Log 27
Date: 21ST NOV 2186
Location: SOMEWHERE IN RUSSIA
All things considered Captain Hellman had taken the news rather well I reflected, while watching his ship disappear beneath the waves. Afterall he had hung around long enough to drop us off on the Russian mainland with all of our gear and supplies. He'd dropped us in a place apparently called Lavrentiya 150 klicks away from the start of the track in the town of Uelen. Frankly given the circumstances it was the best we could have hoped for even if it did leave us with quite a trek.
First impressions of the place we'd arrived at? Cold. Just want to put that on record now. Very cold in fact, not to mention deserted. Few people here and not much in the way of anything else either. Once you got beyond the thin strip of buildings clustered around the shoreline the open space seemed to stretch out almost endlessly in front of us.
Cadet Sarah was dropped off with us (after the revelation of an enemy agent on board I hadn't had any chance to convince the captain to take her back with him). Not quite sure what I can do about that really. For the moment she's coming with us. The only thing that eases my conscience on that one is that we aren't looking for a fight on this mission. At least not until we reach London and with any luck we will make contact with other resistance cells in Europe long before that. In the meantime she's doing what she can with our QEC device. No platforms in the village to plug it into but apparently they are available in Uelen. I certainly hope so, there's a lot of people I'd like to check in with right about now.
We didn't stay long as we wanted to start making some progress on our long march northwards. Some of the locals agreed to come with us, mostly as guides rather than resistance members. I can't really blame them for their reluctance to join up, the war simply hasn't come here yet. No matter how terrible a war might seem there are always plenty of places like this one where absolutely nothing is going on. Still I can't help but worry about these people. They might be safe now while the enemy is focused on the major cities but they're living on borrowed time. Eventually the Reapers will come by and annihilate the whole village in a single attack leaving no trace of it behind. If there's one thing you can say about our enemy it's that they're through and meticulous. They will come here, it's just a matter of time.
But my mind wasn't on the job at that time. I wasn't thinking about the threat to the village or Cadet Sarah or on the new recruits we'd taken on. No, I hadn't forgotten or given up on the investigation I'd started back on the sub. From one point of view it was still possible that the agent that betrayed us at Vancouver had died there or subsequently and that the betrayer on the sub had been a member of the crew that had become indoctrinated. Afterall there was certainly no rule that said there could only be one enemy agent in the ranks.
We certainly weren't the only cell in the Resistance to have come up against the issue of indoctrination. I remember one of the worst cases I ever heard about being in China. They picked a refugee who agreed to join the cause. For weeks they fought side by side with him with no animosity or reason to suspect him. Then one day he walked into the barracks with an assault rifle and shot every soldier inside before turning the gun on himself. The trouble is that it's just so insidious. Many of our operatives are overworked, burned out on stress and terrified that they might not live to see tomorrow. Given all these factors it's harder to find ones who aren't acting strangely and if they do break hard to say if they were suffering from indoctrination or post traumatic stress. The best I could do I supposed is focus on observations from the few indoctrinated people I've come across personally.
On that train of thought I wondered idly if Dr. Serov might also have been indoctrinated. It was certainly possible, if his plan to transform millions into Adjutants had succeeded and then they had all switched sides? He would've ended up handing the entire North American continent into total Reaper control. At times I thought I could even see signs of it, the madness in his eyes, the way Harbinger tried to give him orders.
And yet oddly enough he still tried to fight the Reapers, throwing everything he had against them. As I've remarked before the process of indoctrination often builds on existing desires and beliefs and twists them to serve the purpose of the enemy in some way. Serov in some way actually believed his insane plan would work. He fought the Reapers when they arrived because that kind of indoctrination could only do so much. Lead him on a path to his (and humanity's) eventual downfall perhaps but not force him to directly serve his enemy.
Maybe knowing that can help me identify the killer because in all seriousness I don't actually believe that he or she isn't still among us (it was just a vague hope I was clinging to at the time). To have avoided detection for so long they must've been allowed to still retain their own identity. Does that make it easier to determine who it is? Who might be most easily swayed by ideas that make them want to support enemies or betray friends? The answer I kept coming round to was the obvious one, General Coberg.
