It was with a certain hesitation in her heart that Fal-Mai advanced to her destination.

Yesterday was grand. Thinking about her day with Eliza was still sending happy flutters into her stomach—a day spent with the love of her life had made Fal-Mai truly happy. She'd been called over to Eliza's quarters about an hour after dawn, and had then spent the rest of the day with her. Breakfast, workout... and planning today's mission.

Nothing good could last forever, but Fal-Mai knew there would always be next time. By today's morning, Jax had taken her place much the same as she had Bradford's, and they had deployed for the day.

The scene was rather dreary—rain was falling down on the streets at a steady pace. Civilians were sticking to covered areas or wandering through the rain with umbrellas held up, though Fal-Mai spotted the occasional commuter sprinting through. Streetlights shone on wet pavement, giving the dark evening a quiet glow. Fal-Mai herself was fully suited and deep in her cloak, stalking through the city. Jane Kelly's cell was part of a prison on one of the edges of the city centers, ruling out a noisy approach. The rain also meant that the rest of Menace had to stagger and stay back. Granted, her three other companions were invisible, thanks to their fourth, Schro. Even so, they were spreading themselves rather thin over them, and since the rain might give them away if they were all in a group, they had to stick to shelter from it more often than not.

Fine by Fal-Mai, even if she slightly worried for them. More of her worries went towards the rescue target, herself. Back then, Mordenna had been rather keen to brag that he'd been the one to capture the illustrious Jane, so Fal-Mai knew ahead of time that there might be some hard feelings about his sister coming to rescue her. There was also the real fact that Jane likely didn't know the Chosen were now with XCOM. The Commander was hoping that Fal-Mai's new uniform would suffice, but worst came to worst, she was ready to speak to Jane. Fal-Mai's right arm would be central to operations, from making the speaker in case Eliza needed to speak, to opening any locked doors that needed to be bypassed.

She couldn't do it alone, of course. She had her support up on the Avenger, namely Mordenna. "Status check, Fals."

"Passing by a currently-active security lamppost," she muttered, just loud enough for her communicator to pick up. Her cloak would muffle her own sounds, yes, but better safe than sorry. "Squad?"

"Loud and clear," was Mary's whispered reply. "Going to extend my distance, I'm a little closer than I'd like."

"In attendance," Arachne confirmed. "No notable psionic signatures in the area."

"Stable, cloaks still on optimal power," Schro followed.

"Wish I could enjoy the view a little more," Moody lamented. "But I'm here."

"As you are, then," Fal-Mai replied. The buildings were thinning out as they went, and she suspected their cover from the rain would, as well. Still, getting closer to a restricted facility meant less civilians. Fal-Mai kept her eyes and ears out, keeping on the move.

Soon, they came upon the facility's boundary. It was marked by a security checkpoint, the gate down, but not impassable. Fal-Mai deftly hopped over it, eyes on the building in front of her. Standard ADVENT fare, though toned down, likely due to its proximity to the city center. The lights were on inside, and the outside metal was darkened by the rain.

As she walked forward, Fal-Mai's mind kept going back to something. At the mission debriefing, Eliza was sure to make it clear that they hadn't been able to trace a contact from whoever sent the coordinates and info to them. Mordenna and Bradford were both certain it was a trap, but the photo evidence was tempting. In the end, Eliza had decided to send Fal-Mai and a more surgical size of Menace, just in case anything did go awry. If this was a trap, Fal-Mai was already thinking of ways out of the facility, trying to note any doors or windows. She wasn't her brother in tactical ability, she would begrudgingly admit, but she'd had to plan her way out of precarious situations before.

The facility itself was almost silent, with a standard security detail—MECS and Troopers, and Fal-Mai spotted an Officer rounding a corner on approach. There was a front door of course, but that would draw too much attention. Fal-Mai's eyes shifted, and she maneuvered to the side of the building. "Moving to the left side, looking for a side door. Will use a ceiling entrance if available."

Mary was quick to reply. "Copy that. Want us to find ways in or should we take positions around the perimeter?"

"Take positions around the perimeter." Packing all of them in that building was a recipe for disaster if there was anything in store for them like Jax's Ascension Facility. "I'll inform you if I need you all to break stealth and assist me."

"Can do." Moody was likely finding a vantage point. "I'll find a nice spot and keep an eye out for you."

