Brainstorming for the sequels have slowly begun -as evident with the small tangent last chapter- and now, I am introducing a future nuisance for our two spectres.

Hope you guys enjoy.

Reaper IFF: Part I

December 26, 2185

SSV Normandy SR-2 - Normandy Bridge - Commander Alonso - 0930 hours

"Coordinates for the Hawking Eta cluster is set, Commander." Joker swiped his fingers over the piloting interface. "Just waiting for your go."

"Liara T'Soni, Oriana Lawson and Danner Gossimah are no longer aboard Commander." EDI reported, her orb appearing next to Joker's station.

"Well I guess it's back to work." I patted Joker's shoulder, "Take us to that IFF Joker."

"Aye aye."

Time to make my rounds. I turned and made my way towards Mordin's clinic and as always, I find the salarian doctor humming some sort of tune while doing...whatever science experiment he's up to. He looked over towards the disturbance and smiled. "Ah, Alonso. Good to see you."

"Got a minute to talk?"

"Later, after working at Nos Astra clinic yesterday, busy updating new dental records. All Cerberus personnel have cyanide capsules in molars. Primitive. Ocular nerve flashbangs harder to disarm."

"Wait...what?" I felt my face pale. If Miranda has it...no, she couldn't have one. She would've told me by now. Would she? "Does Operative Lawson have one?"

"Yes." Mordin said matter-of-factly and frowned that Miranda has never told me about this. Why would she hide this from me? There is no excuse!

"Well," I took a deep breath and composed myself, "I'll let you get back to work." I stomped over towards the elevator and tried to ignore my recent conversation as I hailed for the elevator.

"Commander," Kelly called me over from her station beside the galaxy map. "Miss Lawson want you to sign official papers that grants Lieutenant Williams clearance to level two access onboard the Normandy." I wince at the request. I don't want to deal with this right now!

"Fine." I snatch the datapad from the redhead's hands and quickly sign them. "Now if the XO is done pestering me, I have more important things to do." And trying to ignore Miranda is at the top of my list. I said to myself. "If Operative Lawson needs to see me, I am not available to see her. I don't care how important it is."

"Okay..." I could feel Kelly frowning behind me but ignored it because the elevator had finally reached the CIC.

There was a low beep just before the doors opened and I was all but ready to run inside when the one person I didn't want to see was revealed behind the elevator door. I froze mid-step for a moment before I stood at attention, biting back the glare at the woman in front of me. "Operative Lawson."

Miranda's faint smile faltered and she tilted her head with confusion. She knew my body language. She rebuilt me after all! "Commander." Her voice professional and cool. "Is everything alright, sir?"

No. "Yes." I nodded before stepping inside the elevator with my...untruthful girlfriend. I went to the farthest corner and crossed my arms over my chest and looked down at the floor.

"Hey..." I heard her say and I closed my eyes, not wanting to look at her. "What's wrong?" I felt her hands touching my shoulder and I moved away. "What the hell is the matter with you?"

"I know your little secret."

"I don't know what you're talking about-"

"I just had a very brief chat with Mordin about the crew's dental records." I steeled myself and glared at Miranda, her milky complexion pales. "Why didn't you tell me? That is very important information that I should know! I thought that you would tell me anything..." The door opened and I looked straight ahead. "I guess I was wrong." I step out, only to turn and stare furiously at Miranda. "We're on our way to get the IFF. I'll hold a briefing with the ground team when we arrive and I expect you to be professional. Now unless you have nothing else to say, I suggest you get some work done."

Two days later...

I stare at Miranda who is the last of the ground crew to join the QEC room. She stands off to my right and apologizes.

"Now that everyone is here: EDI, pull up the schematics." Instantly, an image of a large reaper ship appears in front of us, slowly rotating horizontally. "What can you tell us about the ship?"

"The derelict reaper stands two-kilometers tall. There seems to be small heat signatures in several locations on the ship. Though the ship is very much destroyed."

