Well, this is it. The last chapter. I hope you've enjoyed. Don't forget to drop a review. The repeated use of "stealing fire from the gods" (and the chapter title) is a nod to Deus Ex: Human Revolution. There may be an epilogue, should reader interest warrant it.

Matt looked like hell, even if he was only a hologram. His auburn hair was matted to his scalp, and angry welts dotted his face. His smile, though, was the grimly triumphant one she had seen on the newsvids after the Battle of the Citadel. "The bastard's dead. Your virus worked like a charm." He winced. "Mostly. And I think I can safely say that the corpse is in no condition for a repeat of Lazarus. These biotics of mine are good for something after all."

Dead. Leng was dead. Miranda closed her eyes. She had not been able to save Chambers, but she had played some small part in avenging her. It was a small comfort, but it was a comfort. The Illusive Man had lost his new second-in-command. It wouldn't completely destroy Cerberus, but it would hamstring them and allow the Alliance and its allies to devote more resources toward the Reapers. "Did you ever find out what he was out there for?"

"He was sent to capture a Dr. Brynn Cole and her team, but we got there in time. Do you know the name?"

"I recruited her into Cerberus personally." She had been a brilliant neurologist, frustrated by red tape that wouldn't allow her to pursue experiments that would have made greyboxes safer. Miranda had hoped to make her part of Lazarus, but the Illusive Man had wanted her elsewhere. A lucky break for Dr. Cole.

"Well, it turns out that she and her team were doing research into indoctrination. Everyone was working on only a small piece of the project, and people were 'retired' when they finished their bit, so it took them a while to put the pieces together. When they did, they went rogue. Working on a counter now. Guess who they recruited to help them out?" His grin turned boyish. "Jacob."

Jacob was alive? Thank God. Jacob had resigned from Cerberus after the return from the Collector base, saying that he didn't think it was for him. After seeing the colonists processed, Miranda couldn't blame him. That hadn't made not knowing any less torturous. "Is he all right?"

"Fine. Better than fine if what I caught him and Dr. Cole doing in the supply closet was any indication. He can't wait to see you again."

So, Jacob had found someone. Miranda smiled. Jacob hadn't been right for her, nor she for him, but he was a good man who deserved some happiness. "When this war is over…"

"No need to wait that long. The brass took one look at my mission report, and they want to have a chat with Dr. Cole. When I told them how Leng had died and about all the intel you passed me, they were ecstatic." He straightened and clasped his hands behind his back. "Miranda Lawson, I've been ordered to bring you aboard the Normandy for a meeting with Ambassador Osaba. So, it looks like the crew is going to have to stand you, after all."

The human ambassador wanted to talk to her? "Did he say what for?"

"He wouldn't tell me. I'm just the delivery guy. Probably wants you to tell him everything you know about Cerberus so he can take the credit when we finally get the Illusive Man."

The Normandy was quieter now. Miranda had made a point of familiarizing herself with the names and histories of those who had served under her, but these Alliance crewmen were a sea of faceless blue. Several of them glanced upward as she passed, but there were no calls for her arrest or screams of "Traitor!" Matt walked beside her. He was in full Commander Shepard mode, striding through the deck as if it belonged to him in truth, all confidence and swagger.

"Well, well. Never thought I'd see you on an Alliance ship," said a familiar voice. "Then again, I thought I'd never be on one again, either."

Miranda turned. Jacob had scarcely changed. He'd shaved his head again, and there were a few cuts and bruises she didn't remember him having, but he was otherwise unchanged. One person who hadn't died or turned on her. Miranda walked toward him, uncertain. What did you say to an ex-boyfriend you hadn't seen in almost a year? What did you do? A handshake seemed far too formal, and a hug presumed too much.

"Glad you made it," Jacob said at last. "I was worried Cerberus would stab you in the back or stuff you full of indoctrination tech."

Miranda smiled. "Really, Jacob. I'd have thought you'd have learned by now that I know how to take care of myself. I'm fine." She wondered if she would ever grow accustomed to others worrying about her, caring whether she lived or died for her own sake instead of as a means to an end. "You're looking well."

