MASS EFFECT: INTERCEPTOR 2

*Episode Twenty-Eight*

Antus could tell something was wrong, even if he couldn't explain why. He felt it as he looked up at the ridges of white metal that formed the residential block just above him, home to not only his boss but many of the galaxy's most important bureaucrats and politicians. The structure looked like the radiator strips found on civilian starships, bright and gleaming against the rich blue Presidium sky.

Taking a moment to steady himself, Antus walked forward. The weight of the pistol on his hip seemed to grow with every step closer to his destination. He entered the building's access elevator and selected the floor from a flickering amber hologram, his head swimming as the door closed and everything around him began to vibrate.

He tried to use the precious seconds to rehearse his meeting with Ciro. He dearly hoped the old man was too wrapped up in what had happened at the asari embassy to even think about Antus and Novari. A few words of concern, a probing question or two, and once Ciro's motives were ascertained Antus would be away. Then it would just be a waiting game before his life with Novari could finally begin.

He'd almost convinced himself it would be that easy as the door opened and he walked briskly out into the corridor. He passed several apartment entrances, each so lavishly and particularly decorated that it was all too obvious who occupied them. One doorway was surrounded by so many asari sculptures that it seemed like a shrine of sorts, while another was so shrouded in tropical plants from the salarian homeworld of Sur'kesh that it was almost completely hidden. Such ornaments must have cost a small fortune, making Antus wonder how in the galaxy these people didn't fall prey to thieves.

At the same time as he answered his own question, Antus felt a cold slick of fear run through his veins. There were many monitoring devices built into the Presidium's infrastructure, enough to ensure a famously low crime rate in the area. Some of those devices had been disabled for privacy purposes, especially in the embassies, but Antus was still fearful that those hidden sensors would give him away to C-Sec, no matter how careful he was.

As he stopped in front of Ciro's apartment, he drew another slow, steadying breath. He was doing nothing wrong, not yet. All he needed to do was hide the terror crushing his heart with iron talons, hide it and take every moment as it came.

It was as his hand rose to ring the door buzzer that it stopped in mid-air. The door was not locked. In fact, it wasn't fully closed. A finger-width gap stood between the door and the frame, and Antus looked to the ground to see a curious piece of metal wedged between them. Curious, he slipped his hand into the gap and pulled the door aside, its servos straining against the unwanted force before the safety mechanisms kicked in and opened the door fully.

Antus knelt to inspect the strange piece of metal. It was a cylinder of some kind, with a tapered end that rounded off into a stub at the point. Thin slots ran the length of the cylinder all the way around its circumference and it was oddly warm to the touch, giving off an acrid smell that Antus knew he recognised from somewhere.

His eyes travelled up into the dark hallway, and his mandibles parted in shock.

Ciro lay a short distance away, in a pool of indigo blood that had almost spread to the door. There was no life to be seen even from where Antus stood but he took a few steps towards the body regardless, unable to control his morbid fascination even as his stomach fell with empty horror.

'No...' he whispered as he leaned over the corpse, trying to look at his former master's face. He tried not to stare at the multitude of glistening holes riddling the body, still oozing blood at a startling rate. Antus didn't know precisely what he was hoping to find in Ciro's gaze, but it wasn't in those dull orbs that stared out of bloody sockets. Perhaps Antus didn't believe it was truly him, but there was never really any doubt. Ciro was dead and Antus needed to get far away, as quickly as possible.

As the thought entered his mind, the telltale clicks of a priming weapon sounded behind him. Antus closed his eyes at the sound.

A high, harsh voice spoke sharply behind him, 'Hold it right there. Hands on your head and step away from the ambassador.'

Antus did as he was told, straightening as he locked his fingers together over the dark dome of his crest. He turned around and was surprised to see an asari in C-Sec fatigues glaring at him down the barrel of a standard issue Striker pistol.

In turn, she seemed just as astonished to see him. Her eyes were deep set in a face that held little of the usual, gentle beauty of her species but was instead as hard as stone. She almost reminded Antus of Novari, though she wasn't quite as tall and appeared a fraction younger.

'I assure you, Officer,' he began, his voice quivering slightly, 'this isn't what it looks like. My name is-'

'I know what your name is,' the asari snapped. 'The question is, what the hell are you doing here?'

Antus frowned, baffled. He wanted to ask how she recognised him, but both the pistol and trigger finger were held taut, ready for a wrong answer to be given. Antus spoke quickly, not wanting to take chances.

'I only just arrived to find Ciro like this, I swear. I came here check on him. If you know me, then you must know I work for him. The turian embassy's been closed after the attack this morning, I just wanted to-'

He was aware that he was rambling, and a thought struck him. He still held the metal object he'd found, and twisted it in his fingers to try and show the officer. 'I found this jammed in the door. Maybe you'll know what it is?'

'Toss it over,' the asari replied coldly, shifting to a one-handed grip on her weapon as Antus complied. She caught the object cleanly and only needed a momentary glance to see what it was.