"Could be the research team?" Amanda asked.

"Possibly." Miranda nodded, "I have detected a mass effect field surrounding the ship. I would deduce that the orbiting planet of Mnemosyne is keeping the ship from decaying into the surface."

"The ship has suffered severe damage that, based on my calculations, happened cycles before us." EDI quickly added.

"Right," I breathed, "let's get started." I turned to Miranda and asked, "Where do you suggest we land?"

"Once we pass the ship's magnetic field, there's a small landing platform on the stardboard side of the ship where we can land via shuttle. Doctor Chandana's team has a research station there. However, we haven't received any form of response from them in quite some time."

I fear the worse has already happened to them. Who knows how long they've been inside the Reaper ship. "Very well." I clear my thoughts and lock them away. "I want you all inside the Kodiak in fifteen minutes. We need to do this fast. No mistakes. The station could still have some sort of consciousness and I don't want any of you getting all loopy on me. Is that clear?" I got collection of nods. "Good. Everyone is dismissed."

December 28, 2185

Derelict Reaper - Commander Alonso - 1300 hours

"Is it hot in here or is it just me?" Garrus quipped as we all took our first steps out of the shuttle.

"I don't feel a thing." Tali stood smugly next to him.

"Must be your suit," Amanda wiped her already drenched forehead with her arm. "It's so hot."

"Let's get inside the lab." I pointed over to the Cerberus white shack a few yards ahead before I put on my death mask. "You know, I have to agree with Tali..." I activated the suit's intercooler with my omni-tool, "I don't feel a thing. It's very cool."

"And we hate you both for it." Jack growled.

I grinned behind my mask but kept quiet. Once inside, everyone breathed a sigh of relief as we stepped out of the heat. "Thanks XO for letting us know of this heat!" Jane scratched her ear, adjusting her Kuwashii visor I gave to her on Christmas.

"It has nothing to do with me." Miranda glared, "It is everyone's responsibility to read the report that I send every ground crew member before every mission."

"There are reports?" Kasumi and Garrus blinked.

"I read those." Thane acknowledged the Normandy XO.

"As do I." Samara smiled.

"You all have helmets or rebreathers with built-in coolers...use 'em." I sighed, rolling my eyes to myself as I went over to one of the many desks off to the right side of the door. "EDI, start the scanner on my helmet."

"Scanning... Scanned. Doctor Chandana and her team have not updated their research in fourteen days, six hours, two minutes and thirty six seconds."

"I've got a bad feeling about this." Ashley shivered at EDI's analysis.

"I didn't realize it was this bad." Miranda agreed. "We should keep moving Commander."

After I made sure EDI scanned any important information, I nodded and began making out exit. Until I heard a hard sniff. I turned to Grunt and looked at him. "What's up?"

He grunted, "Smells bad. Like blood. But there is something wrong with it."

Garrus sniffed as well but quickly shrugged. "I don't smell anything."

Grunt chuckled. "That's because you have a nose of a pyjak." Grunt tinkered with his Claymore and activated his inferno rounds, turning to me with his toothy grin. "Come on Dad, let's keep going. I want to shoot things."

Not wanting to get my head shot off and eaten, I quickly moved on, pressing the door's interface. The door unlocked and I was met by groaning voices behind me at what I assumed was the stench of dried blood from the dead body in front of us. Thank God for my helmet. I said to myself as I squatted next to the body. The carcass was unrecognizable, burnt to a crisp.

"What a terrible way to go." I heard Amanda mutter, trying to keep her stomach down.

"I just got hungry."

I sighed and turned to the Krogan. "Now's not the time, damn it! Control your urges." I turned back and looked at the body. "No use trying to identify him. Let's keep going." We went down a few steps into another lab with computers, screens and medical equipment. "Spread out and see what you can find."

After a few minutes of working with Thane and Amanda decrypting one of the files and uploading them to the Normandy, I turn and look at Shepard who is standing by a window, frozen still. I left the group and walked over to her. The closer I looked, the more I noticed her lips moving, but not saying a word. I gently touched her shoulder and she flinched out of her weird daze.

