Despite himself, Jax found that he was somewhat excited for the new addition to his arsenal.

According to his brother, his new weapon had been finished a day or so before, but Mordenna had wanted to do a few final tweaks to make sure it was "perfect." Fine by Jax—it wasn't as if the addition was desperately needed. It almost felt like an eternity since he went on his last mission, even if it was just earlier that week. There had been a lot going on since then. Especially considering...

Jax sighed, idly running a hand over his hair, contemplating brading it. Even if he had thought himself justified at the time... he really shouldn't have gotten cross at his sister. Or his brother, either. Emotions had been running hot and he should've had a more level head about events. After all, it was his father who got apocalyptically angry. Not him.

But... did that mean he couldn't vent his frustrations at all? Did that mean he couldn't be angry whatsoever? Even as he questioned that, he thought about being angry at anyone on the Avenger and winced. It didn't really matter if he wanted to be angry, did it? If he was angry, he'd aim it at whoever approached him, and Jax wasn't one to isolate himself for a whole day. When an episode came about, sure—and even then, his congregation were getting better at finding him. Probably thanks to his siblings.

Still, there had to be some way to manage those feelings of rage when simply talking them out wouldn't suffice. Perhaps he could ask Mordenna as he swung by in the Workshop.

Speaking of, Jax opened the door to it and ducked in. Mordenna was at his own workbench, talking with Schro. Interestingly enough, they had a Specter body on the table. Jax half-wondered what they were doing with that, but that wasn't his focus. Over at Lily's table, the aforementioned engineer stood, accompanied by Rodin. A... unique gathering of individuals, but something deeper in Jax wasn't complaining. He internally scowled at that, dismissing the feeling and walking in. "Good morning, everyone."

"Oh! Morning, bro." Mordenna turned around from his bench, getting up and walking over to the lockers. "We put away your gun for space reasons, so lemme go get it."

"I understand." Jax continued to enter, walking over to Lily and Rodin. "Now, what could the two of you be up to?"

"Ah, y'know." Lily shrugged, giving a lopsided smile. "Engineering. I... hadn't really expected Archons to be so knowledgeable in the area. It's a pleasant surprise," she finished, directing that last statement at Rodin.

Rodin gestured grandly. "I would be a foolish king if I did not have a knowledgeable head upon my shoulders. I find it quite pleasing, myself, to know that there are humans as skilled as you are, Lily."

"Oh, stop," Lily waved his compliment off. "I'm not nearly as good as my dad was. Sure, I can make things happen, but..."

"Shut the hell up, sis." Mordenna came back to the conversation, toting a huge gun. Judging by the styling, the multiple barrels, and the heavy chamber that presumably held the Elerium Cores, this was Jax's new cannon. "Look at what I'm carrying and tell him you're not a fantastic engineer again."

"Well!" Lily flicked a hand at the gun. "That was mostly you!"

"'Mostly me' my ass. I practically abandoned this halfway through to get to work on Fal-Mai's arm. Which, by the way!" Mordenna set the gun down on the table, then twisted to look at Schro. "Go ahead and get the core out for me. Might as well have it ready for when I've got the nervous link good to go."

Schro nodded, pressing a hand to the chest of the downed Specter, the lines on their body glowing brighter. Jax had more pressing things at hand than watching that, so he turned to Mordenna. "Might I ask of Schro's involvement?"

Mordenna turned back to the rest of them. "Sure thing! While they and I were working on the field, I threw a few questions at them. Turns out I'd be able to use nanos from another Specter to make Fal-Mai her new arm, if she wants. It'd mean she could practically style it however she pleases—and even form it into new shapes if she likes. If she wants the arms I promised her earlier..." Mordenna shrugged. "I still have personal interests in seeing if you really can manipulate Specter nanos with a nervous or neural uplink. I sure could use extra hands while I'm working, or just form whatever tools I need."

Jax raised his eyebrows. Beyond aesthetics—which he certainly could appreciate—he knew little to nothing about engineering. Mordenna continued to impress as always. "A fantastic shortcut, I believe. Fal-Mai would take well to such a useful implement."

"You think so?" Mordenna grinned for a second, then rubbed at his mouth. " That does mean that I'll have to put the grappling hook she wants on her new suit, though. I suppose she can make one herself if she figures out the science behind that with her new arm, but I might as well make her a reliable one. Now!" Mordenna clapped his hands together, then gestured to the gun in front of all of them. "After a while of development, tweaks, and messing around, the Heretic Eradication Canon is ready for service. Whaddya think?"

Figuring he'd just keep that name this time to amuse Mordenna, Jax went over it with a more thorough inspection. The general aesthetic reminded him of every other gun Mordenna had made—though this time, the accents were a navy blue instead of burgundy. The barrels looked a little short, though he suspected they would telescope out when readying to fire. From the wielder's perspective, there was a small, currently-inactive display on the gun, where Jax imagined an ammo counter might be. One of the handles had a smooth, stylized button on it, right where Jax would place his right thumb. There was a small, rectangular slot on one of the sides, where Jax supposed a belt from an ammo backpack would be fed in the future. Overall, it was a masterwork to Jax's eyes.

He nodded approvingly. "A weapon befitting my presence on the battlefield. I imagine the 'ammo tank' will be part of my new armor?"

"Definitely. When I get around to that, this thing will be able to chug out ammo types like you wouldn't believe. I'll get started on that around the time I get Fal-Mai's arm done, alright?"

"Hey," Lily interrupted, "I could easily start on the armor."

"And neglect the legs you're making for the Archons?"

Huh. Jax looked to Lily, who was trying to hide her blushing face. They'd had a short, but meaningful conversation about sculpting the last time he was in here. He idly wondered if she was looking into the medium for that reason.

Rodin chuckled, patting her shoulder. "The implements for me and my kind can wait, if you wish. I'd imagine fitting out one of the main sources of firepower for XCOM might be more beneficial immediately."

"No, no, I'll keep working on those..." Lily gave an exasperated sigh. "I just feel strange working on like, one thing at a time."

"Wouldn't get much done otherwise. So!" Mordenna gave the gun a pat. "How about we lug this thing to the Training Center and see how it fires, huh?"

Jax raised an eyebrow. "Please tell me you test-fired this."

"Of course! Just meaning how it works for you. Pick it up!"

Rolling his shoulders first, Jax gripped the handles steadily and lifted the gun. A little heavier than he was expecting, but even then he wielded it without issue. He wasn't used to much of anything being heavy to his titanic strength. For now, he kept his thumb off the button on the handle—didn't take much guesswork to imagine it was the trigger. "No problems as of yet."

"Nice. Now, see that hook on the side?" There was indeed a hitch on the side of the gun. "That's how you holster the thing to free up your hands. Slot it on your belt."

Jax did as instructed, holstering the cannon. The reason for the shortened barrels became clear—it wouldn't knock against his calves as he ran, nor the ground. "All clear."