'Ejected thermal clip,' she muttered, keeping her eyes on Antus. 'Whoever killed the ambassador was using state of the art gear. Not many weapons are using this kind of tech, it's brand new.'

Antus replied slowly, 'You've no doubt noticed that I too am armed, but even a casual look will show you my pistol has no such modifications. You've got to believe me, I had nothing to do with this!'

'Maybe not,' the asari responded quietly as she slipped the thermal clip into a pocket. 'At least, not in any way you know about.'

Antus opened his mouth to query the statement, but the officer strode towards him before any words could come. She produced a pair of handcuffs from her belt.

'Hands behind your back,' she instructed, reinforcing the order with a push of her pistol into his torso. 'Now.'

Miserably, Antus obeyed and his body jerked as the cuffs were secured in place, his total despair held in check only by a nagging sense that something was out of place. Why wasn't this asari reading him his rights, or giving the reason for his arrest? She didn't even state that he was under arrest. Nothing about this was right.

'Who are you?' he was compelled to ask.

'My name is Lieutenant Lorica Da'Nante,' she answered before expertly turning him around to face the door. 'I work for the Joint Security Task Force, the counter-terrorism subdivision of Citadel Security.'

'You are C-Sec, then?' Antus queried. He began to shuffled forward as Lorica placed a pressuring hand on his back. When no reply came, he continued, 'Aren't you going to call for backup? Isn't this a crime scene?'

'That doesn't concern you,' Lorica snapped back. 'Just keep your mouth shut and step outside. You'll see a red shuttle parked on the balcony to your right. Head towards it, quietly and quickly.'

Antus saw it as soon as they stepped outside - a sleek, modern XM7 vehicle, a far cry from the older patrol cars used by C-Sec officers. The doubts he had now spiralled quickly, building into a constant buzz in his head. Only the sharp edges of the pistol barrel burying themselves into his back stopped him from lashing out and attempting to run.

The shuttle doors started opening long before they got there and Lorica bundled him into the front, affording only a quick look around before getting inside herself. Antus's shoulders wrenched painfully as he shuffled aside into the passenger's seat, his cuffed hands wedged so tightly into the tiny space that it was an effort just to breathe.

It was as the shuttle took off and quickly joined the thick morning traffic hugging the Presidium's inner curve that he heard sirens - not one or two, but an entire fleet of them - all converging on the apartment. A look at the rear view mirror showed more than half a dozen C-Sec vehicles swarming the very space they'd just left, but Lorica's car was too far away for anyone to suspect them, let alone give chase.