"Yeah, well, running for your life does kind of keep you in shape. That Kai Leng was one tenacious son of a bitch. If Shepard hadn't shut him down, you'd be talking to my corpse right now."

"Don't be so modest, Jacob. I couldn't have done it without you. But Miranda's the person you should really be thanking."

"Well, I'm going to thank all three of you if it's all the same to you," said Dr. Cole as she came up behind them. She was almost painfully thin, and looked as if she hadn't slept in days, but her gaze was alert and penetrating. She looked Miranda up and down. Miranda didn't flinch. The other woman would find no rival in her. "Of course, if it wasn't for Ms. Lawson, none of this might ever have happened. The reality of Cerberus was quite different from the portrait you painted."

"Believe me, this was not my Cerberus. Yours either."

The other woman didn't seem to hear her. "I should have looked closer, known better. All those people Cerberus has indoctrinated. Could they have done it without me? And I never would have joined them if you hadn't promised me I could research in peace. I thought I would finally unlock the key to a perfect memory. Instead I took away their minds. Some human advancement."

Miranda didn't answer her. She had believed every word she'd told Dr. Cole when she brought her into Cerberus. There were those who wished to keep humanity weak and powerless. They had to forge their own path and not rely on the generosity of other species. Fire could be stolen from the gods, but it had to be stolen. The gods would never give it away of their own free will. All the knowledge in the galaxy could be taken by those clever and ambitious enough. That was the dream the Illusive Man had given her. It was the one she had shared with Dr. Cole.

The Illusive Man had perverted it into a nightmare. She couldn't be blamed for that. Could she?

It was Matt who finally answered. "And now you're working on a cure. That would be impossible without you, too. Try to focus on that. And get some rest. We've all been through a lot."

"I'll try. I don't know what good it will do, but I'll try." And with that, she and Jacob walked off.

"It's not my fault," Miranda said after she and Matt had stepped into the elevator. "I would never have sanctioned any of what's gone on for the last year. We were supposed to make humanity strong, not drive it to extinction! I don't know what the Illusive Man was thinking. I wonder if I ever will."

"I'll see if I can force Liara to brain probe him if we ever do get our hands on him. Never trusted him, but this is a lot worse than I ever thought Cerberus was. Why couldn't they all be like you?"

"I thought we were." There had been a time when Miranda believed that Cerberus was mostly comprised of people like her. Xenophobes like Leng were useful fools, but she was the true face of the organization. Cerberus existed to give people like Dr. Cole the freedom to advance humanity. It was not supposed to give people like Gavin Archer the power to commit pointless cruelty and nearly destroy the galaxy in the process. But the joke had turned out to be on her. "All the good I did—Lazarus, saving the Citadel, training you—wiped out by madmen."

Matt put his hand on her shoulder. "Not wiped out. Never wiped out. Yeah, Cerberus went off the deep end, but that doesn't negate everything you accomplished. I'm still breathing. That has to count for something."

Miranda smiled at him, but the thought still nagged at her. The war, not Lazarus or stopping the Collectors, would be Cerberus' legacy in the minds of the rest of the galaxy. Perhaps justly, if the Illusive Man had been insane from the start. There would be nothing spurring humanity on in the best sense, skirting the rules in pursuit of the greater good. At least not for a very long time. Cerberus would become a byword for hubris. She'd avoid prison—a pardon was the bare minimum the ambassador would offer her in exchange for all she could tell him—but all she worked for would be swept under the rug. Miranda would find backers to help her re-create and mass produce the technology from Lazarus, but it would take a very long time. The galaxy would be suspicious of anything that bore the taint of Cerberus. As if ideas and technology could be tainted.

They stepped into the briefing room. This place, at least, had not changed in the slightest. "Patch me through to the Citadel, Ms. Traynor."

There was a beep, and a perfect three-dimensional likeness of the ambassador stood in the room. He was tall, with artfully graying hair perfectly coiffed. He didn't look like a distinguished man as much as he looked like a man trying to appear distinguished. Typical politician, in other words. "Ms. Lawson? David Osaba. Commander Shepard tells me you've been invaluable in his efforts to bring down Cerberus."