"Ah, I love it when a design comes together." Mordenna started walking towards the door. "Can't wait to see it on the field, honestly. Let's go!"

Jax looked back towards Lily as he took a few steps. He was... almost hoping she'd come along. Surely she'd appreciate seeing her work in action, even if it was a test. But, she shook her head. "I'll stay back here and get work started with my own project. Just make sure to remind Mordenna to tell me how it went."

He nodded, walking faster to rejoin Mordenna as they exited the Workshop. There was still a longing to have Lily come along—and for some reason, Rodin as well. Maybe he was just excited over a new addition to his arsenal? It couldn't be that he...? Jax shook his head, chiding himself. He was already infatuated with Eliza. It would be rather improper of him to also make longing eyes at Lily. Regarding Rodin... well, he was a man, wasn't he? ADVENT had never really condemned same-sex relationships, but there was something far-off telling him that it was wrong and he shouldn't look at Rodin that way. Jax sighed, rubbing at his forehead.

Mordenna seemed to hear him sighing, as he turned around. "Something getting at you, bro?"

Jax looked down. "... I will tell you in the Training Center, where we are less likely to run into someone else in our conversation."

Nodding, it was clear to see the mild concern on his brother's face before he turned back, looking at the path ahead.

It wasn't long before they reached the Training Center, which was mercifully empty. Jax stepped in, watching Mordenna take a seat on one of the jutting pieces of cover near the white tiles of the end of the room. "Well, Jax? What's up?"

Honestly, Jax was debating even telling Mordenna about what was on his mind. Not that he didn't trust his brother—far from it. He was simply nervous about voicing what sounded like stupid concerns. Jax sighed again, setting his cannon down on one of the tables in the room and coming to sit next to Mordenna. "... I will divulge, so long as you promise to not judge me for what I'm about to say."

"'Course. How many times have I come to you guys and you haven't judged me for the stupid shit I need to vent about?"

"I would hardly find what you need to talk about occasionally as 'stupid,' brother."

"My point stands. Promise I won't judge."

Jax leaned forward, massaging the bridge of his nose with his fingers. When he began, his voice was soft and somewhat halting. "Brother? Is it... improper, to look at another man with longing eyes?"

Mordenna was silent for a second. Then; "No."

The sheer brevity of his answer stunned Jax for a second, who sat back up to look at his brother. "Surely?"

"Yeah. Nothing wrong with liking other guys like that. So long as you're not a creep about it, but that applies to any kind of crush."

Well, Jax supposed he'd had his answer. He'd almost expected Mordenna to have some sort of different response—but his brother was strangely tolerant in a lot of aspects. He half-wondered where it came from. Still, Jax stroked his chin. "... and you don't suppose it would be alright to present myself as...?"

"Dude. I've seen so many people macking on each other on this ship regardless of gender it ain't funny. I think you'll be alright. All else fails I'm sure Eliza would have some goddamn stern words to anyone who gave you shit for liking guys right alongside liking girls. Me too, for that matter." Mordenna shrugged. "I think I'm in the same boat as you, but it's... weirder? I can see myself as attracted to guys, but nobody here really catches my eye. Just don't feel like I know 'em enough to get into all of my bullshit with them." He blew a breath out. "Save Eliza. And we both know why I'm weird about that."

Actually, Jax didn't. He withheld his own advances knowing that Eliza was busy with the war—and perhaps out of a sense of not meeting her standards. Eliza had practically a choice of the lot in the Avenger, and yet she chose nobody. If Jax wasn't meeting her standards... maybe he needed to work on himself a little. Didn't help his longings for her whatsoever, though. Still, back to his brother's statement. "I wouldn't, actually."

"I never told you? Weird. Thought I did. But, yeah." Mordenna gestured vaguely, looking ahead. "... Liz couldn't be attracted to me. I'm not exactly on the standard of 'conventional human attractiveness.' Not to say I think I look ugly—far from it—I just think I look unpalatable in a romantic sense to her." He sighed. "That, and... I think she knows she ain't gonna live forever. Elders made sure we would just to test the idea out before using on themselves... until they replaced us one day, I'm sure. Credit to the gal, but even if she were in love with me... I think she wouldn't wanna break my heart any harder than she already will when she inevitably has to kick the bucket."

Jax hadn't thought of that. Inevitably, yes—the Chosen were, in essence, immortal. No dying of old age or disease. Simply being killed. He frowned slightly, thinking over it. It really would be a tragedy, the day Eliza had to pass on. His chest ached dully. "Right..."

Mordenna looked over, then slung an arm around Jax's shoulders. "Sorry. Not to dampen the mood, or anything. Guess I'm just resigned by nature to it happening... even if it's gonna be a lot worse when it does. Still, means we gotta make the best of our time with her, yeah? No point in trying to cut ties when she's still got a lot of time ahead of her. Besides, if I have any say in it?" Mordenna clenched his fist. "I'm gonna fucking invent immortality. Offer it to her if she wants it."

A thought struck Jax. "... wouldn't she have immortality if she was Ascended?"

"Yeah, well..." Mordenna got quiet for a second. "I suppose. But I don't know if she ever wants to be a Chosen, considering how close she got to being one and how... she probably associates the process with Argus. Don't blame her. Guess I could offer that, since we have the files, but damn. Don't know how to approach that."

Having asked, Jax now understood the implications of it, nodding. There was one other thing that occurred to him, but considering his last question? He almost loathed to bring it up. But, this was his brother. Mordenna hadn't shunned his questions thus far. "Do you think we could repurpose the technique used for our Sarcophagi?"

At that, Mordenna rubbed his chin for a second. "Maybe? I'll tell you now since I hadn't really got the chance before, but I managed to snag a few pieces of your own exploded slab before we left your Stronghold." That interested Jax in a morbid way. He wondered if, were he any more sympathetic to the Elders, he'd be asking for a piece to keep. "I haven't gotten around to doing any tests on them, but from careful observation? They were like... gateways." Mordenna gestured as he went on. "They were capable of conducting immense amounts of power from the Void. It was always the Elders reviving us, right? Or at least a proxy of them. I think—with enough psionic power—you could theoretically pull it off without the Sarcophagus. But you'd have to be close by—and no offense, bro, but I don't think even you are strong enough to do that kind of thing. The Elders may be bastards, but they were powerful bastards. Think who you're reviving has to be a psion too, but I'm not willing to test that so soon."

Something else occurred to Jax there. "Well, if I, singularly, am not powerful enough to pull off such a resurrection, do you think a Sarcophagus could be used to connect multiple psions for such a purpose?"

Mordenna opened his mouth to respond, closed it, then hummed in thought. "It's... plausible. With enough power donors you could probably set it up. You're not strong enough on your own, but like, you and your congregation? Yeah. Hm." Mordenna shrugged. "I guess I've got a long-term project to look at. Replicating the metal that our Sarcophagi were made out of will be a stretch, but I'm sure I could make a few substitutions. Never can use too much Elerium."