Antus slumped back, his eyes wide and black mandibles twitching as he concluded Lorica was not part of any C-Sec effort to apprehend him; and he was now at her mercy as the sky car twisted its way through the traffic lanes, to where he could not even begin to fathom.

~~~ME-I2~~~

The command centre simmered with anxious energy. Arlen felt it as soon as he set foot inside and it made him stop at the peak of the access ramp, just to try and figure it out. He slowly scanned the tiers, noting how people were keeping their voices down and moving with their eyes to their ground. Nobody wanted to stand out, and that alone brought a concerned frown to Arlen's brow plates.

There was no sign of Lina on the command dais, and she couldn't be seen hovering over any of the multitude of desks lining the tiers. Perhaps she was in her office, but there didn't seem to be anyone in charge on the floor. Lorica was nowhere to be seen either, and Arlen knew well enough that the asari would usually be keeping everything in check in Lina's absence.

He flexed his mandibles, puzzled, and could do little but stand there for the moment as he attempted to work out what was going on there. The main screen far ahead of him blinked red, drawing the observer's eye to line after line of scrolling information, and though it was too far away to read, it was obvious that some kind of high-priority intel formed the centrepiece of the display. Whatever it was, it looked urgent.

It was then Arlen glanced to his right and saw the glass-walled briefing room, half-shuttered as usual. There was movement beyond and Arlen assumed Lina and Lorica must have been inside, meeting with some high-ranking personnel or other. He started towards the room, but was halted immediately by a tired but firm warning.

'You don't want to go in there,' said a young human woman, her voice scratchy with fatigue.

Arlen turned to see someone he vaguely recognised. Her red hair, once vibrant and full, was now wispy and unkempt as it hung in errant strands down the sides of her face.

'Kimberley, wasn't it?' he asked, waiting for her to nod before motioning to the briefing room. 'Is Lina in there?'

'No. Just Executor Pallin and most of C-Sec's top brass. They're...choosing a new commander.'

Arlen's mouth hung open a fraction and he looked askance; to Kim, down at the command dais, back to the briefing room. 'What do you mean? I don't under-'

Kim shook her head. 'Things have gone to hell here, Arlen. I think you'd best sit down while you hear this.'

'There's no time,' he said gruffly. He made to push past her, though he had no idea what he intended to do or where he meant to go. 'I need to speak to Lina, wherever she is.'

'She's been arrested.'

Again, Arlen paused and turned to face Kim, who dipped her head towards the ramp behind him.

'She was taken into custody a short while ago, she's being kept in one of our holding cells. Not only that, but Lorica's now a suspect. She was caught sabotaging our Presidium surveillance and she's disappeared, we've got everyone looking for her.'

Arlen tried to absorb the news but it wasn't sinking in. He gazed at Kim, past her, at nothing at all while his mind worked to try and make sense of everything.

'I think you're right,' he said quietly, after a time. 'I need to sit down.'

'Follow me,' Kim offered with a flick of her head. 'We'll get you something strong in the break room.'

Arlen followed her down the ramp and together they took a left, through the door that led further into the complex. After the command centre, the blue-lit corridors seemed almost claustrophobic. C-Sec officers patrolled the area, moving in pairs with weapons drawn, a detail Arlen couldn't fail to notice. It was yet another sign that something had gone very, very wrong in JSTF. Maybe that was why Kim spoke, just to fill the awkward silence.

'We got word that your arrest warrant was rescinded. It was nice to have some good news for a change.'

'And not a moment too soon,' Arlen replied. 'I'd been cornered by Special Response in the Zakera docks when Tela Vasir intervened, used her authority as a Spectre to spring me.'

'You had every division on your tail, I think Council-level authority was about the only thing in the galaxy that could've gotten you out of that mess. We were all glad to hear it. Nobody bought those charges.'

Arlen snorted softly. 'At least somebody out here believes me.'

Kim gave him a steadfast look. 'We know this whole thing runs deeper than a rogue batarian group, even if Pallin doesn't want to acknowledge it. Not only that, but you're something of a hero here. Not everybody's comfortable with the way Lina ran things, but that doesn't mean we don't all admire what you've done for us.'

'I haven't done anything yet. The bomb's still out there and we're farther away from finding it than we were at the start.'

'Don't say that,' Kim pressed. 'If it hadn't been for you, the T-Seven could still be on the Citadel. We could all be dead right now, along with everyone else on the station.'

'Zwei already made arrangements to get it off the Citadel, right from the start,' Arlen reminded her. 'Maybe shipping him to Purgatory was a surprise move, but he probably would've leveraged the bomb to finance his way out of that hell hole.' He clenched his fists as he walked. 'He's always been one step ahead, and the one chance I had to bring him in, I wasted because I just had to be the one to take him down. I'm no hero. I'm the furthest thing from it.'

They arrived at the break room before Arlen could go on. Kim led the way into a tiny room stocked with drinks dispensers, vending machines and small, uncomfortable benches and tables. The pure white lighting made Arlen wince from the moment he stepped inside, and the expression only deepened as Kim pushed a luminous green bottle into his hands.

'Tupari,' she explained, shrugging. 'Tastes like ass, but it should give you a boost for now. Come on, take a seat.'

Arlen let out a muffled groan as he sat on the nearest bench. Yet another ache announced itself as the painkillers wore off, this time in his lower back. He occupied himself with opening the bottle of sickly-coloured sports drink and taking a deep gulp. Kim was right, it tasted awful but it was ice-cold, and that alone was worth something.

He cleared his throat. 'Tell me what happened, from the start.'

Kim nodded and took a few seconds to gather her thoughts. Arlen knew the story would not be a simple one.

'It all started before you left for Purgatory,' she began. 'We traced the handover over the T-Seven by an unidentified turian to Urqar Molach, a batarian using false diplomatic creds. Zwei Jaeger hijacked the deal, as you know, but while you were on the way to Purgatory we checked out Molach's rented domicile in the Foundations. Not that easy, seeing as we were being stonewalled by Chellick, who was in turn being blackmailed by your captain, Avrix Ferrata.'

Arlen took in a breath at hearing the name, but he did not interrupt.

'Ferrata planted phoney OSD evidence in Molach's apartment to throw us off the scent, but after some STG-level infiltration by Eddie Lang, we apprehended Ferrata and seized the real disc. The encryption on the OSD was strong but so far we've found two things of note; engineering plans for the Destiny Ascension - we think that was Crimson Fist's target for the T-Seven - and the complete records of Zwei Jaeger and his gang. Those records, they're not the same as the ones you have. We don't know what's been removed yet, but it's clear they've been redacted in some way, probably by Ferrata himself. Our best guess is that he was trying to sabotage your investigation somehow but we don't know how, or even if, it's linked to Crimson Fist.'

A ringing sound began in Arlen's head. His eyes drifted and his mouth worked in small movements, asking a hundred silent questions at once. They all coalesced into one, and his voice was hard as he asked, 'Where's Captain Ferrata now?'

Hesitation played across Kim's features. 'He's...he's dead. He was murdered in his cell, right here in the compound.'

Again, Arlen was plunged into confusion. 'What? How?'

The reply seemed almost painful for Kim to give. 'That's one of the reasons Lina was arrested. Arlen, we didn't know how much Ferrata knew. The very fact your own captain was implicated in this thing just as you went undercover, Lina was worried that you were walking into a trap. That's why she...'

Arlen reached across the table and gripped Kim's wrist desperately with his long fingers. 'What did Lina do, Kim?'

Kim's eyes were distant as she swallowed hard. 'She interrogated him. Tortured him. I wasn't there but Lorica was, and she...she was pretty disturbed by what she saw. Not long after that, Ferrata was found dead in that same room with his throat cut. The closest we can gather is that the guard assigned to his cell was an enemy agent. Lina already cleared the place out so she wouldn't put anybody in an awkward position when she...went to work. It also meant no witnesses, no one around to interfere. It was the perfect time and place for an assassin to strike.'

Troubled, Arlen withdrew his hand from Kim's arm and knotted his fingers together. He'd assumed that Lina's arrest had been solely down to her covering for him when he'd refused to let C-Sec intercept Zwei on their way back from Bekenstein. Hearing of Ferrata's fate shattered all those certainties. He raised his eyes back to Kim, only one thought on his mind.

'Where is she?'

'As I said, she's in one of the secure cells. They're preparing to move her, but there's no news on that yet.'

Downing the rest of his drink, Arlen heaved himself to his feet. 'I'm going to see her. I don't care if I have to call Vasir down here to give the order, I want to speak to Lina face to face.'

Kim bobbed her head. 'I think I can rig a fake message from the executor to the guards outside her cell. Not like things can get any worse. What's one more act of insubordination in this place?'

'I appreciate it,' Arlen said gratefully. He went to leave, turning back at the last instant. 'And Kim? I know there's more to this. I wish I could stay and get the rest of the story, but time's short and I have to see Lina before I go. I might not get another chance.'

'Yeah,' she responded with a thin smile. 'Yeah, I get it. She needs it too, I think.'

'Be strong, okay? We're all counting on you now, whatever happens.'

Arlen tried to repeat the same words to himself as he exited the room, but they quickly slipped away. He didn't know if getting the story from Lina would make things any clearer but that didn't seem to matter. If anything, he simply wanted to hear one of the few voices that he trusted before embarking into the unknown once more.

