Note: We're unfortunately caught up now to AO3. Just expect one chapter every few days.
Chapter 26: Contingency Plan
Miranda stared at the message for what seemed like hours but was probably less than a minute. Her first instinct was to blow it off as a lie, the quickly typed words on her screen were literally impossible. The Illusive Man would never have done this to her, especially when they were in the middle of the most important mission in Cerberus' long history. He knew she wouldn't be able to focus with this kind of distraction dangling over her head. And yet, Niket was never wrong in all the years she had known him. If he said Henry Lawson was going around Eclipse bases bragging he was about to get his daughter back, that's what her father was doing.
Even though she had hated the fact that Oriana had been captured by the Quarians, she had ultimately resigned herself to the fact that the girl would probably be safe on the Migrant Fleet. It was better than Oriana being a student at that terrible orphanage on Noveria. She should've known that at the first sign of trouble, the Quarians would cut her loose. They had their own problems now because of her need for revenge. Miranda's first reaction was to reach out to The Illusive Man for help, he had always done so in the past but, Kai Leng's appearance on Purgatory made her hesitate. If Leng had already told The Illusive Man what she did on Luna, he could view this as a good punishment. She wasn't about to let her sister suffer the wrath of their father because she hadn't finished the job on Leng, no matter what The Illusive Man wanted. Miranda just needed a solution that didn't involve Cerberus, Shepard was her only real option, and they were headed to Illium.
She closed the door to her office spotting Reegar and the teenager in the medbay. It was easy to write off all Quarian's as selfish, narrow minded, tech wizards; the truth was that they weren't all that way. Kal was taking care of this girl like she was his own daughter despite her harsh attitude, and the fact they met less than a week ago. His helmet also had a badly repaired crack and yet, his biggest concern right now was making sure she didn't receive too much eezo in her blood. Given the fact that Oriana hadn't run away for the two full years she was on the fleet, Miranda guessed it was safe to assume that whoever took care of her showed a similar love and affection. Miranda might not like it but, Oriana belonged with the Quarian people.
Her first instinct was to go into the medbay when the elevator door opened and Jack emerged, "Hey Shepard, do you and Kal have a minute to talk?"
Jack gave her a suspicious look trying to read her for intent, "We need to make sure Jack's ok after Horizon but, I suppose so when we're done."
Miranda nodded and entered the elevator after him, "I'll be in your quarters if you don't mind?"
The door closed without an answer so Miranda assumed it was fine. She was glad now that the Quarian took surveillance out of the Captain's Quarters, it would allow them to have this private conversation. Even just a year ago she would've fought harder to keep them in place but, something about The Illusive Man had changed. Yes, he was still the sharpest military mind she knew, however, anything related to Cora and Leng were greenlit no matter how damaging to Cerberus as a whole. He wasn't one to submit to anyone's ideas, so what changed? Nepotism? Unlikely, Miranda was as much his daughter as either of them and he was starting to leave her in the dark on key aspects of their mission. She would have to worry about that riddle later, right now Oriana's safety was on the line.
Another thirty minutes went by before Kal and Jack returned to the cabin, the Quarian was the first to speak, "What's so important that you needed to see us in the only part of the ship your boss can't hear us in?"
Miranda had been preparing to tell them everything but they didn't want to hear her story, she was evil in their eyes, "I need a favor from you both, off the books."
Jack folded his arms over his chest, "We're listening, I'm not going to commit to anything if it's like the last favor you people made us go through."
She kept her hands behind her back to not show how stressed she was, "You asked me about Oriana shortly after we met. She's my younger sister, and I just learned my father is after her again. Supposedly, he's going to pick her up on Illium."
Kal bounced on his heels lightly, "Let me guess, your father isn't the loving type? And you want us to help you make sure this deal doesn't happen?"
Miranda debated on telling him the whole truth, "You could say that but I won't bore you with the details, you'd see it as too convenient."
Jack shook his head giving her a half smile, "You wouldn't have reached out to us if this wasn't important to you Miranda. Telling us everything now is a lot better than getting hit with it later, just talk."
Miranda had to admit that was true, "Much like Han'Gerrel, my father is obsessed with genetics, he wants to create the perfect Human. He used my DNA to clone me with several additions to create Oriana. When he found out she was going to have Autism, he decided killing her and starting over was the best solution."
She could tell Kal didn't completely believe her as he leaned against the fish tank, "And so you did something to make sure that wouldn't happen?"
Jack answered for her, "That's why you joined Cerberus isn't it? The Illusive Man promised you he'd keep her safe. What changed?"