"I'm... very much sure you can use too much Elerium."

"Never. Can use. Too much. Elerium!"

The mood summarily lightened, Jax rolled his eyes. Still, he remembered the other thing he wanted to discuss with his brother, and he looked off to the side. "... can I ask something else of you, brother?"

"Sure! Name it."

Jax crossed his arms. "Do you think there is a way I could healthily express my anger? It does not strike me often, but when it does... I fear for channeling it." He got a bit quieter. "You know how Cronus was..."

Mordenna scooted closer to him, leaning against him. "I totally understand. Me, I get aggressively creative. You? I can understand anger not really being a creative force for writing songs. Just brings me back to something else I need to do for you." He poked Jax in the bicep. "I need to train you in the ways of throwing down. Raw strength is good and all but let's face it, bro—you need to learn how to fight if you've been disarmed and your psionics aren't at hand for whatever reason. You, me, the Ring?"

He frowned slightly. "Brother... with my colossal strength and your known frailty? I do like the idea of having another backup in my repertoire, but I do not think it will end well."

"What, you think I'm not planning around that?" Mordenna patted Jax's arm. "We're not gonna go all out. I'd just be showing you the motions and you could practice them without force on me. If you need something to punch there's always the old Sectoid dummies in there. Which..." He tapped his chin. "Liz mentioned replacing those with regular punching bags. Can't blame her. As soon as you start picking up the enemy it starts getting weird practicing on representations of them, doesn't it?"

He supposed so. Jax figured he was like that with the Templars—with one now loosely in his congregation, his outlook towards them had started changing. Marlene was nice to have in the Studio, at least—she usually kept to herself and was content to talk with Edgar. Not to mention the small favor she had performed for him when he initially overloaded Eliza. With her now assisting them in psionic training... he certainly had come a far way from persecuting them, hadn't he?

Coming out of his thoughts, he sat back up. "I would imagine that would be the case. Now, that was all I wished to discuss, brother. I trust that you know what you will be doing with the training, so I concede to it. For now, I believe we have a weapon of mine to test...?"

"Oh, sure thing!" Mordenna slid off the bench. "I'll see about slotting that training into our ever-busy schedules. Probably can just do it after this, maybe. Go grab your gun, I'll get you a target."

Jax got to his feet, walking over and hoisting his cannon into his hands. Mordenna tapped at the monitor in the room, and soon, the scenery of the white tiles shifted into something mildly forest-like, with a Faceless standing in the open. Mordenna looked over to the projection and sighed, apparently seeing something that Jax couldn't. "Guess I'll add updating this dusty-looking thing to my list of projects. Glad I've always got something to do at least." He then walked over to Jax, pointing at the handle the button was on. "Think you've guessed it, but your trigger is there. It's actually got two states—partially pressed and fully pressed. Partial gets the barrels spinning so you can prepare for oncoming threats, full gets you the lead. Try it out."

Nodding, Jax rested his hand on the button, pressing it in gently. The gun hummed ominously and the display lit up, showing him the ammo count. By the Void, Mordenna had stuffed the ammo capacity into this thing. Sure enough, the barrels expanded and prop-like plates flared out, the undersides glowing. Soon the barrels were spinning at an impressive rate, requiring a bit more of Jax's strength to keep the gun steady.

Well, showtime. He further pressed the button. It initially stopped going down, but he applied a bit more force as he braced himself and the fun began. With a reasonable buck and a sound befitting of the rest of the armory Mordenna had made for the Chosen, the Heretic Eradication Canon threw out a hose of purple-pink fire, the bullets ripping through the Faceless target and easily downing it. The "kill" confirmed, Jax eased back into letting the barrels spin. The little "stop" seemed to be there so Jax wouldn't have to hover in one uncertain state on the button to keep it spun—likely to prevent misfires. After another second, he let it spin down completely, and the barrels retracted.

When he turned back to Mordenna—gun pointed towards the range and thumb off the trigger, of course—his brother had a wide grin on his face. "Oh, the percussive symphony! Tell me, Jax, any hangups?"

Jax chuckled shortly at his brother's enthusiasm. "None I can feel in a short test. I do like the mechanism in the trigger, even if it seemed like it was sticking at first."

"All part of the design. If Eliza can get you back out on the field at some point I've gotta go with you to watch it in action."

"Don't we all go out on the field together nowadays?"

"To the detriment of ADVENT, yeah." Mordenna paused. "Well, depending on how soon I get Fal-Mai's arm done... maybe just you and me."

Of course. Jax hadn't expected their sister to be out on the field of battle in her state. He hoped she was recovering well. Thinking on her, he hitched his gun to his side. "Do you know where she's at?"

"Right now?" Mordenna stroked his chin. "I think Sammy mentioned he needed to see her..."


Sammy hoped he wasn't bothering Fal-Mai all too much with calling her back to the Infirmary.

He'd recently released her with good marks, considering her wound was healing properly and there was no sign of infection. She'd merely needed a day or so to find her balance again, and with his help, she found it. But... he had a bit of a compulsion in the back of his head to check it again. Usually he could chalk it up to his ADVENT Medic instincts, the instructions written into his very DNA to follow up on treatments and the like. However, in this case? Fal-Mai healed exceedingly fast, no doubt thanks to her Chosen nature. If anything, he shouldn't have a reason to call her back down. It had stumped him for a bit.

After a while of reflection, Samhien had found it out soon enough. They were friends, weren't they? This compulsion to bring her back in to check on her was merely personal worry. It was... interesting, to have that intersect over into his professional practices. He'd considered other people his friends, but thanks to Eliza's careful commanding, he hadn't really had the situation come up before. True, some of his friends had been committed to the Infirmary under his care. He guessed that it was different for Fal-Mai. Fal-Mai didn't have many other friends, did she? She seemed to get along well with her brothers nowadays, and if she still harbored those feelings he picked up off of her for Eliza... suffice to say, Eliza was probably a trusted confidant. Not too many outside of that, though. He half wanted to chide himself for fussing over her.

Well, he couldn't do that now. Not verbally, at least. He was in the middle of unwrapping Fal-Mai's bandages, inspecting the wounded area. "Your progress continues to astound me, Fal-Mai." He gathered the bandages into his hand. The site was already beginning to scar up. The only unusual thing that persisted was the darkened skin color around the joint—but Fal-Mai had assured him that it was benign. "I think I could very well retire the bandages, if you wish."

Fal-Mai, currently sitting on one of the Chosen beds, looked a little uncomfortable at the notion. Felt a little uncomfortable, too. "I... think I would rather have it covered until it is fully cleared, Samhien."

