a genius to put together the fact that they must have been making out in a "makeup-smearing" way, but I decided to ignore it for the sake of information.
"Hello again, Captain." I greeted, standing up and shaking her hand. "It was nice of you to agree to this meeting, I was beginning to get a little worried."
"You have him to thank for this, not me." She dismissed, sitting down on the bunk across from me. "Now… where's all this evidence Dimi mentioned before?"
"Right here." I smiled, holding up the portable terminal as she carefully grabbed it. "I've loaded all our information about Cerberus onto it, but due to security reasons I've had its wireless network card removed. I'm sure you understand."
"Fine, just let me see what you've got on here…" She blew off, opening the terminal to view the files.
For the next two hours, we sat with her as she read every single report, file, and tidbit of information I had loaded onto that computer. She started with what little Powell had recovered from Minuteman Station during our escape, all the way to the recent raid on the Saint Luke above Kosh. I noticed a small, but subtle change in her demeanor as she delved deeper and deeper, and I knew I had opened pandora's box when she reached the end, with the various studies, reports, and tests performed in that accursed facility on Imaneya.
Though put off, confused, and angry before, she had become consumed with a sort of barely maintained tranquil fury after finishing the last video archive.
"These… BASTARDS!" She finally let loose, standing up and walking back and forth a few times as she tried to focus her thoughts. "They've lied to me about everything! All the things I've been doing these last few years… they've meant nothing!"
"Kira, please-" Dimitri tried to console before he was promptly interrupted.
"Don't tell me to calm down, Dimi! You have no idea what this means for me and my crew! We're ruined, all of us!" She yelled out of frustration, sitting back down and pressing her palms against her forehead. "I worked with Cerberus for years, gave up a promising career as an Alliance officer, and this is what they do behind my back! They've betrayed me, and I've betrayed my own people by dragging them down this road with me..."
She sat in silence for a few moments, staring down at the floor as Dimitri and I shot each other worried expressions.
"Well then, since they don't see anything wrong with stabbing me and my crew in the back, they won't mind if I return the favor." She sneered, looking up with a genuinely frightening, almost sadistic look on her face. "From the looks of these files, I think I might have something… juicy to offer you."
"Any help you can offer us would be greatly appreciated." I said in a lower tone, understanding how she felt.
"On one condition." She halted, getting me to back off slightly. "I want full amnesty for my crew, they followed me and me alone, and they don't deserve to spend the rest of their days rotting in prison cells. As their Captain, I volunteer to undergo whatever sentence you'll give them."
I smiled at her, admiring the love she had for her crew. It was truly admirable.
"Well, seeing as how none of you have been formally charged with any wrongdoing yet, I see no reason why I can't offer you and your people a collective pardon." I said, getting her face to light up. "Consider it my gift to you for whatever information you can give me."
"Deal." She agreed, standing up and shaking my hand as a smirk grew on Dimitri's face.
…
Five Hours Later
…
Back in our homestead, I sat at Dimitri's table with him and Kira going over some of the most fantastic information we had ever obtained. She hadn't been lying when she said she had something juicy to offer us, this was the information equivalent of a twenty-pound slab of Wagyu beef fresh from the finest slaughterhouse around.
Kira had revealed to us the existence of Cerberus' base of operations, a massive, semi-mobile space facility known as Cronos Station. She had been brought there to meet with General Oleg Petrovsky, another Cerberus higher-up I had never heard of before today. She remembered the trip well, considering how rare it was for anyone not part of Cerberus' "inner circle" to even know about the station, let alone visit it. This was back when she still trusted Cerberus, of course, which suggested other opportunities might be available in the future.
This station was where everything happened, and where The Illusive Man and his top brass lived as he pulled the galaxy's strings like an evil puppeteer from the shadows. It was located in orbit of the red supergiant Anadiusa, a dying star. Its placement in the star's radiation belt, along with its periodic solar outputs, made it nearly invisible to long-range sensors. You needed its orbital coordinates above the star to find it with any reasonable accuracy.
It was captivating in a way, getting this kind of information in person. It was exactly what we were looking for all this time, a way to finally put my boot up The Illusive Man's smug ass.
"Cronos Station has a tight-knit Automatic Defense System run by the station's A.I., along with a high-intensity sensor net surrounding a ten kilometer radius." Kira outlined, drawing a rough approximation of the defense grid surrounding the station. "There are only a few basic defensive countermeasures on the station itself, but nothing too substantial."
"GARDIAN arrays?" Dimitri led on, wanting more details just like me.
"In addition to some higher-caliber point defense cannons." She said, rubbing the back of her neck. "You're sure you can put this information to good use?"
"Trust me, I've already got plenty of ideas floating around my skull." I reassured, planting my elbows against the table as I put serious thought into how we'd tackle this.