She wished she could answer that question on her own, what had changed? Luna seemed to be the only answer that was remotely possible, except it didn't feel right. Up until right now, she had known The Illusive Man to be blunt with his words. If you did something he didn't approve of he would tell you directly, and if need be, punish you to your face. Going after Oriana behind her back was out of character for him, he always wanted you to know what you did wrong. Miranda wasn't used to feeling like she needed contingency plans around him, it was an uncomfortable feeling.
Her gaze shifted from one of the men to the other with a shrug, "I don't know Shepard, and that makes me worry. All I know is my father convinced the Quarians to let her go."
Kal's hand was tapping his opposite shoulder, "What do you need us to do exactly? If you aren't aware, I'm an exile. I can't pull strings to get the flotila to stop the transfer."
Miranda tilted her head in his direction, "I know that Kal, I also know both of you are friends with Tali'Zorah. I think her father would be interested in Oriana since she can communicate with the Geth. All I'm asking is that you reach out to her and see if the flotila would be willing to take Oriana back. Then, me and Kal go to the swap on Illium and stop it."
Jack raised an eyebrow suddenly seeming more skeptical, "Any reason why I'm not allowed to go on this little adventure with you both?"
Kal added quickly, "And why me in the first place? I've watched you fight enough to know your perfectly capable of killing mercenaries."
Miranda made sure to keep her tone as calm as possible, showing fear would ruin her chances, "Like I said earlier, I need this mission to be off the books. The Illusive Man wanted you to recruit an assassin for the mission and I know you can't be in two places at once. As for you Kal, Oriana's never actually met me before, when we take her it would be better if I'm with a friendly face so to speak."
Jack seemed to look tense and unsure on what to do, "I want to help your sister Miranda, I really do. However, I can't risk losing Cerberus' resources right now. Not when an actual Reaper is involved with the Collectors. If The Illusive Man decides I'm no longer useful because I helped you, the galaxy could get screwed as a result."
The words hit her hard even though she knew he was right. Oriana's temporary safety wouldn't matter in the end if the Reapers were successful in restarting the cycle. On top of that Shepard didn't owe her anything really, sure she retrieved him from the cryo facility but that was because Cerberus needed him. Before that they had been on opposing sides in the race for the Conduit. What was she thinking would happen when she asked them for help? If she really wanted their help, she was going to have to give something in return, something both of them would want.
Instead of pitching her offer directly, Miranda asked, "Let's assume for a minute that we defeat the Collectors, what do you think will happen to you both then?"
Jack and Kal looked at each other for a few seconds before Jack spoke, "If it means the Reapers are truly defeated, we retire somewhere like normal people. I'm not a SPECTRE anymore so I don't have anything else keeping me in service."
Miranda gave a soft laugh and a chiding glance, "You've burned too many bridges for that Shepard and you know it. With Leng most likely free, you won't be safe. Jacob is only being friendly because he can see the bigger picture right now. The Alliance will want to throw you in jail for the rest of your life for working with us and, Cora hated you enough to try and freeze you for 600 years. Believe me, you won't be able to just retire and grow old."
Kal cleared his throat sounding irritated, "And somehow you have the answers to all of those problems if we help you? Why do I not believe that."
She cut to the chase with a blunt tone, "Your right, I can't help you both with everything. The both of you have way too many enemies for anyone to be able to guarantee that. What I can do is offer you my help when you need it, I have enough connections on my own to give the three of you a head start."
Jack gave her a seemingly confused stare, "The three of you...?"
Kal wasn't in the mood to play dumb and put a finger in her face, "Don't you dare bring her into this! Zero deserves to be free from you bosh'tets!"
Miranda gave a shrug, not intimidated by Kal's outburst of anger, "Like I said, I can help the three of you get a head start when all of this is over. All I'm asking for is your help getting Oriana free."
The silence that followed actually made Miranda feel like she had a bad taste in her mouth. While Cerberus as a whole often used an individuals family members as blackmail to get what they wanted, she personally didn't enjoy it. Kahoku had taught her the hard way that you normally get better results from your targets when they wanted to help you by choice. Unfortunately, Kal and Shepard would never want to actually help her no matter how badly they felt about Oriana's situation. She at least would follow through on her end of the bargain if they played ball. Miranda knew the value of keeping a symbiotic relationship with someone she needed help from.
Kal's hand clencherd to a fist, "If Zero somehow gets hurt because I helped you, your father won't be the only thing Oriana has to worry about at night. Understand?"
She ignored him and looked in Jack's direction, "So I assume we have a deal then?"
Jack sighed and gave her a defeated shrug, "It doesn't feel like we have much of a choice to say no."
Miranda was satisfied with that answer and started heading back to the elevator, "We'll be reaching Illium tomorrow. Kal, just meet me at the docks so we can come up with a plan."
She left the two of them in silence letting them figure out the logistics of who was going with who. It was important for her to figure out how they were actually going to save her sister.