That handled, Fal-Mai continued her advance. There was indeed a side door into the facility, past some security fencing and with a guard near the door. With a deft leap, Fal-Mai went over the red barriers entirely. When it was clear the Trooper was posted at that door, she turned her sight upwards. The wall was high, and didn't have so many footholds. Luckily, she was prepared. Taking the precaution of winding her cloak around the cord, Fal-Mai shot her grappling hook at the top guardrail, pulling herself up and over. Just some turrets at the top—not much to worry about if she was given the chance to remain in cloak as she left. The only question would be if Jane would cooperate for that.

Better to find out sooner rather than later, she supposed. Fal-Mai spotted the roof access—but naturally, it was closed. She gently hummed in thought, approaching it. There might be security on the other side who would notice the hatch opening, or hear the momentary falling of rain as it did. At a loss, she decided to radio in. "Roof access was found, but I fear there may be security that might notice it opening."

"Get me some eyes in there and I can confirm it." The feeling of Mordenna requesting remote access to her arm was so strange—it was like getting poked mentally. She authorized it and he continued. "Put your arm on the door and imagine squeezing enough nanos in to make a camera—still cloaked, of course."

Instructions received, she pressed her right palm against the panel, squinting. Hopefully the AI would know how to set up a camera, because she didn't have the foggiest. Perhaps it did, as a stream of nanos bled off of her hand, disappearing halfway through as they went for the seam in the opening. More strange was the feeling of them forming into something on the other side, and Mordenna gave a concerning hum. "... not that much security detail inside, if at all. At least, from this angle. Just a Trooper, and they aren't looking your way."

This really did seem like a trap. Fal-Mai gazed uncertainly at the hatch. If only she had her brother's eyes! Still... there was good intel that Jane was in there, and it was only right that she was freed. Besides, she was going in alone. Her squadmates were outside, ready to spring her out if she got into trouble. She clenched her left hand into a fist, steeling herself. "Open the door. Menace, watch the building."

"Fals..." There was a moment of quiet, then Fal-Mai could feel activity buzzing through her arm. "Be careful. Please." Mordenna's tone was unlike him, but Fal-Mai could understand his worrying. She was worried, too.

After a moment, the hatch opened, and Fal-Mai quickly slipped in. It closed behind her as she dropped down and hung off of the ladder, thankfully not letting much rain in. Now on the inside, she did one last scan of the interior. There truly was no guard, outside of the lone Trooper... who was looking in her direction. Now, Fal-Mai knew she was under her shroud. Her worry was that the Trooper had looked at the last moment and spotted the hatch opening.

The staring match went on for a few charged moments, as if the Trooper was trying to figure out what to do. Fal-Mai herself gently creeped towards them, nearing the edge of the landing she was on. Her muscles were tense, waiting for them to do something.

Their hand raised towards their helmet.

Fal-Mai pounced, vaulting over the railing. She rolled as she hit the ground, leaping forwards and pivoting on one foot as she came up behind the guard. Gritting her teeth, she peeled off her shroud and strained to maintain it around the guard's head, muffling their shout of surprise. She quickly took the dagger out of her Katana and plunged it into their neck, silencing them. Trying to maintain her cloak when she was also trying to kill someone was almost impossible. Almost. The deed done, she cloaked herself and her victim, secured an arm around their neck and dragged them back, looking for a spot to hide them in.

As she was doing so—and starting to decide an unoccupied cell would be best—her ears caught something almost below her hearing. Her head snapped to the source and she froze, back against the wall. Right in front of her, materializing into sight... was Cocytus. Their side was to her and they looked around for a moment. How... how was she going to deal with them here? Her heart was racing and it was taking a lot out of her to plunge herself as deep as she could into her cloak.

Before she could think anything else, Cocytus spoke. "Assassin. I know you are here. But my purpose today isn't to hunt you—not right now." They turned towards the cells. "You may let your Commander know that Zuriel and I were the one who informed you of where they were keeping Jane Kelly. The two of us... we have seen the Elders' faults. But we have also seen what they are fighting to do. There is something within this Earth that threatens all on it—threatens at least this solar system, if freed. I criticize their methods, and yet, the problem they are working to solve needs addressing." Their head turned towards one of the cells in particular. "If XCOM promises to solve this issue, then Zuriel and I may cooperate. After all, I may have no attachment to this planet... but I do live here. Are we clear?"

This... this had to be some sort of trick. Cocytus knowing what they did and telling her that was feeding into the trap, right? It was a ploy to get her to lower her cloak and kill her for good. But... what if they were being honest? What if more of those under the Elders had seen their crimes for what they were? Maybe she could lower her cloak, but the potential danger of doing that screamed at her. Couldn't lower the cloak, didn't want to stay in it, what was she to—?

