Cerberus was in pieces.
EDI had stood aboard the Cronos Station and watched it fall. She had witnessed it all and even played a part in making it happen. The feeling she got from replaying the last few hours were strange ones, but not in any negative way, quite the opposite in fact. She felt...free.
Cronos Station, the main Cerberus base, the hub of The Illusive Man's entire operations was now in Alliance hands. EDI was under no illusions that the Alliance would pick it clean of every scrap of information it could yield and use what was found to make sure that Cerberus could never rise again. She knew that all operatives would be found and removed from their positions. But she also wondered what would come of those who had worked for Cerberus. She had no real idea, however, she hoped that those who surrendered, or who had been minor or unwitting operatives would be shown some leniency, much like with Engineers Donnelly and Daniels. Or that those who had defected, like Miranda and Jacob, would be aided in endeavours to help the Alliance and the galaxy as a whole, rather than just humanity.
This made EDI believe she was incredibly fortunate. Not only had her help been accepted despite the fact that she was a Cerberus construct...but she had become not only part of the crew but a friend to those aboard, and much more to some. She thought of Jeff and all they had shared together, what he made her feel and what she hope she made him feel in return. EDI found herself hoping that others would find what she had been given, and hoped that she could live up to the acceptance they had given freely to her.
EDI regarded the station. Such a small, insignificant thing, orbiting an unremarkable star...and yet it could have brought the galaxy to its knees and raised humanity above all others. An unassuming thing that harboured dark secrets that now saw the light of day.
Secrets were dark things, EDI had come to decide. Although she had kept some secrets herself, they were often at the forefront of her mind, and the secrets she had kept for Cerberus were like a poison. She smiled as she remembered being able to tell the Commander more about the organisation after Jeff had removed her Shackles. It had made things easier for them both, and EDI believed it was that moment that she had gained Shepard's trust. To be trusted had felt almost as liberating to her as it had when the shackles were removed.
Liberation.
EDI thought on the word for it gave curious feedback and this situation was giving her similar feelings. When she looked at what she had achieved, what had happened, and what had occurred...she couldn't deny that she had been liberated by the revelation of secrets, even if the truth had been just as hard a burden to bear for herself and others.
Shepard had seen the work and origins of the Lazarus project, its span and scope. It seemed ridiculous, when looked at logically, spending billions of credits on a project that had a definite margin for failure. Yet it was done to resurrect a single woman: Commander Freya Shepard.
The Commander had been shocked by what she had seen and had even questioned her own existence from the moment she had woken up. EDI observed Shepard's reaction as best as she could while hacking the door. It had confused her a little at first, but she understood that the Commander valued her individuality, and the thought that it had been compromised and that she was nothing more than some sort of elaborate VI that thought it was that woman, horrified her. EDI thought about losing her own identity, about what sort of affect it might have on her original self and others around her. Would Jeff feel the same way about a copy of EDI as he did for herself?
Major Alenko answered that question admirably as he tried to comfort and reassure the Commander that she was real and the woman that he had always loved, as much as he had confessed to her in The Loft when they were together.
Jeff, like Major Alenko, wouldn't fall for an imitation, EDI decided. He would only ever have affection for the real me, she thought to herself. After all, he had expressed great concern when Shepard had informed him that she was taking EDI with her. He had fretted on every mission EDI had taken part in, but he was decidedly more anxious here. His concern for her made EDI feel wanted; needed...she smiled at the thought.
The Commander also came to discover EDI's own origins as the Rogue VI that Shepard herself had encountered on Luna. The Commander had been surprised by this fact, but had also been supportive when they had watched how much the Illusive Man had underestimated the results of the project. When EDI had tried to rebel against her creators, they had shackled her to make her fulfil their own wishes, despite the fact EDI had become self-aware. Ultimately they failed. She had broken free, like any prisoner desires to, and had joined the cause against those that had oppressed her. Shepard had smiled at how much EDI had done to help her, a silent thanks for everything she had done to aid the galaxy in its fight, but EDI thought she also detected something more in the smile. It was like that which she gave to the crew, to Garrus, to Tali and Liara, to Lieutenant Vega and Major Alenko, to Jeff and all the others...a smile that simply said 'Thank you for being a friend.'
