"I'm surprised you asked for me, sir. Whatever the task, wouldn't Ms. Lawson be better suited?" Viktor Hand asked, his words dripping with sarcasm.
His superior - or at least his holographic replica produced by Minuteman Station's quantum-entanglement communicator - took a long, slow puff from his cigarette before answering.
"Spare me your petty rivalry. Miranda is tied up with a very important project. The less said the better. What I have for you, Viktor, is right up your alley. We've received an interesting tip from an informant on Omega. It seems that Tony Stark's daughter is alive and carrying on the family legacy."
"Shall I depart for Omega to extend her our generosity?"
"Unfortunately, she's already left the station. Your first objective will be to locate Ms. Stark. You'll then need to observe her and gather information. We know very little about this woman, such as where she's been hiding for the past twelve years. I don't like being in the dark."
"Speaking of which, do I get to know our endgame or is that simply need-to-know?"
Gleaning answers was always difficult. He could never look his boss in the eye. Viktor doubted that anyone could, at least for long. The subtle blue glow of his ocular implants was supremely unnerving.
"When Tony Stark died, he took a lot of promising ideas to the grave with him. If he left anything behind, his daughter will have it...or she'll know how to find it."
"So my ultimate objective is to recruit her?"
"No one can survive in this galaxy alone. Ms. Stark will need friends, and Cerberus can be an excellent friend to someone with her potential. The corporate intrigue behind her parents' death, however, will have probably left her paranoid. Approaching Ms. Stark will require sincerity to earn her trust, at least at first."
"We'll control chip her?"
"If necessary to secure her cooperation. I knew Tony Stark, and if his daughter is anything like him, her personality is something we can do without."
Viktor's mission briefing did not last much longer. After the Illusive Man dispatched him, Viktor reported to the shuttle waiting to ferry him to Omega so he could pick up Dahlia Stark's trail.
Author's Note: Sorry for the comparatively short installment. This interlude serves as an epilogue for the Omega Saga as well as a teaser for the next season. I will upload the first episode of the new season tomorrow night, so please join us for Dahlia Stark: The Horizon Saga.