It wasn't the first time I'd had suspicions about him, he had been the one to propose the failed mission in Vancouver. He'd survived the Reaper processor ship (though so had everyone we rescued that day) and most damningly of all it was Coberg that had ordered the sub radio fixed just hours before it was used to alert Reapers to our location (probably). In the past whenever these concerns gripped me I waved them aside, telling myself I had a personal bias against the man that was clouding my judgment. And frankly I'd also wanted to avoid a confrontation with the man who'd become the Resistance's de facto second in command. But in fact if I didn't do something soon the damage he could do if he was indoctrinated would be catastrophic.
So having taken a considerable amount of time (several days in fact) to consider it I finally confronted him. It was in the evening when we'd made camp for the night. Tomorrow would be our last march before reaching the station. I finally decided I didn't want to get on that train with anyone I didn't trust completely. I approached Coberg who was sitting by the campfire (Reaper presence in this part of the world was nonexistent so we were less careful about hiding our presence) and hit him with it.
"Why did you say I authorized repairs to the comm system?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Back on the sub you told Xi Chan I wanted to him to do repairs. I never mentioned anything like that to you."
General Coberg frowned and held his hands up to the fire to warm them (did I mention it was really cold yet) before responding.
"Oh right that. My apologies Admiral but with some members of the resistance I find it easier to get them to follow orders if they think it came from you originally." He explained.
"Why were you even interested in getting it fixed in the first place?" I asked.
"I asked one of the officers if they had somewhere we could plug in that QEC thing you're always going on about so we could check in with the rest of the resistance cells. I thought it was a good idea at the time but they told me the comm room was suffering power issues. Was worried we might end up damaging our device."
"And yet when it was finally fixed or nearly fixed rather than use the QEC with its secured communications someone tried to send a message from the unsecured radio system."
"I wasn't allowed anywhere near the comm room after the incident, none of us were. Are you accusing me of something Admiral?"
"A man died General and thus far we have no idea who the killer was. Where were you at nineteen hundred hours on the night before we disembarked from the SNV Seaborn?"
He gave me a long cold stare for that, I think he was trying to work out how serious I was about this whole thing.
"I thought you knew me better than that Anderson. We've never quite seen eye to eye but I didn't think you had me pegged for a traitor or a murderer."
"Given that a man died and we got dumped about a hundred miles from our destination I don't see how I could just overlook this. We have to keep investigating." I said, addressing the crowd that had gathered around us as much as the General himself. Then I turned back to face him.
"So where were you?"
"With me," piped up Daniels.
"We were in the crew quarters discussing preparations for the next stage of our journey."
"What? For how long?"
Coberg shrugged.
"Until half past I guess, we were both there 'till we ended up getting involved in that mess with the Cadet."
I'd been so sure of myself. I wanted to press him with more questions but I could see several of his officers in the crowd. I had to face facts, he had an alibi for the murder. Unless I revealed to the entire group that we had a traitor in our ranks I wasn't going to be able to pursue this any further. So far we'd always shied away from going public with the news. Bad enough I and a few of the other officers had to go day in day out knowing the enemy was among us. If we told everyone then maybe we'd stand a better chance at flushing out our unseen adversary. But it carried a far greater likelihood of getting somebody killed that had nothing to do with this whole mess.
"Sorry general, I just had to ask," I said trying to make out that it had just been routine.
After that, well ever since the murder actually my mind never left the topic of who our traitor might be. The General had given the order to fix the comms but had someone planted the idea in his head? I asked around to try and find out but there were many people in that conversation and none of them seemed to quite remember how the topic had come up. I focused on Coberg's remaining men, particularly the officers. Perhaps if one of them was staying close to him, manipulating him into doing things they wanted it might explain why I had made my earlier mistake. Any one of his officers had been with us in Vancouver from the beginning, had survived Reaper imprisonment just as Coberg had. Was one of them hiding in the shadow of the more obvious suspect?