Ah, right. The drone. As Fal-Mai thought that, Rosetta sloughed off from her arm, underneath her own cloak. Her little companion scuttled to Cocytus's left and chirped. At the same time, Fal-Mai's arm materialized a small headset microphone next to her mouth. Good enough by her. She swallowed, trying to force the lump in her throat down before she spoke. "We... we are clear." Her voice came through Rosetta as well. "Where is Jane?"

In response, Cocytus walked up to the cell they were looking at. They stepped to the side, placing their hand on it so they were out of immediate view of the doorway. "Then we have a deal. Work to pacify or eliminate which threatens this world. I will unlock the entire facility for you." When they said that, the door to Jane's cell opened. "Good luck, Assassin. And..." They looked to the side. "I am sorry."

With that, Cocytus disappeared from sight. Fal-Mai was left to stare at the space they had occupied as Rosetta cloaked again, reappearing on Fal-Mai's shoulder and staying there for the moment. She could hear some movement in the other cell, now. Her eyes wandered to the one she was next to. The entire facility, hm? She tapped the pad, and sure enough, it opened. Fal-Mai tossed the guard inside, closing the door once again as she walked in front of Jane's cell. She'd think about what Cocytus said later.

These months had not been kind to Jane. She was less built than Fal-Mai remembered, and her hair had fallen out of care. The right side of her face had been burned unevenly, with her eye being a clear casualty if the eyepatch was any indication. Even still, she was sitting up on the bed, looking at the open doorway. "—if you're here to get something out of me," she croaked, voice hoarse, "it's the same story as last time: fuck off."

Bold words from her, but Jane's fire was something Fal-Mai knew well. Still, Fal-Mai was still apprehensive about showing herself. Best not to scare her, but even so... "Commander. Are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Eliza replied, through Rosetta. "Let her see you."

Taking in a calming breath, Fal-Mai lowered her cloak. The effect was immediate—Jane scrambled to the back of her cell, ferocity in her gaze. Just a moment later, it was muddled by confusion as she looked Fal-Mai up and down. "—what the hell?"

"Your eyes do not deceive you," Fal-Mai responded. "My allegiance is with XCOM, now. And they wish to—"

"Bullshit," she easily responded. "Do you think I'm that gullible? This is definitely a new trick, but I'm not falling for it."

"Maybe you don't believe me, and I understand." Fal-Mai looked at her drone. "Perhaps she can convince you."

"Jane. It's Eliza." The sound of Eliza's voice escalated the conflict in Jane's expression. "Fal-Mai is telling you the truth. She's with us and is here to rescue you."

Jane sat at the back of her cell, eyeing Fal-Mai. As she did so, Fal-Mai kept her ears out behind her, anticipating any sort of movement from the outside. Another second of silence, and Fal-Mai pressed her lips together. "I do not mean to rush you, Jane, but there are still enemies outside, and the situation is somewhat time-sensitive."

She grimaced, but ultimately got up—or, at least, tried to. She stumbled to the ground and Fal-Mai rushed to catch her. Jane groaned, leaning on Fal-Mai. "Fine. Commander, I'm gonna wanna talk to you when I get back. I've... I've got a lot to ask."

"We can certainly see to that, as long as everyone else on the ship doesn't jump on you."

As Fal-Mai lifted Jane into her arms, she weakly chuckled. "They'll have to wait a bit." She didn't look the most comfortable, being in the arms of a Chosen, but there was hardly any other way they could reasonably handle the situation. Jane looked up at Fal-Mai. "... don't fuck this up. I'm trusting you."

"I will see that trust paid off," Fal-Mai replied, throwing her cloak over them both. Her drone retreated back into her arm and she made her way out of the cell. She moved Kelly to be on her right arm, using her left to tap it closed behind her. "Menace, I have rescued the VIP. How is the situation outside?"

"Unchanged," Arachne radioed in. "The guards do not seem to be aware of any changes."

That took a weight off of Fal-Mai's shoulders. She moved back to the roof access, still with that worry in the back of her mind. Jane was one of XCOM's most valued agents when Mordenna had captured her. Had ADVENT really let down their guard so much, especially knowing that the Assassin now stood against them? The whole situation was still bothering her as she opened the hatch again, bracing herself against the rain and closing it as she exited. There was something wrong here, but what? Jane wasn't a Faceless—Fal-Mai would've smelled that the minute she opened the cell door. So what, then?