He nodded, going and disposing of the bandages, producing new ones. "I can certainly assist with that. So long as the wound remains undisturbed, I believe this can be your last round of bandages until you can take them off completely." He walked back over, wrapping her shoulder again. After a second or two of silence, he spoke back up. "... are you faring alright, Fal-Mai?"

"I have no more pain in the wound..." There was something off about that statement to Samhien, and his suspicions were quickly confirmed. "But... I felt as if my hand was burning the other day. The missing one."

"That's a fairly typical phenomenon known as 'phantom pain.'" As he talked, he eventually finished wrapping her shoulder. "Symptoms include multiple varieties of pain originating in the missing limb. Your nervous system is still adapting to the fact that it has one less limb to account for, and pain is the body's typical response to something being off. The intensity and frequency of phantom pain tends to go away over time."

Fal-Mai took in the explanation, and he watched as she glanced to the right side of her body. The Specter had removed her entire shoulder and had barely missed the scapula. Judging by the angle and how the skin seemed to have been recovering from being taut, it was as if she had dislocated it before it was cut, minimizing damage. With it entirely missing, there was obviously no way she could move a missing limb—but he got the clear indication that she tried just then. "Understood. I suppose it is one more trial I must endure."

One more? Sammy's hands fidgeted with each other. "... are you alright, Fal-Mai? I ask not of your physical health, but of your mental and emotional."

She considered that question for a moment, staring into her lap. "I cannot say I am for certain. These past few days have been trying, to say the least." She took in a breath, and he could sense her mood lightening. "But I have received overwhelming support and concern from those who care about me, leaving me with no choice but to 'chipper up.' It heartens me to know I have such a support system."

In a way, it made Sammy happy, too. But... he was also a touch saddened. Outside of dressing her wounds and taking care of her physical health, he felt like he hadn't offered much of that support otherwise. "I am glad that they have uplifted you in such a way." He glanced downwards. "And I am sorry that I have not been up to the task as a friend."

Fal-Mai shook her head. "You have been supporting me more than enough, Sammy. The charge for my physical care has largely fallen to you, so I do not find it ill that you have been leaving the emotional support to my brothers and Eliza. No one person can provide support all of the time on their own." She sighed. "Something that my brothers and I have been trying to teach Eliza."

Sammy was plenty worried that the Commander was overworking herself, so it was good to know that there were more people throwing their hats in the ring to try to get her to take more care of herself mentally. It also relieved him to know that Fal-Mai truly wasn't holding his lack of emotional support against him—he didn't sense that she was at all lying. It was nice to have such powers. He didn't think he'd be able to find people out otherwise. Reading visually was difficult. "I appreciate knowing that, Nightmaiden. Still, I would like to make more of an effort where I can. If there is anything on your mind, I would be more than happy to assist in any way possible."

"The concern is noted. I do not think I have much to confide about, but..." She pressed her mouth into a line. "Simply, as always, the concern that I still belong. I know the Commander has told me she has no reason to throw me out simply because I have lost a limb. However... these doubts still plague me. I always feel as if I am merely being put up with, rather than enjoyed as an ally."

He bobbed his head, drawing himself up to sit on the side of the bed. "And these are centered around the Commander?" When Fal-Mai nodded, he continued. "If you ever wish to hear her definitive answer, I may ask her myself. You will have your truth then. But, in my opinion?" He smiled gently at her. "The Commander made her choice when she instructed Mox to take you in alive. If she was willing to take you then when there was no guarantee that you would come to ally with XCOM... I think that speaks to her dedication, does it not? The Commander is not the type to look at people only in terms of how useful to her they can be. I'm very certain she wishes to have you around, Nightmaiden."

Fal-Mai was silent at that. A low current of emotions were running through her—mild doubt, but there was hope in there as well. Fear, but understanding.

Before she could respond, the door to the Infirmary opened. Sherry came through on the other side. "Samhien? Ah, it's not just me visiting today..."

She walked through, and sure enough, the other two Chosen ducked in after her. Mordenna led them, with Jax bringing up the back. A rather impressive weapon was hanging from his belt. Mordenna must've gotten his cannon done. "There she is!" Mordenna marched right on over. "How're things hanging over here, sis?"

Samhien could feel her heart lift as her brothers came in, and she smiled gently. "My recovery progress is as smooth as ever. I see you have finished our brother's weapon?"

"He has, indeed." Jax stood next to his brother. "We were wondering if we could steal you away after Samhien has done all he requires of you."

"And if I could talk to you, Samhien?" Sherry came around them, walking up to him.

Sammy offered them all his best smile. "If Fal-Mai has nothing left to ask of me, I am already done, in fact! You are free to take her away, if you wish."

"Sweet. Thanks for the good work as always, Sam." Mordenna then leaned over on the bed rather dramatically. "Hey. Sis. I'm gonna beat Jax up in the Ring. You wanna watch this go down?"

Jax scoffed. "I distinctly remember us both agreeing that me going all out on you would be detrimental to the state of your skeleton."

"Wherever did you get that notion, bro?"

"Five minutes ago."

"Well, I wasn't there. Not spiritually, anyway."

"... you continue to baffle me."

As Fal-Mai laughed, Sammy slid off the bed, following Sherry as she walked a bit away from all of them. She looked over to the three of them, then hummed in thought. "I wanted to have a private conversation regarding the progress of researching that surgery," she began, speaking in French, "and I was thinking that we didn't have to throw them out immediately, but... if you are capable of understanding multiple languages..."

That caught the ears of the Chosen as Samhien looked over to them, and he could sense an air of sheepishness from at least one of them. Hm. He tilted his head. "Do you all understand French?"

"That, and quite a few other languages." Mordenna's French was marked with strange eloquence compared to his usual style of speaking. Perhaps he didn't know the shorthands well. "The Elders saw fit to make sure we knew what was being said in most parts of the world. As far as I know, I've got English, ADVENT, Spanish, French, Russian, German... perhaps Chinese? I believe I might've picked that up myself."

"I know Latin," Jax replied. "Not of my own accord, admittedly."

Mordenna jabbed a finger at Jax. "You're teaching me that one day. Just so I can be hilariously and parodically pretentious in naming projects in the future.

Fal-Mai sighed in good nature, sliding off of the bed. "Brothers. I believe the implication here is to take our conversation somewhere else? I have nothing more to ask of Samhien."

"Right, right." Mordenna stood up. "We'll leave you two to whatever you wanna discuss. Goons? To the GTS!"

Jax rolled his eyes and Fal-Mai giggled, but they both complied, following Mordenna out. When the door shut behind them, Sherry blew out a breath, running a hand through her bangs. "I'm sorry for asking about this again—"

"Please don't apologize, Sherry." Sammy smiled at her reassuringly. "I know how important it is to you. Did you want to ask about the progress on it?" She nodded, and Samhien took his datapad off of his belt, tapping through a few screens. "With Wiki back online and interfacing with some ADVENT terminals in our downtime, she was finally able to fulfill my request. I have all the necessary procedures and techniques on hand—I merely need to memorize them." His smile turned a bit more nervous. "If you are fine with it being my first surgery of the type. I'm not used to doing one that isn't muscle memory..."