As we trudged through the rain on the last leg of the journey I thought about each of them in turn. After awhile the names and faces started to blur together, none standing out as the likely cause. I felt my headache worsen and the faces seemed to mock me as I struggled to make sense of it. Talking to Xi Chan seemed to help, if only a little. As ever his analysis was both objective and insightful.
"We all know that Coberg's got his head stuck up his cloaca," he opened with after I had explained my doubts.
"But logically speaking he's no more likely to be the indoctrinated agent than many of the others here."
I raised my eyebrow at him but he shook his head firmly.
"Personal attitude irrelevant, anyone can be indoctrinated. Evidence against the General is circumstantial and shared with several others who were at Vancouver base."
"So what do you suggest?"
"Hmm can only suggest looking into personal history of suspects. May find indication of motive for attempting to frame Coberg."
I frowned.
"What makes you think so."
"Have noticed that the General's personality has proven highly efficient at generating tension."
"That's putting it mildly," I muttered but Xi carried on as if I hadn't interrupted.
"Indoctrination known to cause paranoia, exacerbate existing disagreements to generate conflict thus weakening enemy overall. Our agent may be acting out of dislike for Coberg,"
He paused a moment for effect before adding.
"Am aware this doesn't narrow field of suspects very much."
"Was that a joke?" I laughed in reply.
"Am very familiar with Earth humor Admiral. Have lived here since I was seven."
"I thought you first came to Earth to study engineering?" I asked the question before I could stop myself. Mentally cursing myself I quickly recalled that due to the Salarian race's relatively short lifespan, seven was the equivalent of early twenties to a human. Fortunately Xi didn't notice (or chose to ignore) the surprise in my voice.
"Yes, firstly Electrical Engineering at Greenwich University."
"And then Architectural Engineering in Moscow," I said, still puzzled at that particular switch of disciplines.
"Studying multiple degrees quite common in Salarian society. Had planned on returning to Sur'kesh personally of course but discovered interest in Earth Architecture while at Greenwich. Afterwards decided to stay awhile, travel the planet before going home."
"You're really interested in Earth aren't you?"
"Interested in many things. Earth fascinating melting pot of different ideas. As Professor Solus noted in 'A treatise on Sapient Cultures' Humans are a much more diverse species than most other races. You have experts and fools in almost every field of study."
"You read about many of Earth's 'fools'?"
"No species is perfect Admiral, always amusing to learn of past mistakes. Like watching bloopers," he chuckled.
"Was this Russian project we're heading to one of them?" I asked, curious to learn more about where we were going.
Xi Chan cocked his head to one side in a sort of pensive way.
"Not really amusing as such. President Sokolov's plans were ambitious in scope and surprisingly successful for a time. He hoped to succeed in fully utilizing eastern Russia where predecessors had failed. Worthy cause, undoubtedly vast areas of unused land in region. Atmospheric conditions... Problematic. Many similar attempts before him of course, Tsar Nicholas II possibly one of the most well known."
"You really enjoy learning all this stuff, don't you?"
"Salarian culture built around love of acquiring knowledge Admiral. Scientific, political, historical, it's all the same to us. In our history, the greatest heroes are always those that managed to uncover the most secrets."
"Sometimes I really don't know why people risk underestimating your people Xi," I commented. He gave a small shrug and smiled.
"Never see us coming."
When we reached our destination it was clear this was one settlement the Reapers hadn't ignored. In fact there was virtually nothing left. The houses were burnt out shells, the streets completely empty. The destruction had been systematic, every building, every road, every single piece of infrastructure was in ruins. It was looking very much like we'd come a very long way for nothing. Xi Chan however refused to be discouraged and led us over to the where the entrance should have been.
"Is this it?"
"I believe so Admiral, the station should be right below us."
Well it wasn't much, of the overground station only one wall still standing, bricks and mortar covering everything but it was a start. Took us three hours of digging just to uncover an entrance, another two to unblock it.
We descended into the dark cavernous space beneath the small town. The station itself was simple, not much more than a ticket vendor and a platform that stretched out into the darkness of an endless tunnel. And just as Xi Chan promised there was a train here, sort of. The Reapers hadn't overlooked this place either. Bullet holes peppered the sides of the train, there were clear signs of explosions singing the train and parts of the platform.