As she descended from the facility and began to walk off of the premises, radioing in to let Menace know to walk towards the evac point, she entertained the opposite—what if ADVENT really had just fallen so far? After all, they'd lost the Commander, all three of the Chosen, and progress on the Avatar Project had been repeatedly stymied. If Cocytus was telling the truth, that would be adding insult to injury. Perhaps ADVENT—and by extension, the Elders—had fallen far enough to have a lapse in security here. Still, she kept her guard up. She wasn't about to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Jane was silent in her arms the whole trip, eventually relaxing just a bit from her tense position. Fal-Mai's cloak couldn't keep the rain off of them, however, and she entertained making an umbrella from her nanos. She dashed the idea, not knowing how it would look on the outside to have the rain displaced that much.

It was a while of walking through the rain and the occasional check across the squad to make sure everyone was holding up, but eventually they walked past the city center, out of the limits, and into relative wilderness. Moody had radioed in Skyranger to be on approach when they were close, and just a few minutes later, she arrived. The cords came down and Fal-Mai took hers, making it into the Skyranger as everyone else uncloaked.

Fal-Mai herself took down her shroud as Schro materialized in one of the seats. "Firebrand, we are clear to head back."

"Understood. Tell Jane I said hi, ok?"

Fal-Mai smiled as she set Jane down, who promptly got mobbed by Mary and Moody. Jane's eyeballing of Arachne and Schro was summarily interrupted, and she laughed. "Maid, Davy Jones, was beginning to think I'd never see you guys again."

"Oh, please, give us more credit than that." Moody helped Jane to a seat as the ship took off forwards, with Fal-Mai sitting down as well. "We've got so much to catch you up on—and you look like a hot mess, Kelly."

"Cheeky as always," Mary muttered. "Well, I'm the best medic that's here right now, for what that's worth. Anything I should know about, Quiet?"

Grumbling something about a new callsign, Jane shook her head. "Nothing I can really point to, other than, well." She pointed to the eyepatch. "This. I've got a goddamn bone to pick with the Hunter—I'll take his if I've got anything to say about it." When Moody and Mary collectively winced and Arachne looked away, she looked to Fal-Mai. "... don't tell me. He's with you guys, too?"

"And my other brother," Fal-Mai confirmed. "For months, now. We are all working to atone for what we did at ADVENT, and I count my blessings that Eliza is so understanding."

"Maybe too damn understanding," Jane replied. "I'm... ugh. I'm really going to have to talk to her. I know she probably has her reasons." Her eyes went to Schro and Arachne. "—there's more than the two of you, I'm betting?"

Moody bit his lip. "You... you could say that. We've... got a lot more lovely individuals on the Avenger."

"Just some alien royalty and their subjects," Mary said, almost to herself. "The personnel from Jax's Stronghold. Mordenna's kid."

Jane gawked at Mary. "That—he's—you're kidding. You're kidding. How long was I gone?"

"Long enough for all that to happen." Moody settled down into his seat. "We, uh. We had the time to adjust to everything as it came. I'm certain this is... interesting, getting put in at the deep end."

"No kidding." Jane eased into her chair, leaning on the rails for support as she did. "I mean, what..." She looked over to Fal-Mai, then back to her human compatriots, continuing the question regardless. "What was it like having them early? And what happened to get them there?"

"Long story short?" Mary herself sat down, her GREMLIN settling in her lap as she idly petted it. "Clint knocked Mordenna out and Eliza told the squad to take him in alive. Eliza convinces the Hunter to join. Mox essentially handcuffs the Assassin, same deal with her." Mary's expression sombered, and she rubbed the back of her neck. "Uh... the Warlock, well..."

"The Elders put a bomb collar upon him," Arachne finished, sitting with an air of dignity in her seat. "Fal-Mai and Mordenna worked together to free him of it, from what I have heard. Warlock Tessura joined shortly after he was rescued."

Jane blinked. "So the Commander just. Convinced them to work with us."

"The Commander is very persuasive," Schro lightly replied. "Certainly doesn't help that the Elders aren't very good employers."

She still looked rather incredulous, rubbing at her mouth as it seemed like she was still processing all of that info. Jane looked at Fal-Mai again, eventually dropping her hand. "I've... got a lot of questions, a lot of them I'm going to reserve for when we're on the ship and I can just talk to people individually."

Mary's face was one of concern. "Jane, please, you're going into the Infirmary. I may not be the best medic—"

Jane fixed her with a look. "You're good enough, Mary—"

"—but even I know you're going to need medical assistance after being in there for so long."

She rubbed at her left shoulder. "... yeah, I'm not going to deny that. Still feel lightheaded. But I can talk to people from a hospital bed. And on our team or not, nobody's going to stop me from kicking the Hunter's ass."