"I'm fine with it, honest. I just..." She sighed. "I just want it done, really. It feels weird to have it done at this kind of time we're living in... and with how old I am... but if I've got the chance, I want to do it."

"Nothing wrong with finally addressing a problem you were unable to do so before." Sammy gently patted her shoulder. "If it makes you feel more at ease with yourself, I believe it should be seen to." Remembering something she'd said to him, his smile faded. "Are you still sure you don't want me to ask Dr. Tygan regarding ways we might improve the surgery?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." She gripped her arm, looking to the side. "Best I don't make it a whole thing. Only people who know are you and my wife, and I'd like to keep it that way. Not that I don't trust Tygan, of course—he was patching me up before you came around." She furrowed her eyebrows. "I somehow think he knows regardless. Not because I've slipped up somewhere. Tygan just... looks like he knows everything."

That got Samhien to chuckle, shaking his head. "Even if he did know, I believe in his ability to keep it confidential. Now, would you like to schedule this?"

"Oh, yeah. Give me that." Sherry took the offered datapad and tapped it for a bit. After a while, she handed it back. "Provided the sky doesn't fall in on our heads? That date's good. I know what I should be doing in the leadup, so you don't have to rake me over the coals there."

Well, it seemed Samhien's tendency to parrot off all the preparations for anything he was going to do was well known. Feeling a little embarrassed, he smiled to shake it off. "I am glad you know. Do you need anything else from me?"

"That was about it." Sherry's smile was worn, but deeply genuine. "I... can't really say how much this means to me. Thank you, Samhien. If I could express my gratitude in a meaningful way, let me know."

"Hm..." He clipped his datapad back to his belt. "You need not make anything for me. I believe hugs are traditional amongst humans to express thanks?"

Sherry laughed. "Oh, a hug from Samhien? Yes please." The hug she pulled him in for was warm and firm, and Sammy fully returned it. It was nice to make people's lives better.


Being on punishment chore duty was the worst, though Elena wouldn't hesitate to say she deserved it.

It wasn't like she hadn't earned carting down the loads of laundry that the Avenger generated. Granted, she had the help of what was essentially a pallet jack in getting it all moved, but it was still going to be the first of a few trips getting it all to the laundry room.

At first she'd entirely intended to pull Mox into helping her... but as she was dragging the jack out of one of the storage rooms, she eventually decided against it. This was her cross to bear for the remaining weeks that the Commander wanted her to serve. What was strange was that she remembered that the Avenger had two of those pallet jack type things—but when she went to go get one of them, there was only one left. Well, she hadn't had the time to worry about where it went, so she went about the task of getting the laundry baskets loaded up. She'd made her way down to the laundry room and tapped open the door, moving on in.

"Oh. Hey, Elena."

Once she was fully clear of the door, she looked towards one of the machines. It was Vlad, sitting on one of them, the missing pallet jack near him and a few empty baskets around it. The machines were already running.

She put her cargo against the wall, regarding him. "You still serving?"

"Yeah." He was unusually reserved for who he was. He scratched at his stubble. "... not like I don't deserve it, anyway."

Elena blinked a few times. She'd worked with Vlad long enough to know that he was essentially speaking in a different language right now. Not that it was a bad change, but still. "What brought about this change of heart?"

"Mostly? Getting my ass kicked." He shrugged. "Nothing like getting the fucking daylights choked out of you by the biggest bastard on the ship to make you re-think your life choices. And, also..." Vlad sighed. "The Commander actually sitting you down and explaining just what's going on with the Chosen."

Elena gave a single chuckle. "The ass-kicking part I get. But did O'Leary really just sit you down to chew you out?"

"Would've been easier to reject if she'd just yelled at me for thirty minutes. But, no. Basically got learned about the kind of lives that the Chosen have been living before they got here." His mouth settled into a line. "I still got hangups, but after a bit of thinking... I think they're valid? I'm still salty over them killing people I know. I don't exactly want to cosy up to them and be friends. But, some of the shit I said? Uncalled for."

Eliza continued to impress. That woman had a damn scary angry face. If she were in any other situation right now, she'd be giving Vlad shit for holding those kind of xenophobic opinions on the Avenger of all places... but considering she was serving time for blowing up at Mordenna? She didn't exactly have any room to talk. Her crime was different, sure, but they'd both gotten their asses handed to them for giving the Chosen unwarranted shit. They had legitimate things they could be called out on—but they weren't duplicitous. Mordenna... he wasn't really trying to be Tomko.

Elena rolled her shoulders, leaning against the wall. "Suppose we've both got things to make up for before people will let us back in."

"... I don't know about me being a part of the Avenger anymore."

"Beg your pardon?"

"I..." Vlad focused his gaze on the floor. "I'm starting to really get a picture for how shitty I've been towards people. Not just the aliens—people I used to call friends. I made it damn hard for them to associate with me and I just thought they were bitter because I was 'right.' Easy for me to see now that they didn't want anything to do with me because I was being a backwards-ass moron. At this point, they really don't have any reason to forgive me even if I do get my act together. With respect to the Commander? I might just ask her to drop me off at the next haven we stop by. Start fresh there."

Seems like Vlad's brain had finally caught up with the rest of him. Elena had seen her fair share of judgemental assholes in her time—this had to be the first time she'd seen one of them actually reflect on themselves. Violence wasn't the whole answer, usually... so maybe he was giving that calm talk Eliza had with him less credit than he should. Maybe there were aliens he watched and listened to that opened his mind. But, still. There was something that sat wrong with her. "... that's great and all, but you're just going to run away from the problems you've caused?"

"What? No."

"Then why are you leaving?" She stood up from her lean on the wall. "If you just slink off to some random haven without really putting in the work to make people want to accept you, you're just giving up. I get that you were a dick—about anyone can say that about you. You just going to let Herod down, though?"

That looked like it hit home. Herod was the one person that had been bothering to stick around Vlad and try to make him a better person. He'd gotten plenty of shit for it over the months that Vlad was talking bad of the Chosen, but Elena had to commend his determination. Vlad massaged his temples, closing his eyes. "... no. I don't want to. But I also don't want to make people stand me. I can barely stand me nowadays."

"If you leave without showing them that you're trying to put in the effort," she went on, "they'll never know you even did. All they'll see is you getting your ass kicked and then asking to be let go, like you're going to slink off and lick your wounds. That isn't much of a good impression. Do what you want—but if you've got half a mind, I think you might want to take a page out of the Chosen's books."