"We need this thing working," Coberg pointed out.
Xi Chan had been walking along the length of the train examining it critically.
"Damage isn't as bad as I feared, mostly superficial. They've gutted the on board generators but I came prepared for that. It'll take several hours but I can fix this thing up."
"So we're staying here for the night?" Asked Daniels.
"Looks like it," Coats replied.
As we settled in for the night Lara T'Ren approached me with several of her crew.
"May I speak with in private Admiral?"
"Sure, just step into my office," I said indicating a crumbling stone building that had once been a ticket office (at least I think so, it's getting harder to tell these days).
Ever blunt and to the point, once we were inside Lara immediately explained the purpose of her visit.
"I think you were right about the general. The question is how do we deal with this?"
I could feel my headache growing as I anticipated another difficult and potentially deadly issue arising. For a moment I could almost see visions of all the ways this could end badly. Lara getting frustrated with my unwillingness to to use violence and leaving to kill Coberg herself, sparking a small war within our ranks. Or me agreeing to support her and our collusion creating division in the group that the indoctrinated agent could exploit to their advantage. All these possibilities flooded across my vision but I pushed them aside to focus on the present. The reality was I had to make Lara be patient or it might only make things worse, for all of us.
"Are you alright Admiral?" Lara called out and I realized I still hadn't answered her question.
"Just tired, nothing to worry about. As for Coberg, I won't deny I had my concerns but he has an alibi for the murder, he can't be the culprit."
"And what about the other things that have gone wrong? The sabotaged shuttles, the ambush you told me about in Vancouver. He's a key figure related to every betrayal we've faced so far," she pointed out.
"I haven't forgotten about that. Been asking around the remaining survivors from the base but no one ever saw General Coberg go anywhere near the shuttle hanger. No one even remembers him mentioning it. The fact is everyone from the base has a connection to every issue we've seen so far."
"So that's it?"
"For now? Maybe. I got a lot of people's guards up asking about the base after all this time. It might be better to let the matter rest for awhile. Pick up the investigation again once everyone assumes we've given up."
"What if the indoctrinated agent tries something in the mean time?"
"Assuming Xi Chan gets the train working we'll be spending a fair amount of time underground. They'll be no communication with the outside world except the QEC device which will be carefully guarded. With no way to contact the Reapers and everyone on high alert at the moment I doubt they'll be able to do anything."
"Forgive me if I'm not completely reassured by that Admiral. I tend to put the safety of my crew ahead of political concerns."
"And since when was that a Justicar policy?" I asked.
"What?" she hissed at me, her face pale. I'd never seen her so angry before, for a moment I thought she was going to attack me.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"I've heard stories about the Justicar before. Are they honorable? Definitely. Do they protect the innocent? Whenever they can yes. But do they put lives of others even those they care about above defeating their enemies?"
I shook my head to indicate the answer and continued.
"The Justicar I was told about were ruthless. They understood that sometimes eliminating a threat will save more lives in the long run. They understand the bottom line."
"The code has many interpretations," she replied curtly.
"I don't think even you fully believe that any more," I sighed.
"You've been bending rules ever since you got to Earth, which doesn't exactly strike me as standard Justicar practice. You've allowed yourself to become attached to your crew in a way the Justicar order forbids."
"Do you have any idea how long I've been alone?" She snapped back, the words cutting into me like the lash of a whip.
"I've given the order three and a half centuries of my life only to see it all wasted-"
"It wasn't wasted-" I tried to interject but Lara's anger quickly squashed my interruption.
"Wasn't wasted? The whole galaxy is falling apart. The Reapers are trying to wipe out everyone I ever saved as a Justicar. So everything I did to become one, the work it took, the sacrifices I made, how does any of it mean anything?" The Justicar ranted, pouring her pent of anger and frustration into a tirade of shouting.
"And you of all people lecture me about this? I've seen the way you were with Will, with Daniels."