Both Moody and Mary looked like they wanted to say something at that, but Mary remained silent while Moody sighed. "Well, I'm not going to say it's unwarranted. Still, regarding your recovery..." Moody smiled, leaning forward and resting his head on his hand. "You're going straight to the Infirmary to recover and get your strength back. I missed having one of the prettiest girls on the Avenger around."

Jane rolled her eye. "Pretty sure I've lost that title, but thanks."

"Oh, please, a shower and some decent meals and you'll be right as rain and just as striking!"

Jane laughed and Fal-Mai relaxed. For now, things were alright, even if some of the things Cocytus said were still weighing on her. She'd take it up with her brothers later. As for the moment, it was time to bring a hero home.


As Eliza stood in the Armory, waiting for the Skyranger to land, her thoughts were of Jane.

Jane had been captured not too long before they'd initiated the mission to infiltrate Mordenna's Stronghold—and after Mordenna was secured, she had the squad search his cells to see if she was still there. When it was clear that Jane wasn't there, she'd been reaching out to the Factions to figure out where she went. She'd ran the tip by all three of them—a response she got pretty much instantly since they were all in the same area for some reason—and none of the leaders could claim credit for it. Just who was their mysterious benefactor, and how much of a trap was this? Nobody had ambushed Menace, though they'd all been invisible, essentially. Jane was in the cell as promised... and if Cocytus wasn't a liar, the Elders had fucked up yet again without Eliza's own intervention. Encouraging if true, but that left the question of what Cocytus was talking about. Something within the Earth... well, Fal-Mai had signed them in for a deal, one she would've been fine with taking anyway. She'd have to start asking around after this.

Regardless, it left Eliza with too little answers. That UFO was in the sky and it hadn't gotten a read on them yet, and too much of the circumstances around Jane's capture smelled fishy. There had to be something up. One of Eliza's more cynical instincts told her not to bring Jane on the ship, but if Fal-Mai hadn't sniffed out a Faceless, then Jane was the real deal. She didn't have much else in the way of answers, and Jane didn't look like she'd been chipped.

Still. She looked over to Tygan and Sherry, who were currently on standby with a gurney. Jane was going to need immediate medical attention from being in ADVENT's prisons that long. Eliza had a question, though. "—Tygan. I'm not saying Jane's been chipped and she's a sleeper agent."

Tygan adjusted something on the gurney. "But you're wondering about the viability of the notion for ADVENT?"

"I didn't see any evidence of scarring in the feed," Sherry muttered, securing her gloves, "but I'm not putting it past them to put some of that gene clinic expertise to work in completely healing any scarring from the procedure."

The corners of Tygan's mouth were tight as he straightened. "But Jane is likely to be in a severely weakened state. Even if the chip were in there, we wouldn't be able to operate until she recovered, unless we wanted to risk jeopardizing her health."

"Maybe not extract it..." Sherry drummed her fingers on the railing of the stretcher. "The engineers could make something to fry it from the inside, maybe?"

Tygan looked to Eliza, grave expression growing. "Tampering with the chip may send it into a self-destruct state, or even an unintentional meltdown. I observed much of the same when we initially rescued Eliza."

"Damned if we do, damned if we don't." Eliza sighed. "Any viability in blindfolding her until she's to the Infirmary and the curtains are drawn? And also instituting a policy of no sensitive information leaked around her until we can confirm or deny the existence of a chip?"

Sherry didn't look too satisfied with that, but she begrudgingly nodded. "Best we can do until she's recovered." Sherry took out a rag from a pouch. "This will do, right? I'll say it's to avoid light sensitivity."

"Tell her 'Commander's orders' and she'll probably not raise a fuss." Eliza hoped so, anyway. "I might need some crowd control down there, too. I've already had Bradford tell the soldiers to lay off for a day or so until we get Jane all good to go, but I hope they don't break that." Eliza looked to Tygan. "... well, speaking of Jane, because I'm sure she'd benefit from the project—so would Rosa, come to think of it. How's the Keystone coming along?"

"All that's left is the neural interface," Tygan responded. "As well as what testing we can manage. We've confirmed that it's reading impulses well and eye movement is almost completely accurate to inputs, with some limiters on simulating the optic nerve's presence." Tygan pushed up his glasses. "The only problem is we don't know how accurate the signals it's sending are, yet. Computer output is one thing, the mind is another."

"Hey, well," Sherry said, lightly shrugging, "the mind is essentially a squishy CPU, right?"

"If only." Tygan took the humor well, easing up. "Still, I'm estimating a very near completion date."