~~~ME-I2~~~

'I'm sorry, Captain,' Admiral Kaion began, angling his head towards Captain Callidus from across his cabin desk. 'I think I must have misheard you. It sounded like you said that Kryik is gone, but surely that can't be right?'

Callidus stood to attention before him, chin held high in spite of the humiliation that made her voice tight and hoarse.

'I wish I could report otherwise, Sir,' she said, keeping her gaze on the window and the twin spikes of the Kanderax's bow beyond. 'I have nothing more to offer, other than my sincere personal apologies for this failure.'

'No,' the admiral muttered with a shake of his thin, craggy head. 'No, no, if you're apologising, it means that you actually did allow an unarmed prisoner to capture you, take your weapon, take one of our shuttles and escape this ship. But if that actually happened, then surely those C-Sec goons would've apprehended him immediately on docking at the Citadel?'

It was obvious that Callidus knew where he was going. Her eyes narrowed very slightly as the natural desire to defend herself rose before being quashed by years of discipline and emotional conditioning. Her blue-silver plates flashed as she lowered her head a fraction.

'As reported, Sir, he was freed by a Council Spectre, an asari. She-'

'Just so happened to drop by, out of nowhere? To save a turian that is wanted on suspicion of treason?' Kaion stood abruptly, slamming a fist on his desk. 'Did it occur to you to ask why she was there, why she wanted him freed? Or were you completely set on making Blackwatch look like a bunch of buffoons?'

A breath hissed angrily through Callidus' nose slits. 'That was never my intention, Sir.'

'To hell with your intentions!' Kaion snarled. 'You just embarrassed the entire Hierarchy with this debacle! I should strip you of your rank and have you clean the Kanderax's sewage tanks for the rest of this deployment!' At that moment, his voice heightened in pitch and desperation touched his features, 'Damn it, you don't realise what you've done! That boy was more than-'

The admiral's mouth snapped shut as he bit down on the outburst. He looked aside quickly, suddenly aware he'd almost said too much in his fury.

Callidus had no idea - could have no idea - of who hunted Kryik. That this saviour of his was an asari only strengthened Kaion's fears. After all, if Kaion had a Spectre in his service, it wasn't difficult to imagine the asari government having a loyal agent of their own.

He tried to cover his whirling thoughts by slowly lowering himself back into his chair, but they were impossible to control as he realised there were even greater concerns than the asari. If Furia had compromised Prax then there was no telling how many other Spectres had fallen under her sway. Perhaps Kryik was being taken to a quiet, dark corner somewhere at that moment, where no one could hear the shots being pumped into his skull.

Kaion looked back to Callidus. He pressed his fingers together in front of him, adopting a calmer air that he hoped would hide his panic.