"Everything alright?"

Her piercing green eyes looked at me with hate and rage but seconds later, her eyes and face softened. "You were saying?" She asked, shaking her head of whatever thoughts were going through her head.

"Jane, you're scaring me. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Everything is alright." Jane smiled softly, "Did you find anything?"

"Yeah..." I began skeptically, "Most, if not all scientists have lost their minds within months of being stationed here. Amanda says about six months but Thane is pretty sure they hit the looney bin a lot quicker...three months."

"Jesus." Jane turned back to the window that observed Reaper structures. "You think this thing did it?"

"Anything is possible. Which is why we should make this quick- Let's get this moving people!" Everyone quickly finished their tracks and regrouped with Jane and I. I was about to speak when EDI came through the comm.

I opened the large blast door and came across a fork in the catwalk.

"Looks like we're splitting up. Jane, take Amanda, Samara, Zaeed, Garrus, Jack and Thane. Ash, Miranda, Kasumi, Mordin, Tali, Grunt; you guys are with me." The ground began to rumble and the lights flickered then died for about three whole seconds before the lights came back on. "Normandy, what just happened?"

"I don't know! It looks like the Reaper put up Kinetic Barriers. There's no way I can get anywhere near it. The ship is suffering from heavy turbulence. I have to pull back from a safe distance."

"So, trapped inside of a Reaper..." Kasumi pipes in, "Could be worse! Don't know how but, I guess it could be filled with rats!" Kasumi shuttered.

"What are those?" Grunt asked, "Do they taste good?"

"Any ideas EDI?" I ignored my team's banter.

"At the moment of activation, I detected a heat spike in what is likely the wreck's mass effect core. Sending coordinates now. Be advised: The core is also maintaining the ship's altitude."

"Great." Shepard sighed. "So once we take the barriers out, we got to make a high-tail out of here so we don't fall into the planet core and melt to death."

"Well I'm not going to die again." I grabbed my eviscerator shotgun and slid in a thermal clip. "Joker, you know what to do."

"Aye aye, Commander. Good hunting."

I turned to both teams and set up the plan. "Alright guys. We'll all meet up at the coordinate EDI sent us. We'll search for that IFF and get the fuck out. Move out!"

The Citadel - Presidium - Rear Admiral Mikhailovich - 1330 hours

"Are you sure Lieutenant Williams can do the job?" I narrowed my eyes at Udina, who pitched the idea of observing the traitor, Charles Alonso.

"I have the upmost confidence that she is the woman for a job. I have data confirming that the ex-Spectre and the lieutenant were close two years ago. She will gain his allegiance and will inform me of Cerberus' whereabouts. She might even get enough information to get Alonso incarcerated and executed by trial."

That brought a smile to my face and leaning over my chair. "Really? Could it be done?"

"He's already working for Cerberus. That alone should be enough to hold him in Vancouver." Udina smiled as well. "We will be praised for this. I will make sure Hackett and Anderson fall for this. I will get the seat on the Council and you, my friend, move up the ranks and take Hackett's place as leader of the Fifth fleet. A spot you have always wanted."

"Yes..." I rubbed the chin with a wicket smirk on my face. "I am looking forward to it. I do have one request thought," I asked slowly, "I want Alonso interrogated and tortured. I want to be there when that happens. I want to see the man's face when I destroy him."

"I'll see what I can do." Udina nodded.

"Good." My smile began growing wider and wider by the second. "I am very much looking to ending Alonso's life."

"And what about Shepard?"

"Shepard has always been Alliance. I have no problems with her. As long as she knows her place and doesn't interfere, she will be left unharmed.

Let me know what you guys think of my story so far. I haven't gotten reviews in a while so I am not sure if you guys are enjoying and if there are things that should be changed or looked into.

Anyways hope you guys enjoy the rest of your week and I will see you until next time :)