Eliza looked back to the ceiling. "Good to hear."

That was about when she heard the low roar of the Skyranger approaching outside—and with a mild jolt, it landed on the Avenger. Eliza composed herself as the platform lowered, eyes trained on the Skyranger. The hatch was open and Fal-Mai was the closest to her. Jane was focused on Mary and Moody, who were supporting her as she walked. Arachne was the last out, bringing up the rear.

Jane looked up, eyes meeting with Eliza's. She looked dumbstruck for a moment, probably taking in Eliza's changed appearance. However, that quickly changed into a joyous grin. "—heya, O'Leary. Good to be back."

Eliza chuckled. "Good to have you back, Kelly. Now." She looked to the soldiers supporting her. "Get Jane on the stretcher, she's due for the Infirmary. I'll address the squad after she's been secured."

"Commander?" Jane was getting practically carted over to the stretcher by her escort, but she was twisting to look at her. "I... I need to talk with you. After."

She nodded. "That can happen, just rest for now."

Jane bobbed her head back, letting herself be put on the stretcher. As advised, Sherry put the rag over her eye and muttered "Commander's orders," and Jane didn't protest too much. Tygan and Sherry wheeled the stretcher out, with Mary and Moody returning to the lineup.

Eliza cleared her throat. "Menace One-Five, you've done a great deed today. One of our best soldiers has been returned to us, and it's thanks to all of you."

"Oh, please, Commander." Mary gestured to Fal-Mai. "Fal-Mai did all of the work. We just kinda sat around getting rained on."

The Commander shook her head. "Nothing has to happen for your presence to be a boon. There was always the chance of that operation going south, and without backup and so close to a city center, Fal-Mai would have been overwhelmed by herself." She then pointedly looked at Mary. "Having a medic on the ground is standard in any operation, and you have earned your place in XCOM. Remember that."

Mary nodded, looking away bashfully. Eliza knew she had some validation issues, so best to make that clear. Fal-Mai was the next to speak up. "Eli—Commander. I realize now that I made a deal with a potential enemy without consulting with you, first. I apologize for my thoughtlessness."

"The self-reflection is appreciated," Eliza returned, finding it weird to talk to Fal-Mai like that when just yesterday she'd been face-deep into her neck, "but that likely would have been my answer to the situation, anyhow. I'm willing to believe that Cocytus and Zuriel have honestly defected from the Elders, though I may take the next high-profile defection with a grain of salt. If they're willing to cooperate with us in exchange for something we likely would need to handle anyhow, then I find it agreeable."

Fal-Mai did a short bow. "Then I am glad I took it." She rose. "... later, I would wish to talk to you regarding what they wanted us to do. I may have some... insights."

"After I talk to Jane, then." She then looked to Schro. "Schro, I won't leave today without thanking you for making the majority of this mission possible."

Schro bowed as well. "I'm just happy to have made it work. Perhaps in the future we can use my abilities in getting the drop on louder missions?"

Eliza smiled wryly. "Fine by me." Looking over the squad, she thought if there was anything else she wanted to handle. Coming up with nothing, she clasped her hands together in front of her. "Menace One-Five, you are dismissed. Great work out there."

She got nods from Menace, who made for the Armory. That all handled, she turned and walked out of the room. She still had one more soldier to attend to, after all.

"Hey, darling." Oh, that was Mordenna. "Do you mind if I pop into the Infirmary? Y'know, to apologize in person."

Well, she was glad that Mordenna was taking the initiative. She pressed a finger to her communicator. "Of course. Just, no revealing info. We don't know how compromised Jane might be at the moment."

"If I know my old man, and he likely has his bony hands in this? Probably very. Look, Liz, I've been thinking, and... with that UFO initiative out... Jane might have a tracking chip in her, at the very least."

That had been one of the possibilities Eliza thought of, and she grimaced. "I know. But we can't just leave her."

"Very much aware of that fact." Mordenna sighed. "... I hate to be a downer, but it's best we acknowledge the inevitable and start preparing for it. I'll work in tandem on my own armor and on the ground defenses, and you might want to start drills for what we're gonna need to do. Inform the rulers as well, we're gonna need all the firepower we can get if we get downed."

The notion of the aliens being so close to taking her again was making Eliza's stomach turn. She knew Mordenna was just being reasonable about all of this, and it was best that they made preparations, but...

"Hey." Mordenna's voice was soft. "I know. I know it must suck to think about. If you need, I'll handle a majority of the strategizing and you can take time off with Jax. Don't expose yourself more than you need to."