'Perhaps I'm being unfair,' he told her, as softly as his gnarled voice would allow. 'After all, if it wasn't for this Spectre, Kryik would be back on this ship where he belongs. And I can hardly expect you to have stood your ground in that situation. You'd have been dead before your objections left your lips and the Spectre wouldn't have been so much as touched, by you or by C-Sec.'

Callidus flinched as if struck but did not interrupt.

Kaion frowned thoughtfully. 'I believe I've made my disappointment clear, Captain, but as the circumstances were exceptional, not to mention your history of dedicated service, I don't believe disciplinary action will be necessary here.'

Callidus' relief was evident as she relaxed visibly. 'Thank you, Sir. Believe me when I say that my shame will long outlive this failure and I will work to atone for it.'

'Yes... Yes, I thought as much. As it happens, that opportunity may come sooner than you think.' Ignoring Callidus' questioning glance, Kaion pressed his fingers together as he went on, 'I need your team for a mission of utmost secrecy. You will rendezvous with a fellow operative and secure an item of supreme importance to the Hierarchy.'

Kaion didn't want to speak his next words but too much had gone wrong, and the stakes were too high to allow any risk of further disaster. Now he'd caught Furia's attention, there was no telling how many tools she had at her disposal to further interfere and until the T-Seven was back in safe hands, there could be no complacency. Kaion would not allow it.

His heart wrenched as he gave the order, 'Once the objective is secure, you will terminate the operative. Does this sound like something you and your team can handle?'

As he'd hoped, Callidus nodded firmly and her voice rang with conviction. 'Of course, Sir. Give me the details and I'll ready my team.'

'Very well. I'll forward a briefing to your omni-tool within the hour. Do this, and as far as I'm concerned, the name of Blackwatch will be redeemed.'

Callidus gave a crisp salute. 'Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir.'

Her impeccable bearing gave Kaion a small measure of confidence. He wondered if she would prove so sure of herself once she knew she was taking on a Spectre. The thought almost made Kaion reconsider, but there was no other choice. Furia had contacted him using Prax's own comm signature and that alone was proof that he was aiding her, even if not willingly.

Kaion sat back, taking one last moment to observe Callidus. She was hard as a dreadnought hull, stubborn and fiercely proud. If anything, she would relish the chance to take down one of the very agents that had humiliated her only a short time before.

With that thought in mind, Kaion gave an affirmatory nod. 'Dismissed, Captain.'

Callidus saluted again and turned to march away, determination in her stride. As she left the cabin, Kaion pivoted his chair to look out of the window behind him. The Citadel had grown close over the course of his meeting and directly ahead, the Presidium ring was a solid shadow against the nebula.