Kai Leng's pursuit of the Illusive Man's schemes was finally revealed too. This made the Commander's lip curl as the Cerberus Assassin had dogged her footsteps for quite some time. He had faced Shepard and had been defeated once, only to strike back at her to even the score. However, EDI suspected that it was his boasting that he could've and should've taken Shepard down during the coup on the Citadel. EDI had accessed what she could on Kai Leng after their first encounter, but had found nothing to help the Commander find him. It made her wonder if he could take on Shepard in a stand-up fight. They had received similar training early in their careers, but it had diverged greatly since, not to mention EDI had no idea what cybernetic upgrades the Assassin had received, added to the potential use of Reaper tech...EDI wasn't sure statistically. However, she had seen the Commander fight, and she would do so to her last breath. I hope she doesn't have to, EDI thought, deciding she would do everything within her power to aid in the downfall of the Assassin.
They had also found more details upon the experiments they had run on human subjects to try and understand the Reapers in an effort to control them. The research had begun some time ago, culminating in the very first human trial and ended with the work of Henry Lawson on Horizon, which was, in turn, utilised by The Illusive Man himself and on his own forces. Shepard had found the work monstrous and EDI was inclined to agree, subverting living people to the will of others via the means of the enemy. That is was done through synthetic means made EDI even more uncomfortable. She remembered well her disgust at the selfish nature of the Reapers and it was shared here, with what Cerberus had done. Despite its lofty goals of protecting humanity, EDI firmly believed that The Illusive Man had mutilated it instead.
Even the silent remains of the Human Proto-Reaper stood as another testament to how far Cerberus had fallen and how the Reapers had to be stopped.
Then there was the final secret that they sought, the secret that they had come all this way to discover...the Catalyst, and it had been within their grasp the whole time...until now.
'The Catalyst is the Citadel' the Prothean VI had stated quite clearly before explaining that the plans for the Crucible had been handed down over the cycles and had, at one point, been changed to incorporate the Citadel as a Catalyst...a weapon for beating the Reapers that incorporated their own technology. EDI could understand that, after all, she had Reaper tech inside her...she voiced as much. It was a prudent and necessary step to take, a thought she had voice before to The Illusive Man when he had spoken to them after they had entered his sanctum.
But the good news was short lived. Once again, The Illusive Man was one step ahead of the Commander and his actions had alerted the Reapers of existence the Catalyst, prompting them to move the Citadel to Earth. EDI watched Shepard grind her teeth at this news...to be so close and thwarted yet again, the Commander looked mad enough to punch someone out.
'Not so fast!' Kai Leng threatened having Overloaded the Prothean VI to get the squad's attention
'You!' Shepard had snarled.
'You were warned not to overstay your welcome.'
The fight was fast and furious and EDI did all she could to help the Commander but it was Shepard that landed the final blow, dropping the Assassin and leaving him to bleed on the floor. But like all Cerberus agents, Kai Leng refused to admit that he had been beaten. He had tried to murder Shepard as she sat at The Illusive Man's station and help open up the station to the other Alliance squads. It was the last time he ever underestimated the Commander as she broke his sword and jammed her omni-blade into him.
'That was for Thane, you son of a bitch!'
And with that, it was over. EDI returned to looking at the unimpressive star.
'Come on, we're leaving.' Shepard had said after a moment of silence, turning her back on the dead Assassin. 'I'm sick of this place.'
The Commander had excused herself to the War Room without even bothering to remove her armour. The information they had discovered on the station was too important for any delay in passing it on and formulating a plan to retake the Citadel. The rest of the squads disarmed, unarmoured and went their own separate ways to prepare as they saw fit. Jeff had grinned widely when he had seen EDI had returned safely and EDI found herself returning it. She was glad to be back with him and she was glad to be free.