It was Eliza's turn to sigh. "No, this needs to be handled. I'll... probably need support as I do, so if I work on it today I'll have Jax with me. Of course I'll still want your help, you're one of our best strategic minds around here."

"Appreciate it, Liza. And..." There was a pause. "Take it easy. I love you."

That was enough to make her smile. "I love you too, and you take it easy as well."

Mordenna was silent from there, so Eliza took her finger away from her ear. She seriously loved that man, and the amount of support he always showed... well, it was a wonder she didn't realize he was in love with her earlier. True, half of it may have been how romantically blind she was, but oh well. She'd thought over this quite a lot recently, so she figured it was time to give it a rest. They were together now, after all. Only the future to look forward to.

Eliza eventually came across the Infirmary, tapping the pad to get in. When the door didn't open immediately, she looked at the panel. It had a message, reading "The Infirmary is currently hosting a potentially-compromised agent. No discussion of internal affairs or sensitive information is permitted beyond this point." Along with that was a button confirming you read the info.

Huh! One of them must've informed Wiki or the like. Very smart. Eliza tapped the confirmation button and the door opened. She stepped inside as it closed behind her, locating the one bed with the curtains currently drawn. As she walked forward, she could hear the tone of both Tygan and Sherry's voices beyond the fabric. Not wanting to come in without a warning, Eliza tapped at the curtain a few times. "Commander here. Can I come in?"

The side of the curtain parted enough that she could see Sherry's face. "Certainly, Commander. We're just hooking up a few things."

Permission granted, Eliza stepped in as Sherry stepped back. Jane was on the bed with an IV already in her arm, and Tygan appeared to be checking her vitals. Her soldier looked up at her and grinned. "That hardly took you any time, Commander. You just book it down here, or what?"

Eliza returned the smile. "I'd be lying if I said I hadn't cut the post-mission briefing short intentionally. How're you feeling, Jane?"

"Better, now that I'm back on the ship and..." She sighed. "Not in the arms of someone I thought was an enemy."

"Strange times make for strange bedfellows," Sherry muttered, tapping some things down on a datapad as her GREMLIN hovered nearby.

"Very strange ones," Jane continued, pointedly looking at Eliza. "Commander... you know I'm behind you. I'm good with the Skirmishers, hell, I heard you had other aliens. Saw the Sectoid and the Specter. Fine with those guys. But..." Jane gestured to her eyepatch. "That bastard Hunter was responsible for this. And the other Chosen have killed your people. My friends. And you just... let them in?"

Eliza's expression grew a little grave. She knew that it'd be a major shock to Jane to be introduced to all of this in the deep end, when all of the Chosen had struggled so hard to be accepted back in. "There was deliberation in the choice, Kelly. Agreements reached. Struggles maintained. You haven't seen the whole of it and you won't for a while. I'm not excusing what the Chosen have done, not a bit. They're beholden to their crimes and they know that. I ask that you give them a chance."

"Commander, please, I'd really like to. The Assassin and Warlock, sure." Jane's eyebrows knit together and she gestured angrily. "But you can't expect me to believe the Hunter! I know you've got a good head on your shoulders, I know it. So please don't tell me you expect me to forgive him! He took my eye from me, and I might damn well return the favor!"

"You're... a little late to the punch on that one."

Eliza jumped a little as the curtain was raised behind her, and in stepped Mordenna. The nanos making up his plate-like eyepatch glinted in the low light, and his gaze was calm. Jane was left dumbstruck for a second before she found her words again. "Who... what happened?"

"My old man." He pointed at the eyepatch. "We'll say... a projection of him sat on my chest as I was working with XCOM here to retrieve a high-priority target. Reached right in, tore it out. So if you want to take the other one, go right ahead. I won't judge. But my siblings and the rest of the Avenger might."

Once again, Jane was at a loss for words. Tygan and Sherry quickly finished up their duties, with Tygan muttering something to Sherry that Eliza didn't catch. The two of them exited the area, leaving just the three of them in there.

Mordenna sighed. "Look. You've got every right to be angry, Jane. In fact, when you're recovered, you're entitled to a few free slugs on the house. But can you also come to grips with the fact that me and my siblings are trying to change? I'm glad you're willing to give credit to them, but... it's hard. It's hard for me to get better when people don't even give me the space. You don't have to be my best friend or even forgive me. You just have to give me the chance to get better, ok?"

Jane's eye darted away from him for a second, but eventually she was able to bring herself to look at Mordenna. "... I don't think I'll forgive you. Not for a while. I... I still get nightmares about you, I hope you know that."

Mordenna winced. "I... figured."