Miranda chose her next words carefully. What would help her here? "I have been responsible for several victories, yes, including technology that allowed Commander Shepard to kill the Cerberus second-in-command. I suppose you'll want to know the details."

He picked up a datapad. "I have the details. If I wanted you debriefed, I would have sent AIS, not your former commanding officer. No, what I want to know is why. According to reports, you've served with them all your adult life. Why turn against them now?" He indicated Matt. "Was it for love? There were rumors that he was more than your commanding officer."

Miranda started. "No, I didn't do it for him. I believe in a stronger humanity, but Cerberus offered only atrocity after atrocity. They're making humanity weaker, not stronger."

"And what does a stronger humanity mean to you, exactly? Dominance, crushing the other races under our heel?"

Miranda shook her head. "We can learn from the other races. We can work with them. But it has to be on the understanding that our interests don't always coincide with theirs. We got our Council seat because the Battle of the Citadel proved we were too strong to be ignored. We have to stay strong. Keep pushing the envelope instead of resting on our laurels."

"Occasionally breaking Council law, if necessary? Purely a hypothetical question, I assure you."

"If there's no other way. Hypothetically."

Osaba steepled his fingers. "You are aware that until very recently the Alliance and Cerberus had an extremely close relationship? They did our dirty work for us, things we needed done but couldn't be seen doing if we didn't want to end up like the batarians."

"I know. You know I know. What's going on, Ambassador?"

"The Reapers are eviscerating us, Ms. Lawson. Two entire fleets lost. Billions of people dying on Earth even as we speak. Commander Shepard assures me we can win this war, but even if we do, humanity has taken a severe blow. If we're going to keep our place in the galaxy, we may have to do things that aren't entirely legal. The Alliance is going to need a black ops organization that can keep doing what needs be done."

"And you want me to join up?" Not a horrible offer, and not entirely unexpected.. She had value as an experienced intelligence officer. The Alliance would still choke her with red tape, but it beat some of the things they could have done. And nothing was permanent, anyway.

"No, Ms. Lawson, I want you to lead it. I know all about the Lazarus Project. We need that kind of ambition and drive if we're going to succeed. You get results and you keep getting results. And you do it without things like Teltin or the Grayson affair. I'm impressed."

For the first time in twenty years, Miranda found herself at a loss for words. Her status as the Illusive Man's second-in-command had always been a purely theoretical affair. In practice, she was no different from any other cell leader. The Illusive Man was Cerberus and vice versa. The idea of running her own organization was exhilarating. And terrifying. If she would even be given the freedom to do so. "And on just how tight a leash would the Alliance keep its new dog?"

"A very, very long one. You'd have specific goals, but I'd leave it to you and your people how to prioritize and accomplish them. I want someone who's going to steal fire from the gods and you can't do that if I'm watching your every move." He smiled. "Besides, it makes plausible deniability that much easier."

Steal fire from the gods. "I think—I think we can work something out. Contingent on a pardon for anything I may or may not have done during my time with Cerberus and adequate compensation."

"My office will be in touch. I look forward to working with you, Ms. Lawson." Osaba pressed a button and vanished.

Miranda let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "I can't believe that just happened. If he's telling the truth…" She could create an organization that truly advanced humanity. No more Teltins or Overlords. There could be true oversight without callousness or crippling red tape. Humanity would ascend without casting the other races down.

"If he's telling the truth," Matt said, "you could make Cerberus like you always thought it was. On the government's credit. Going to be a lot easier to mass produce Lazarus now, I bet. Illusive Woman. I like the sound of that."

"Please, don't call me that."

"Yes...Illusive Woman."

She punched him in the shoulder. "Ass. But do you realize what this means? Government sanction, after a fashion, for my work. That much easier to have a life. A relationship with my sister that consists of something besides emails. And serve humanity at the same time. Everything I ever wanted."

"Hope I'm in there somewhere."

"Hmm. Now what could I possibly want with a handsome young artist who believed in me even when I didn't believe in myself?" Miranda put her arms around him. He was warm and solid, a hard and unyielding wall of muscle. "There's a place for you. Right here. With me," she whispered against him.

"Come on," she said when she pulled away. "We have a galaxy to save." And transform.