He wondered just how many days he'd be forced to continue looking at it, before his patron allowed him to return to the homeworld he missed so much. His eyes narrowed as he considered that unless the T-Seven was recovered, there would be no homecoming for him - not on Palaven or any other world for that matter.

~~~ME-I2~~~

Kim watched Executor Pallin take position on the command dais far below. Three other senior C-Sec officers stood with him as they chattered amongst themselves, and Kim sorely wished she was close enough to overhear them.

She'd moved her chair away from her desk to be closer to the edge of the tier and both Ket and Mike looked at her attentively, watching for any signs she knew what was going on. Her teammates - no, she corrected, subordinates - had been dumbfounded by Arlen's return, not to mention the news that he was going to bluff his way into Lina's cell. It felt as if the last threads of control any of them had over the investigation had been severed, and no one could do anything about it.

The room had grown darker in mood over the last hour. Not a moment went by where Kim didn't hear someone whispering about the commander's arrest, or some shocked comment about Ferrata's murder. The truth surrounding the nature of his death had been explained to the team leaders - from whom Kim had been excluded, given her battlefield promotion wasn't yet official - and from there, it quickly spread across the task force. Some of the staff had been there a long time and could not believe Lina was capable of something like torture.

It hadn't felt true even as Kim had explained it all to Arlen, and there was still the matter of Lorica. No news had come in from the field teams sent to the turian ambassador's home or the asari embassy and now the operation had been suspended, she doubted there would be any at all. She idly wondered if Eddie Lang would face the consequences of working with them, and if his own promising career would be thrown out the airlock as a result.

'Hey.' It was Mike, who had moved his seat across to Kim to speak in hushed tones. 'He was right, you know.'

Kim didn't need to be told he was referring to what Arlen said before departing. She dipped her head. 'I can't say I feel the same way. How am I supposed to hold all this together without Lina? Without Lorica? Nobody wants to say it but we all relied on them, and now they're both gone.'

'True,' Mike replied with a push of his glasses, 'but you were the one Lina looked to when Lorica wasn't here. She trusted you with keeping me and Ket on-task. Hell, you were the only one to get up and tell Arlen what's been going on when he arrived here. He needs you to keep things going. We need you.'

Kim looked at him, her eyes glistening with equal parts fear and sadness. 'Keep things going? What things? We've got a disc full of classified intel, most of which we can't see and the stuff we can, we have no way of telling where it came from because our own team lead sabotaged our damn tracking software!'

'We've still got the rest of the disc,' Mike assured her with a weak grin. 'That's better than nothing. Ferrata tried to take that disc with him when made a break for it, he didn't try to wipe it or destroy it. That means there's something valuable on there, something he thought he could use, or someone else would pay a lot to get. He was ready to kill Eddie to cover his tracks and keep that OSD out of our hands.'

Kim shrugged. 'Maybe it peaked with the Destiny Ascension plans.'

'Maybe it didn't.' Mike's smile vanished and for a moment, he looked as weary as Kim felt. 'All I know is there's still a weapon of mass destruction out there, just waiting for the batarians or whoever has it now to set it off in some populated area. I began the week looking at footage of that attack on Thessia and no matter what, I don't want to see it happen again. If that OSD gives us any chance of stopping us seeing more vids of dead civilians, no matter how small that chance is, we need to keep going.'

This time it was Kim who smiled. It was humourless, bitter but still, it was filled with enough hope to set Mike at ease. 'You're right. We can't give up.'

Ket cleared his throat. He didn't bother lowering his voice. 'Not to prick this newfound sense of purpose, majestic temporary team lead, but the Executor Pallin may well simply announce that we're all to go back to our dead-end jobs shuffling paperwork down in the Wards.'

Kim shot him a look of disdain. 'If he was gonna do that, we'd be packing up our desks as we speak.'

'Oh yes,' the salarian scoffed, 'because decisive leadership is C-Sec's strong point, isn't it? You do realise he's been in talks with the other divisional heads for the past hour, trying to decide exactly how they're going to carve this place up?'

'Knock it off,' Kim warned, looking back at him. 'This is hard enough without having to take your crap.'

Ket didn't return her glance. Instead, the rapid tones and chimes of his terminal increased in pace as he typed frantically. Though salarian faces were not always the easiest to read, Kim could see by the way he pursed his lips that he was scared.

She let out a huff as she brought her gaze back to the executor below. There was no point in picking fights with Ket, or anyone for that matter. No one was handling the situation well and if Ket's lack of tact was some kind of coping mechanism then Kim would tolerate it if it helped him focus on his tasks. Despite orders to cease operations, their section continued to work unnoticed on breaking Ferrata's OSD and hunting down Lorica in the Presidium's security system, futile though it all now seemed.

A flurry of movement around the command dais caught her notice and she leaned over the short wall that framed the tier, resting an elbow on it as she observed. Executor Pallin bade farewell to all but one of his fellow officers, an aged asari matron with a commander's insignia, purple scales that ran the length of her head ridges and an unpleasant smile on her lips. Kim tensed as the command centre quietened, sensing the speech to come.

Pallin's solid white facial markings shifted as he brought his authoritative turian voice to bear on them all.

'Attention, everyone. As you're all no doubt aware, Commander Lina'Xen has been relieved of her duties with immediate effect. I understand this has come as a shock to many of you and there is going to be a great deal of concern regarding how the Joint Security Task Force will continue going forward. I've just come from a meeting with C-Sec's divisional commanders and they concur with my initial judgement; that this team has done exemplary work as a whole in C-Sec's efforts to combat Crimson Fist and hunt down the T-Seven device.'

He looked briefly to his asari companion. 'However, it has also been correctly pointed out that too many liberties have been taken with C-Sec regulations, and a review of procedure is in order before operations can fully resume. To that end, I have appointed Commander T'Rana here as the provisional head of JSTF. A few of you may know her already from your time in Network and I'm sure you'll help her with any request she makes.'

There was a noticeable shift in the air, enough to make Kim's eyes shift from the figures on the dais to each and every desk in sight. Some tried to hide their displeased murmurings while others couldn't help but shake their heads. The head of Network Division was no friend of the task force and everyone knew she'd held a personal prejudice against Lina on account of her being a quarian from the very beginning.

Kim's worry only increased as Pallin swiftly descended the dais ramp and accompanied the rest of the divisional heads in making their way out of the room. It was as if he wanted to leave that place as quickly as possible and Kim could hardly blame him. As it stood, Commander T'Rana now raked her gaze across the command centre, an unpleasant expression painted across her violet-touched face.

'Okay,' she announced clearly. 'Listen up, all of you. I'm only going to say this once. Everything the Joint Security Task Force has achieved over the past year, all those medals and citations you've earned, all the kudos you've gotten - throw them in the nearest airlock. Because as far as I'm concerned, you haven't earned them.'

Frowns were directed down at T'Rana but far from being intimidated, she seemed quietly gleeful as she continued.

'This task force has been built on lies, arrogance, and a complete disregard for the rules that make C-Sec what it is. That all stops today. I want all section leads in the conference room in five minutes to give a full briefing on your current investigations. I will be speaking to every one of you personally throughout the day to ascertain exactly what laws have been broken in the process and how. I remind you now that withholding evidence constitutes corruption, carrying with it an automatic penalty of ten to fifteen years' imprisonment.'

The naked threat gained even more looks of contempt from all who listened. Kim veiled her own behind a mask of cool indifference, silently appalled by this woman's sheer, unabashed hatred of the people she now led.

'I want all of you standing by. No one is to leave this compound until you've spoken to me, no matter how long you've been on-shift,' T'Rana concluded. 'Once we've untangled the threads of deceit running through this place, I hope to get operations back up and running quickly. The right way, for once. That is all.'

T'Rana turned to the main screen with a smug grin and as one, the command centre erupted in conversation. The section heads stood hurriedly, giving out orders to assemble the data they would need to defend themselves against T'Rana's vindictive inquisition.

Ket and Mike both gave Kim a concerned look, one for which she had no answer. Their new commander was on a warpath and only time would tell whether any of them would still be working this case by the day's end. It was obvious now that T'Rana had lobbied Pallin hard to gain control of the unit, and her motives were just as clear.

Kim returned to her desk and tried to steady her nerves. She knew then that what Arlen told her was true; she had to be strong, not only against their enemies outside the task force but also within.