"But honestly..." Jane looked to Eliza. "If the Commander believes you, and you're acting like that, I'm willing to believe you're trying to get better." She blew a breath out. "Figures. I work myself up for a few months to hand you your ass and you've gone and turned yourself around."

"Better than the alternative though, right?"

"Yeah. Better than the alternative." Jane stared at Mordenna for a few seconds before closing her eye. "So. Your siblings like you nowadays?"

"God, I'd hope so." Mordenna rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't know how they've put up with me for this long otherwise."

Something in that statement made Jane chuckle, and she looked to the side. "... really have changed, huh." She looked back to him, but then away again. "I think I wanna talk with you more later, but for now? Just wanna talk to the Commander in private."

"That I can do." Mordenna approached Eliza, crouching down and brushing some hair out of her face. "Liz, take care of yourself, I swear to god. I'll be working on a few of my projects if you need me."

"I'll take care of myself if you do the same for you," Eliza returned with a smile.

Mordenna snickered, leaning in and pressing a kiss against her forehead. "Guess I gotta, now."

With that, he lifted the curtain again, disappearing as it fell behind him. Gently smiling, Eliza returned her attention... to a very baffled Jane. Oh, right. Jane didn't know about that, either. "... long story short, I'm in a relationship with a lot of people," she began, knowing that she shouldn't put all the details on Jane all at once. "The Chosen included."

Jane sat back in the bed. "Are you guys at least friends?"

"Oh, without a doubt." Eliza really couldn't see herself wanting to enter a relationship with people whom she shared no common ground with. Or, at the very least, didn't want to be around when there was no affection. "It was, hah. It was a whole thing. I'll tell you later. For now, I think you need to rest."

"Alright, but... I don't feel like sleeping, Commander." Jane crossed her arms. "Spent enough time sleeping in the cell when I could, the other half doing stretches. I'm gonna want to do some physical therapy when I'm out, which I doubt you've forgotten, of course. But I'm not sleeping right now."

"Fair enough. I'll see about getting you a spare datapad. We recently picked up a Codex named Wiki who's been aggregating a lot of old world media. Movies and books included." Preferably that datapad would be wired to only look at the "leisure" section of the archives. If Jane was chipped, Eliza didn't want her getting at sensitive info.

Jane smiled. "Already feels good to be back, Commander. Honestly... some part of me is looking forward to meeting all the new people you've got on here." She quirked an eyebrow in good humor. "Are they all aliens?"

Eliza laughed. "Close! I did pick up one human. I think you'd like to meet him. He's, ah. Have you ever read an Edgar Allen Poe poem?"

"'The Raven' and that's about as much as I remember."

"Well, you pretty much know, then. His name is Edgar, for one."

Jane snickered. "Alright, count me interested."

Smiling, the Commander turned to leave. "I'll see about getting you that datapad so you can pass the time while you recover, alright? Might have someone deliver it to you."

She moved to leave, expecting Jane to say something along the lines of "see you for now, then." Eliza got something different. "Commander, uh. Wait."

Eliza turned back around. The humor that Jane had gained was lost again, and she seemed... nervous. Eliza wouldn't go as far as to say "afraid," but there were hints in that direction. "Something up, Jane?"

Jane balled the sheets in her hands, looking away. "... nevermind. It's nothing."

"Jane, if I had a dollar for every time I've heard that," Eliza replied, moving closer again, "I'd be a millionaire at this point. What's wrong?"

She still wouldn't look at the Commander. "I... I spent a lot of time in that cell. Alone. I think I can handle being alone, but. It's just." She gave a frustrated sigh. "I can't put it to words."

Eliza thought about it for a second. Jane had been isolated in that cell, and likely the only physical contact she got was whenever she was being forcefully relocated or... well, it hardly needed to be mentioned. She seemed a little too alright coming out after a few months in captivity, as well. She couldn't be this well-adjusted, not that the Commander was doubting her. It was a matter of Jane putting on a mask.

In the interest of helping, Eliza leaned over and slid the railing on her side down. "Well, you know what my prescription typically tends to be. If not sympathy and discussion..."

Jane finally looked back at her as Eliza spread her arms out, offering. Her hesitation was fleeting, as she quickly leaned in and wrapped her arms around Eliza, squeezing tightly. The Commander returned the gesture as she felt Jane shiver slightly, the tough face she'd put on melting. Eliza sat on the edge of the bed, smoothing a hand over Jane's hair and muttering gentle assurances, letting her psionics flow into a Solace.

The time had passed for being strong. All she had to do now was recover.