He didn't look like he had much to say in response, just weakly nodding. Elena usually wasn't much for pep talks, but she couldn't really stand cowards. If Vlad really wanted to get better, he'd stay. She had her own reservations about the Chosen—as much as she absolved Mordenna, he was still guilty of killing her fellow wolves. She didn't blame him for not wanting to get all huggy with them. But there was a line, she believed, and it was high time he recognized he'd crossed it.

After a little while more went on without Vlad saying anything, she started moving the baskets off of her pallet jack. "I'll go up and get the—"

"No." She looked back over to him, and he slid off the machine. "I'll handle laundry. Call it thanks for being one of the many people who've rightfully kicked my ass."

She gave him a second or two to take it back, but when he didn't, she stood up. "Fine by me." She wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. With that, she turned and tapped the panel to leave.

"... thanks, Elena."

She sighed. "If anyone asks, I chewed your ass out like everyone else has and then shoved my chores off onto you."

"Got it."

That all confirmed, she left the laundry room. More time for her to cosy up to Mox, she supposed.


Though her nature would lend her otherwise, Fal-Mai never seemed to tire of hanging out with her brothers.

Jax and Mordenna had this natural energy about the both of them as they exchanged banter, and it always lifted Fal-Mai's heart when it happened. Judging by the way one of them would smile harder whenever she laughed, she half-thought they were doing it just to get a good reaction out of her. Fine by Fal-Mai—they seemed to be having fun as they were doing it.

Even during the lulls, such as the one happening right now, the quiet was never suffocating. It was nice to just be with them and not be expected to act properly. She felt like she could loosen up around them—a far cry from how things used to be. She'd take this any day of the week.

During the lull, they got to the door to the GTS and Mordenna stepped on in, ducking under the door. "Alright," he said, "c'mere, Jax. I'm gonna show you how to throw a punch."

Jax huffed. "I would think that a simple enough action that I need not learn it."

"And yet, much like firing a gun, there's a bunch of nuance you wanna pay attention to lest you break every bone in your hand." When the three of them were in there, he waved Jax over. "I'm also gonna kit out your hands with some proper wrapping and teach you how to do it in case you ever need to bare-knuckle brawl. Not that I think you'd want to take off those indestructible boxing mitts, considering those edges are probably enough to gouge a mark in someone's cheek."

Rolling his eyes, Jax approached Mordenna and took his gauntlets off, resting them on the water cooler. Hearing his signature get louder was always an interesting phenomenon, and it told her how much the gauntlets were holding him back. For his own safety, she would imagine. Fal-Mai herself went to sit down on the bench, watching as Mordenna produced some bandages from one of his pockets. He took one of Jax's hands and placed the start of the roll on them. "Now, follow the roll." From there, Mordenna slowly wrapped up Jax's hand in a precise pattern, even weaving through his fingers to do it. When he finished, he severed the wrapping from the roll, putting the bandages in Jax's hand. "Now, try the other side yourself."

Nodding, Jax took the bandages and quite accurately recreated what Fal-Mai had seen—granted, slowing down towards the end as she could imagine he was playing what Mordenna did in his head over again. When he finished that, Mordenna nodded. "Nice. You learn well! I'll have to snag you an extra bandage roll so you can commit that to muscle memory. Follow me! I'm gonna teach you how to separate a man's head from his shoulders with your hilarious strength."

The two trekked over to the Sectoid dummies and Fal-Mai lapsed into thought. Throwing a direct punch wasn't her style of fighting—there were many ways it could be countered if your opponent was paying attention, so she tuned out of the lesson and onto other thoughts. She, honestly, never knew she could understand French. A few of the others that Mordenna had listed off, sure—but all of this knowledge in her head that she didn't have any recollection of was starting to weird her out a little. Could she access her file and finally learn? Or was looking upon the details of her creation a sweet trap that would lure her down a dark line of thinking?

The sound of flesh on punching bag made her look up. The Sectoid dummy was still swaying with the force of the punch Jax had put out—though Fal-Mai strongly suspected it wasn't his full strength. Mordenna did a golf clap. "See? That way you won't break your fingers. Still, remember the other techniques—like I said, those are usually preferable to concussing someone if you want to end a fight with the least amount of trauma possible. But, if you're looking to probably kill someone? I'm sure your metal gauntlets and their skull make a wonderful pair."

Honestly, she hated to interrupt, but with Mordenna having access to essentially every file? He might be the best person to ask. "Mordenna? Can I ask you something?"

"Sure can! Jax, practice your punches, I'll be back." Mordenna sauntered over, crouching to eye level with her. "What's up, buttercup?"

She gave a single chuckle at that, but sobered up as she went onto her line of questioning. "... do you think it would be a good idea to look at my Ascension file?"

Mordenna's smile dropped, and he rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, I told Liz she shouldn't. But, considering it already happened to us... I don't know? I mean, it'll really refresh you on how much the Elders suck and probably remind you of the horrible shit they did to us. What brought this up?"

Fal-Mai gestured weakly. Out of the corner of her eye, Jax had gone still. Maybe he was thinking over that too. Still, she went on. "Being able to understand the French you and Sherry spoke, primarily. I hadn't even meant to eavesdrop on whatever unknown surgery they were discussing but yet I fell prey to it. I suppose I would just like to know if there is anything else I have unintentionally been taught."

"Well, I suppose I could show you how to get to the file on a datapad." He leveled a cautionary look at Fal-Mai. "Only if you're really sure, though. I'll be there so you can hash out anything you learn."

She nodded. "I will appreciate the support through whatever horrors Helena subjected me to that I must learn. I just would prefer to not be ignorant."

Mordenna bobbed his head, rubbing his chin and looking down in thought. "... come to think of it, I never really looked at my—"

There was a flurry of motion out of the corner of Fal-Mai's eye, but that wasn't what made Mordenna stop. What did was the sound of reinforced fabric tearing violently and an echoing thud, both taking her and Mordenna by surprise. Both of them looked back to find Jax half-turned, retracting his arm and staring at his hand. The Sectoid dummy in front of him was now headless, said head rolling from where it hit the wall.

The GTS was silent for a moment before Mordenna went to stand up. Before he could say anything, the door opened to reveal Eliza in her workout clothes. "Hey guys. What's—"

That was when her eyes tracked to where they all were looking. Eliza was far less stunned on her feet than Mordenna was and she rushed over to Jax, coming up to his side. "Woah, big guy, everything alright?"

Jax's breathing was steady, but shallow, and Fal-Mai could hear his heart pounding. His left hand clutched his right arm, staring at the hand he'd used to decapitate the dummy. "I... believe I need to find another way to channel my anger..."