~~~ME-I2~~~

The door slid open to reveal a bare room, bright with a piercing white light that made Arlen's head buzz. He squinted briefly until his eyes adjusted to the glare, then stepped into it. The room was not much different to that in which he'd been held prisoner on the Kanderax, being a simple square box - albeit one with the more pleasing, gentle lines of a Citadel compartment instead of the drab functionality of a warship - with only a small bed and the most basic of hygiene facilities as decoration.

As Arlen's vision settled, he laid eyes on the weary, dejected figure perched on the edge of the bed. He almost turned to leave, thinking he had the wrong cell. As he recognised the curves and patterns of Lina's hooded exosuit however, he held fast, stunned beyond his senses.

This was not the energetic, assured young quarian he knew. The difference in Lina's body language alone, never mind the apathy with which she failed to even acknowledge that anyone had entered the room at all, rocked Arlen to his very core. Her hands were bound by handcuffs that Arlen knew only too well, stretched out on her lap as her helmet drooped listlessly.

For a moment, all the questions that Arlen needed to ask disappeared, dissolving into the newfound shock that gripped him. It took an enormous effort to step forward, and he spoke gently.

'Hey.'

It was all he could manage. How could he ask how she was doing, or anything else so utterly pointless after seeing her in such a state?

Lina looked up at the sound of his voice. 'Arlen!'

Arlen paused, surprised as Lina sprang from the bed and crossed the room in a few quick steps. He spread his arms instinctively and drew her into an embrace, unable to contain his joy at seeing her again. Lina shuddered against his armour, struggling against grief that he knew must have been overwhelming. The quiet whimper from her helmet amps tore at his heart and he squeezed her gently.

'I'm here now,' he whispered. 'It's okay, it's okay…'

'No,' she replied, easing herself from him. 'No, it's not okay. It's all gone wrong, Arlen.' Her hands fell from his chest, the cuffs scraping against his armour. 'The task force is all but finished. Lorica's betrayed us. It's…all over.'

'It isn't over,' Arlen said firmly, taking hold of her shoulders. He stared hard into the clouded ovals of her eyes. 'Kimberley's still in this fight, and so is her team. There are people here still loyal to you, so don't give up on them!'

He spoke the words with more belief than he really had, but it seemed to work. Though the motion was hardly confident, Lina nodded as she paced the cell.

'I'm sorry. I haven't heard any news since I was brought here. Pallin wouldn't tell me anything and no one's come to visit or even question me.' She looked at Arlen curiously. 'Saying that, what are you doing here? I thought there was an arrest warrant on your head?'

Arlen shrugged, forcing a smile. 'Tela Vasir managed to track me down just as Special Response were slapping on the cuffs. I'm protected by her Spectre status, for now at least.'

Lina breathed a sigh of relief. 'That's great news. I know that after what happened with Olansi, Spectres aren't exactly our favourite people but it sounds like Vasir really came through for you.' She let out an ironic chuckle, raising her shackled hands. 'I don't suppose she can drop by to extend the favour?'

'I'll ask,' Arlen answered with an honesty that immediately became tainted by bitterness. 'But it took special dispensation from the Council to free me. I'm not sure if-'

'I know,' Lina cut in. 'I wasn't being serious.'

She stared at him for a moment before Arlen shook his head, grinning at his own stupidity.

'Yeah, okay, I still miss the odd joke now and again. Is it too much to expect that I actually want to help you?'

'Not at all, though it's clearly too much to expect reality to get in the way of your enthusiasm.'

Lina cocked her helmet at him fondly. For a brief time, all the worries of the galaxy melted away as they spoke as friends. It brought a comfort they both thirsted for and though it would only last a precious few minutes, they were eager to hold onto it as long as possible.