"I'm protective of my men," I said much more forcefully, my tone finally proving successful in getting through to the Asari. A good thing unquestionably but I wasn't sure why I was getting quite so defensive.
"Your men? Your sons would be closer to the mark!"
"I already have a son," I retorted angrily but deep down I felt guilty. She was right and I'd been blind not to see it myself. Now that I looked back at my interactions with Will, Daniels even Shepard for that matter it was obvious to me now. I'd been a father figure to each of them, keen to share my experiences as a soldier with them to watch them grow and avoid or overcome the same pitfalls I had faced in the job. And all the while my own son, my real son Jason neglected far too often.
I couldn't see the expression on my face but Lara's reaction gave me a fair guess.
"Anderson I didn't mean to- That is to say... I'm sorry. Will you tell the other Justicar when we meet them? About my crew I mean?"
I shook my head.
"It's not my place to get involved. And I apologize for what I said earlier, it was never my intention to judge you for your loyalty to your crew. I just worry how the rest of your comrades would react if they notice it when we all get to London."
She smiled briefly, gratitude clear to see on her face.
"Thank you, that means a lot to me. I'll have to face the other Justicars eventually but hopefully after the war, things may be different. Perhaps in the face of so much destruction my transgressions will be accepted," she said before adding a final warning.
"In the meantime I will support you in this plan Admiral at least for the time being. Just remember that I'll still be putting my crew first."
I sighed as she left, another problem I'd have to face. She'd supported me but made it clear that support wouldn't last forever. The Resistance was in danger of fracturing and if something happened here the results could be catastrophic. We may be just one cell of a much larger global resistance (what was left of it) but in our group all the factions that had come together to fight the Reapers were represented.
Coberg was officially leader of the North American Alliance's armed forces at this stage and well respected by other General's of various countries. Such militaries weren't huge now that internal wars on Earth had fallen into the past but they still represented a significant contribution. Lara was a Justicar and attacking one member of the order would represent an attack on them all. There weren't many Justicar's still left on Earth (there had been few enough to begin with) but their skills made them a significant fighting force. Even Xi Chan had a large following, mostly amount alien tourists who found themselves stranded on Earth by the invasion. He often spoke on the QEC of the honor of defending their host planet and its people even if some of them acted aggressively. His continued determination even after brutal treatment by Cerberus was often described as an inspiration.
The bottom line then: any conflict that started here might actually branch out to the entire resistance and tensions were certainly rising. In addition we had our resident indoctrinated agent to contend with not to mention the endless war to slow down the Reapers. Maybe that's why I did it. With everything getting so bad I didn't want to leave myself a way out.
I contacted Shepard at the Citadel using the QEC (Xi Chan had fixed up the comm platform in the station despite grumbling that it was delaying his repair schedule on the train). I heard he'd just got back from Rannoch, the Quarian homeworld. Apparently he'd managed to secure an alliance between their people and their age old enemies the Geth so that they could join the fight against the Reapers. I couldn't have been more proud, it was an amazing accomplishment but in the end I kept our meeting short.
I gave him my apartment on the Citadel. It was something I'd been considering doing for awhile actually. I haven't talked about this much but a lot of guys in the resistance talk about the possibility of being evacuated. Mostly it's just talk but some are serious and they try to look for any ship on the ground that might be space worthy. How they think they'll get past the blockade I couldn't say but if a man's desperate enough he'll try anything. I gave away my apartment to remind myself that my place is here. If things go well I'll stay on Earth after the war and help with the reconstruction, if things go badly I don't want there to be anywhere else in the galaxy for me to run to. And if it helps Shepard to have somewhere to relax on his shore leave (even in this hell everyone needs a break) then so much the better.
Anyway Xi Chan did finally have the train fixed by the morning and we all got aboard. That's where I am now, we've actually been traveling a couple of days already though little has happened. The train still isn't in very good shape, it did afterall take a lot of damage in the attack. Xi Chan's done his best but it's moving slower than it should be (although we don't know the exact speed because the instrument panel is completely smashed). The journey's going well all things considered but I am concerned about the foghorn noises coming from above us. It sounds as if we're directly underneath a Reaper. We just have to hope that-