"Well, come over here, we've got spare ice next to the cooler and bags for it." She brought Jax over, and that was when Fal-Mai could see Jax's right hand properly. The force of his punch had actually pushed back the bandages on his knuckles, which were turning a brownish orange with bruises. His fingers, as well. She sat Jax down on one of the benches near the cooler and opened the compartment underneath it. Sure enough, she emerged with an ice pack and placed it on Jax's injured hand. "Hold that there for as long as you can stand." With that handled and Jax lapsing into a slightly concerning silence, Eliza turned to Mordenna and Fal-Mai. "Mind if I ask what was going on?"

Mordenna looked rather regretful—his reason unclear until he began to speak. "I... was teaching Jax how to fight because he was looking for a way to channel his anger. Y'know, I figured something physical not against a human being or the drywall might help. But, yeah. You can clearly see I made a miscalculation."

Eliza nodded understandingly. "I can't fault you for wanting to help out your brother, Mordenna. Nobody's to blame here other than the usual suspects." She looked back to Jax. "—good on you for wrapping up his hands, though. Minimized the damage by a lot."

"Of course I wouldn't let him go without proper protection." He looked over to the headless Sectoid and winced. "Sorry about the dummy."

"I'm going to be replacing those anyway. More importantly..." Eliza sat down next to Jax, resting a hand on his shoulder. "What got you worked up, Jax?"

Jax was silent for a few seconds, numbly staring at his hand. When he spoke, his voice was soft and almost monotone. "... I had been thinking over the injustices my siblings and I had to face under the Elders. I... I became incensed over how blind I had been to their treatment of my brother and sister." His eyes narrowed and heat entered his speech. "I had become infuriated with myself for having been just as indoctrinated as the populace was, allowing them to ceaselessly punish Mordenna! I had the chance, so long ago, to intervene—and yet I did not. Original sin marks my hands and it brings me to fury." As soon as the simmering rage came, it was gone, with Jax closing his eyes and hanging his head. "... but I cannot be truly wrathful. That was the charge of my father. And I will not, cannot express that anger in my fear of it and him in equal measure." He opened his eyes, looking up at Mordenna. "It is not your fault for this failing. It is simply mine for not knowing how to handle these emotions of mine..."

Jax's words sank in before Mordenna sighed, walking over and crouching in front of Jax. "Look, bro. I really appreciate the sentiments that you're putting out—it means a lot to me that you're getting protective in retrospect like you are. But you and I both know that if you'd tried to stand up for me fifteen years ago, it probably would've gotten us both killed for good. It was best I took the lump then. If we organized under them—"

"—we could have escaped," Jax interrupted. "We could have fled, had I half a mind. But I was so busy worshipping the very concept of the Elders to have concern for you, and that shames me greatly."

Mordenna went quiet, allowing Fal-Mai to come over and sit on the other side of Jax. "Brother... I understand your regret over your actions. But mulling over such topics cannot be good for your mental health. I will not be as callous to say that 'those events were in the past and you must not dwell on them,' because we all know better than anyone else that the wounds inflicted on us then can hurt just as much now. What I will say is that you should not linger on what you could have done differently. What has happened has happened."

Jax opened his mouth to speak a few times, during which Eliza leaned against him and he stopped. He rested his head against the ice pack, squeezing his eyes shut. "I... I know in my heart, that is the truth. And yet I wish to dismiss this advice leveled to me because I cannot punish myself by forgiving myself and moving on."

"Beating yourself up constantly isn't really a fun time, Jax." Gently, Mordenna moved Jax's hands down. "Take it from me. Sure, I get frustrated that the source of all my problems are some wrinkly fucks I can't do anything about at the moment, but they're no longer actively torturing us. Best to handle and treat what wounds we've got instead of lamenting about the bastards that gave us them." He offered a half-hearted smile. "If you wanna move on, if you want some kind of forgiveness for not stepping up for me there—you've got it. I forgive you for not wanting to also get yourself beat, bro. It's natural. I don't hold any grudge."

For a moment, her two brothers simply looked at each other. Then, hands made of Jax's psionics reached for Mordenna as his hair flared up, and Jax brought his arms down on Mordenna, hugging him without ever separating his hands. Jax muttered a soft "I'm sorry" and Mordenna shushed him, returning the hug. Fal-Mai smiled and leaned against Jax, happy to see he no longer had words to blame himself with.

Mordenna eventually ducked out of the hug, pointing a finger at Jax. "Now. We can talk out all this blame you've got later. Bottom line is—Elders are bastards and them smacking me around has nothing to do with you. For now..." He adjusted so he was then pointing at Eliza. "You. Me. The Ring."

The previously somber moment was lightened by Eliza's laughter. "Hey, I just got here. Let me stretch first, at least—and god knows you're probably gonna win."

"Hey, never know until we try." The shift from Mordenna comforting Jax to him challenging Eliza to fight seemed a little incongruous until she figured that he was doing it to lighten their spirits. Indeed, it was working—Jax was smirking and shaking his head at the exchange, even if he still looked mildly reserved. She sat up from her lean on him, but opted to stay on the bench with him as Mordenna stood up. "And aren't you a pioneer of trying, Liz?"

"Oh, shut up." Eliza got up, smacking his hand away from her. "I'll get some stretches in and then I suppose we can entertain Jax and Fal-Mai with me getting my ass whipped."

Well, that would certainly be a sight to see. As Mordenna continued to banter with Eliza as she stretched, she turned to Jax, who was watching the scene calmly. Fal-Mai settled her hand in her lap. "How is your hand, brother?"

"Numb, but no longer pulsing with pain." He sighed. "That burst of righteous fury was invigorating while it lasted, but with the adrenaline gone... I, definitely, should not have done that."

Fal-Mai patted his shoulder. "Better the dummy than anything else, brother. At least you have sped up Eliza's need to replace them."

Jax smiled. "I suppose." His smile then fell. "... you do understand why I fear even expressing my anger, yes?"

"Of course. Much like Helena has tainted the concept of perfection to me, Cronus has sullied the act of even being justifiably angry to you."

Nodding, Jax watched as Eliza stretched. "It is something that, one day, I will hope to uncouple from him, as I hope you may one day no longer think of Helena as you simply try to live."

"Thank you, brother."

Jax spared his good hand to pat hers—a gesture quickly sullied by how cold his palm was. When she recoiled, he chuckled. "Apologies."

"Kindly do not touch me with your cold hands."

He looked like he was about to agree—that is, until he grinned mischievously. "Oh, is that so? I suppose you would object to me doing—"

He reached to poke her cheek and she quickly scooted down the bench. "Eliza! Jax is trying to aggress me with his unforgivably cold hands!"

"Knock it off, you two," she playfully shouted, "or I'll take you both to the Pit!"

Jax gestured with his good hand, which Fal-Mai ducked as he did. "Can I not tease my own sister upon this vessel?"

"Not when I'm in earshot!"

Mordenna rolled his eyes. "Children."

"Oh," Jax retorted, "Now the middle child is going to lecture me on manners of maturity!"

