(15 minutes Ago)

Somehow Jack appeared as she had before her encounter with Liara. The pain and loss of the event pushed from her appearance and posture with a force of will few others could wield. She tried to convince herself that to dwell on what she had just done accomplished nothing more than to infuse an already desperate situation with the weight of grief. Sadness, despair, these pieces had to be removed from the board so she could better focus on the game about to be played…a game with the very highest of stakes.

So Jack shouldered the devastating ache, as she had so many other burdens in her life, and though she appeared cold or indifferent, she was anything but. Behind her eyes a war raged, one where her future with Shepard was already among the fallen.

She would never be his wife.

They would never grow old in the other's arms.

She would never meet her child.

Despite the countless losses, Jack knew this was the only way to save Shepard and finish their mission.

Her own death was a price she was willing to pay, but she would not sacrifice everything…not everything. No, when the heavens fell, she couldn't afford any distractions.

Yet for the first time in her life, Jack couldn't compartmentalize the pain, banish her feelings, and focus on her task; there wasn't a trick or psychological tactic that could quell the emptiness she felt throbbing inside. So profound was the hurt that it dwarfed the sadistic surgeries of her earlier years.

No fiend-wielded-scalpel could ever match the honed edge of happiness denied.

Before the tears returned, Subject Zero diverted her thoughts to the spectacle around her and used the only distraction left to her: words.

'Always knew I'd end up on the business end of a firing squad,' Jack deadpanned.

In the shattered intersection that, until recently, had been home to a corner market, a gathering of biotics of all races stood shoulder-to-shoulder in a large circle, and in the center, like the hub of a wheel or a great druidic tree of worship, grew Subject Zero.

'So, Jack, how does this work?', Miranda questioned from her spot in the ring.

'I'll raise my barrier and you all hit it with every thing you've got. Full spectrum, combo your fields, I don't have to tell you how to fight, so to put it in the simplest terms…treat me like a fucking Reaper.'

Several of the Adepts looked nervously at one another, but it was again Miranda who alone voiced the concerns of the collective.

'That type of power will kill you, Jack.'

Normally beings subjected to the horrors that had been brought to bear on Subject Zero would have descended into either madness or death, and during their fall lost both the mental and physical components necessary to be considered 'human'. Yet, somehow, just as Jack's 'luck' gifted her with the ability to survive Cerberus's trials, her will enabled her to maintain both her mind and her beauty…the latter of which was on full display, when, with a forced brilliant-white-smile, she responded to Miranda's proclamation.

'Always told you you'd need an army, bitch,' Jack's hands swept right and left, noting the gathered phalanx of biotics. 'Guess its a fair fight now.'

Glossy with a sheen of sweat, Liara T'Soni nudged through the circle, to stand beside Miranda.

'That's not an answer, Jack. Once everyone starts deploying fields and triggering explosions, it'll be too late to stop.'

'Not 'everyone',' Subject Zero stated calmly. 'You have another job.'

Absently, the Asari's azure hand pressed against her own abdomen, still warm from her encounter with Jack.

'So this is my 'protection'?', Liara whispered.

'No,' Jack stepped forward until she was standing in front of the Asari. 'You are the protector, T'Soni. You are our last line of defense. If Shepard and I are to win this, you need to stay safe…and survive.'

'After you win,' Liara's eyes bled fresh tears, 'what do I te…'

'Just,' Jack fought back her own emotions. 'Just…remember it all. Tell our story, T'Soni…you're the only one that can.'

'I will, Jack,' Liara started to turn to quit the circle, but quickly looked back. 'When you find him, tell him I…I…'

'I will, Liara,' Jack finished.

Unable to say anything more, the Asari nodded, smiled sadly, and left.

Stepping back to the center, Jack summoned all her strength and held her tears in check.

'Now for the 'easy' part,' she spat. 'Okay, light me up!'

Her barrier awakened with a hum; the powerful biotic shell sealing her off from the outside world, but for those initiated with the practice of wielding such forces, there was a difference between Jack's shield and those normally produced. Smaller separate fields licked from the main forcefield like inverted flame, reaching back for Subject Zero and tethering at specific points along her body.

Through the barrier, Miranda and Jack's eyes met, and for several beats their gazes remained locked until finally the criminal nodded to the cheerleader.

Looking at the other Adepts, Miranda shouted, 'NOW!'

Booms immediately rocked the gathered group, sending waves of sound and might along the circle's curve with each application of the appropriate power combinations. Fields of distorted physics mingled with warped gravity wells in a textbook display of biotic warfare, yet alone in the center of it all stood Subject Zero, unharmed.

As each power 'splashed' against her barrier, one of the inverted flames siphoned off the energy and leeched it into Jack. The more juice she received the whiter her own energy became until the brilliance of it made Miranda squint.

One-by-one the other biotics dropped out of the circle, with exhaustion leaving many too weak to stand. Medical personnel rushed to the Adepts' sides, administering Medi-gel where needed.

Samara stumbled away weakly, leaving only Miranda left to 'feed' Jack's reserves. Sweat soaked the perfect woman's hair, leaving it matted to her cheeks and neck, yet still she called upon her abilities over and over again.

'That's enough,' Jack nodded at Miranda.

But still Lawson's energy fired.

'Hey, cheerleader, I said that's enough! You'll burn yours…!'

'You…must…save him,' Miranda's voice hissed through the tight muscles of her throat. 'He…gave me…a sister…a life.'

'Lawson!', Jack barked. 'MIRANDA!'

'Shepard's given…everything…for me…for us,' Miranda's body began to twitch. 'Time to give…something back.'

'Grab, her!', Jack yelled at the surrounding soldiers. 'For fuck's sake, someone stop her!'

But before anyone could, Miranda's impressive display of biotics ceased, while all along her frame, muscles, pulled by some unknown puppeteer, rolled and fired independently. Lawson's mouth opened and closed yet no sound escaped her lips.

'What have you done?', Jack breathed, as she dropped her barrier and stepped toward her.

Miranda finally found her words.

'…w-what…S-shepard…would…h-have…d-done…'

A beat later and Miranda's knees buckled, sending her rushing toward the broken asphalt, but before she could finish her short flight, the unlikeliest of safety nets halted her descent.

Like a mother with a wayward, wounded child Jack embraced her rival, pulling her close.

'You stupid bitch,' Jack whispered. 'You know we're all just batteries; we have fucking limits. Didn't think I'd have to tell you the same thing I told my stud…'

Subject Zero looked down at the woman in her arms and was met not with the piercing blue eyes of her longtime adversary but with a vacant milky stare.

Lowering them both to the ground, Jack placed Miranda gently beside her, reached over and closed Lawson's sightless eyes.