I knew that if we could nail The Illusive Man and those he surrounded himself with, we'd finally be able to write off Cerberus as a serious threat and focus all our resources on fighting the Reapers.
"What about internal defense? Any idea what they possess?" Dimitri went on, trying to keep the topic moving.
"Uh, the usual fare for the most part. Mechs, automated turrets, and plenty of those cybernetically-enhanced monstrosities The Illusive Man has been posting everywhere." She remarked, looking uncomfortable at the thought of those soldiers. "There's probably more, but I never saw more than that."
"Nothing two Phantom-class stealth frigates and some of my finest marines couldn't deal with." I said, rubbing my chin.
"You would never get close enough to the station to board it, even with one of your stealth vessels. The sensor net is designed to find ships utilizing both emission and visual-based cloaking devices. The ADS will detect and rip apart anything unidentified, no matter how seemingly small or inconsequential it is." She shook her head, not looking that confident in regards to our idea before her face suddenly lit up like a lightbulb. "Unless…"
"Unless what?" I repeated back to her, scooting in closer.
"The Iquitos." She answered with a smile on her face. "My ship has all the IFF and clearance necessary to bypass the ADS and get you to the station."
"That sounds awfully risky… don't they already know you surrendered your ship to the Confederation?" I speculated, feeling that the classic "Trojan Horse" strategy was more than a little dangerous.
"No… during the battle, I told the other Captains that we had suffered damage to our FTL systems, but would initiate a random jump back to the rendezvous point at massive risk to ourselves… Admiral Ashe didn't like it, but considering the losses he was taking, he didn't have time to argue." She revealed much to Dimitri and I's surprise. "I knew that if my crew was to have any chance of survival, we'd have to surrender. Even before you shared your information with me, I was well aware that Cerberus doesn't tolerate… loose ends."
"You potentially sacrificed own reputation to ensure crew safety… that is quite risky move to make." Dimitri observed, sounding impressed. "You really have not changed after all."
"Thank you, Dimitri." She smiled, looking much more relaxed.
"And it left us with options…" I nodded, understanding what she was getting at before. "I get it now, your plan is to slink back into the system, claiming you have repaired the damage to your FTL drives and wish to seek further assistance."
"Something like that." She shrugged, drinking from her water bottle before going on. "Still, all I'd be able to do is get you close to the station. They physically screen the inside of all ships before allowing them to dock."
"Well, we might have a solution to that." I smiled, opening up my omni-tool and bringing up the schematic of the pods Cerberus used to invade the Saint Luke.
"Breaching pods? Who would be crazy enough to use these?" She questioned out loud before noticing the Cerberus markers on the design. "Huh… figures they'd be reckless enough to risk people's lives like that."
"If we can't dock to the station, we'll board it with these." I reassured, closing the hologram. "Give us a day or two, and we can outfit your ship with enough of these to put a platoon on that station."
"There's still one problem, the internal defenses." She brought up, getting me to think for a moment. "Those mechs and automated defenses aren't going to be easy to destroy, even with your weapons."
"I doubt it's anything we can't handle. We're well aware of the kinds of defenses Cerberus makes use of." I dismissed, knowing the opportunity was too good to risk passing up. "If we can reach the location of this A.I. and disable it, we'll be able to shut down the ADS and jump a fleet of ships in to secure the system."
"You'll have to do it before anyone on the station has time to escape. As far as I know, a lot of Cerberus higher-ups have been relocated to the station to cut recent losses in other systems." She added, causing a small smile to form on my face. "If any of them escape, they'll reroot themselves somewhere else."
"Yeah, like a pack of cockroaches." I acknowledged, fully aware of what options they had at their disposal. "I'll need time to modify your ship and organize an offensive action, but until then I want you to keep this all to yourself, even around your own crew. I know you trust them, but I don't want to risk anything about this leaking, no matter how seemingly slim the chance is."
"Fine, but if we're going to do this with the Iquitos, we'll need to brief my crew eventually." She reluctantly agreed, drinking deeply from her cup of water. "Despite my… previous reservations, I think doing this will really help clear my conscience."
"Trust me, if we manage to pull this off a lot of people will have their conscience put to rest." I nodded, taking a deep breath.
I knew this operation needed to happen, but I knew there was no way to ensure total victory. Even with Kira's intel, there were a lot of gaps we'd have to fill in as we went, and this time I didn't think we'd walk away without some casualties. Either way, it was our only chance to finally end the Cerberus threat.
It was time to meet The Illusive Man face-to-face.
…
A/N: Speedy speedy, this chapter blossomed the moment I started writing it, and everything flowed downstream from there. I'm very happy with the way this one came out, and I hope you all agree. Sorry that no action happened this time around, but I think many of you can guess what's coming next if you've read this far. What will happen at Cronos Station? You'll just have to wait and find out for yourself.