Fal-Mai, though mock angry at Jax, couldn't help but laugh. Times like this made her truly happy.


Today had been a really productive day for Mordenna, all things considered.

His "bothering his siblings" quota was all filled up, Jax's new gun was running like a charm, and though Eliza put up a good fight, he beat the Commander in hand to hand combat. All in all, a success of a day.

Now he was just kicking around in the Workshop, doing some touch-ups on the device meant to link Fal-Mai's new arm to her spine. He'd talked it over with her and she was fine using the nanos, so long as he could program some sort of "default state" with the specifications he wanted. That, he could do—there was going to be some sort of barebones programming for her arm to work. Having it maintain a state it would revert to if she wasn't actively thinking of changes to it would help out a lot. Hell, with the way Specter nanos could refract light, she could make it any color she wanted.

But, the link came first. Mostly to see if the concept itself even worked. If it did, he had a copy for himself to make to get those nanomachines working for him, too. Which would be neat. That reminded him—

Ah, speak of the devil. She was hazy, being in another dimension, but he could see Wiki passing through the wall and entering the Workshop. She came over to him and properly blipped into this realm of reality, and he offered a wave. "Hey there, Wiks. Was just thinking of bothering you."

"Glad I decided to come to you, then." She put her hands on her hips. "Never went and sought me out!"

"Eh, sorry. Had a bunch of other stuff to handle." He gestured to the solid black cube at the end of his table with the Specter core on top. "Getting this done, seeing if I can pull off neat stuff with Specter nanos, the works."

Wiki took a long look at the cube, sighing. "I bet Schro's feeling all high and mighty that you had to go to them for help."

"Funny story about that." Mordenna put down his tools so he could gesture. "I posed the question to them while we were working on that mission yesterday—said they'd be entirely fine with helping me out. Admittedly, it was good to know they wanted to help restore Fals's arm as much as I did." He tapped his chin. "Well... close to as much as me. Not to blame them, I just really want to get Fal-Mai an arm back."

"Oh. No gloating, no smugness, no—?"

"They were pretty humble, Wiki," he said, casually interrupting. "I'm sure your bias against Specters is valid, but Schro's a different beast. You tried actually talking to them and seeing what they're like?"

"Well..." She gave a digital sigh. "No. I just really didn't want to bother with talking to a Specter when I'm... pretty sure I know how it's going to go down."

"Check your biases at the door, sparky. This is a tolerant Avenger and about the most smug AI I've had to deal with here is JULIAN, and at least he's confined to a private server in the Avenger's systems."

"I know that. Accessed it at one point and he tried to talk me into allowing him some more permissions. Didn't, obviously, but he was pretty fun to talk to."

"Right? I almost want to upload him into his SPARK occasionally just to have a few shots at him." He then leveled a look at Wiki. "Back to my original point, though—weird of you to not give them a shot when, y'know, we're here."

Wiki's arms fell and her black data trail drooped a bit. "Yeah. I... guess I should talk to them eventually, huh?" She then shook her head, perking back up. "Later. Definitely. Right now I wanted to get around to that thanks."

Mordenna raised his eyebrows. "Buy me dinner first."

"Shut up! Or I won't divulge."

He snickered, waving a hand at her. "Sorry, sorry, bad joke. What is it?"

Wiki snapped her fingers, and Mordenna could see his datapad light up. He picked it up, watching as it notified him of a file transfer. "I figured someone like you might like having a little extra help around the Avenger, give or take. And also the ability to reclaim something from your dad. I'm sending you some files now relating to the building and programming of Codices."

Mordenna stared at her blankly for a second. "No joke?"

"Mordenna, I physically cannot lie to you."

"I know, but." He settled on smiling. "Thanks. You've got me there—I really would like having a personal assistant of my own." It would really be neat when he got the XCOM Network up and running, too. "I suppose I might have to cannibalize another brain if that's alright?"

"Well, safe to say if the brain's been forcefully shut down like that... that Codex isn't really waking back up. I feel a little weird about it but it's not like you're going to find the parts elsewhere. If you want, I can double-check to make sure it's just the death proxy hanging around before you wipe them."

He nodded. "I'd appreciate that. Anything else?"

"That was about all I had for you. When the upload is done, the plans are all yours."

"Thanks again, Wiks."

She saluted, and in a flash, she was darting out of even his sight. That left him in silence for a second before his brain jumped back to something earlier that day. He never really had looked at his Ascension file, had he?

Considering he'd already looked at Eliza's and was underwhelmed, he figured it would be more of the same for his. Tapping through the datapad, he eventually navigated over to the directory where his own file was being stored. With a moment's hesitation, he opened it, eyes flitting through the list. Honestly, there wasn't much that immediately caught his eye. It was more of a planning file, the one he'd selected—the year of preparation was here. But, under the plans for that? The physical changes were outlined. Mordenna went "huh" as Odin went over the specifics that granted him his unearthly sight. Theoretically, if they could get their hands on that specific alien DNA, they could give that to anybody. Honestly, though? Mordenna wouldn't want to have it on all the time if he could help it. He moved on. There were more physical changes—organ refining, facial reconstruction, chest scar removal.

Wait. Hm.

His eyes focused on that. "'Removal of scars beneath each pectoral,'" he read out loud. There... was something very strange about that, in a way that was pulling at deep-seated memories. Idly, he felt his chest. Did he have some very specific surgery there? The only thing he could imagine was...

His eyes went a few entries lower and he had his answer. "Ah. So... I wasn't born with a dick."

If anything, it was another piece of the puzzle. So he was trans. It felt... nice, to pick up a piece of his past like that. It explained the previous change, at least. Still, there was something that unnerved him about it. He was sure Tomko would've loved to have bottom surgery, but... that was probably against his will, it being done during his Ascension. "Not cool, dad. Amongst all the other things you've done that are not cool, this ranks up there. I guess. Even if I'm sure Tomko would be happier for it...?" It was probably done to have the "perfect son" and that was just creepy. Cool that it played into previous wishes, but Mordenna knew damn well that generosity wasn't what Odin had in mind.

From there, he idly read the rest of the changes, but his mind was on something else. He'd found something out pretty substantial from an ADVENT file. Could there be a chance that they had kept extended tabs on him before they captured him? He knew some of the soldiers at XCOM had files that were updated with info when they got them, along with the faction leaders. Tomko had to be notable enough to keep a record of. Perhaps he needed to start some hunts of his own.

When he got nothing else from his own file, he set the datapad down, not bothering to check if the file upload was done. He had a job right now, and that was to help out his sister. Picking up his tools again, he wondered if he should tell anyone about his discovery. "... maybe Liz. I feel like she could handle that. And didn't I just get done telling Jax that being bi is ok? Sibs could probably handle it. Other than that? Eh. Not much reason to run down the halls screaming about it."

With that said, Mordenna got back to work. He was just glad to know more about himself.