'You know,' Lina began as she backed up and eased herself onto the bed again, 'it's good to see the occasional glimpse of that naive young turian I first met a year ago. Do you remember?'

Arlen wandered over to a wall and propped himself against it, smirking. 'I remember not knowing the first thing about how to talk to a quarian, and embarrassing the hell out of myself by trying.' The expression grew dark as he folded his arms. 'I wish I could go back there sometimes, you know? Back to a time when the galaxy was a simpler place.'

'It was never simpler. You just didn't know how complicated it really was.'

'Still,' Arlen insisted, 'I look at everything I've done since and…' He exhaled a deep, tired breath, the stump of his right mandible pulsing along with it. 'Well, you saw me, back in the apartment. The truth is, all this…' He stopped to gesture at himself, from his scabbed face to the scorched, pitted ceramic covering his body. 'It's me now. That boy I was a year ago, he's gone for good. All that's left is blood and scar tissue.'

His voice had quietened at the last while his eyes remained motionless, staring off into memories; memories and the small, jerking twitches they brought from muscles that also remembered every knock, burn, cut, strain and stress.

It began again - the same shaking in his limbs that had gripped him during his shuttle flight with Callidus. He managed to hold firm against it this time but it took all of his focus, and he didn't speak for some time. Lina sensed something was wrong, and she waited patiently for him to begin again.

'The truth is, Lina...' His eyes shifted to her and he knew the pain in them was what caused her to stiffen. 'The truth is, I don't even know who I am. I was raised since I was small to be a fighter by my father, a man whose name is less than dirt. I went into Boot Camp at fifteen, then into a youth unit until I was eighteen. I walked into Executor Pallin's office straight out of the C-Sec academy a year later, into a job my brother lined up for me behind the scenes without my knowledge. I know he was only looking out for me but none of this, none of it was my choice.'

He grunted and shook his head. 'But what the hell did I know? I've been nothing but a good turian soldier my whole life. Whether I'm a green-ass recruit or…whatever it is I am now, I still don't have the damndest clue of what choice is.'

'Yes you do, Arlen,' Lina said earnestly. She got up from the bed with fresh urgency and stepped close to him, once more placing a reassuring hand on the curve of his plated chest. 'You do have a choice. You don't need to keep doing this! Vasir is a Spectre, if anyone in the galaxy can handle this alone, it's her. You've already done enough - more than enough! Of all people, you've earned the right to just...just let it go. Let it go and decide your own life.'

Arlen's gaze had sunk, unwilling to join with Lina's. Again, the trembling came back and he tried to hold himself rigid, fighting it until his body screamed in agony.

'No,' he muttered grimly. 'I can't give up. Petra's gone. Amanda's gone. Nihlus is gone.' His throat bulged as he battled against the whispering voices of those he had lost. 'I…I don't have anything left but this.'

A hard weight crashed against Arlen's torso, pinning him against the wall. His eyes widened as they snapped to the two-fingered grip on his collar as Lina's voice thrashed against his ears.

'You bastard!' she yelled furiously. 'Don't you dare say that! Don't you dare!'

Her visor couldn't conceal the gleaming trails of tears down her cheeks, but it was anger, not sorrow that had her pushing Arlen against the wall with a force that hardly seemed possible from a creature so lean and slight.

'Don't you dare,' she repeated, hissing the words with vicious intensity. 'Not after everything I've done for you, not after I betrayed Pallin, not after I lied to everyone I care about ! Don't you dare say that you don't have anything, anyone, left!'

A faint, shaking warble entered her voice as emotion overtook her, and her head drooped as she murmured, 'I gave up everything to help you, you bosh'tet. My team is still out there, trying to help you despite my…despite everything I've done. Don't you dare tell me that none of it mattered.'

It was like the first, haunting flare of a sun emerging from behind a planet in the cold void of space. Arlen's mouth hung ajar as it dawned on him just how much Lina had given, how much she continued to give. Kim's words came back, muted or ignored until that moment - Lina had tortured a man to try and protect him. She would never be the same again.

Arlen closed his eyes. The shaking stopped as the full realisation flooded through him of just what Lina had sacrificed. Like him, she had given a part of herself.

With infinite care, he reached up and took Lina's hands in his own. She didn't resist as he gently prised them off his collar and spoke soothingly. 'You're...you're right. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.'

Finally, Lina lifted her chin and Arlen saw the glass of her helmet was marred on the inside, where her tears had dropped to run down to the bottom in silky rivers. He wanted nothing more than to be able to wipe them clean.

Lina took a step back as she visibly tried to gather herself. Her response was ragged, 'I tore myself up asking how I could let you get into such a state this past year. As soon as I saw you the other day, I knew I'd failed you, and I promised - promised - that I wouldn't let you go again.'

Arlen's lungs heaved against the confines of his armour. He was well aware of how he looked to her. He saw it every time he looked in the mirror, every time he saw his dim reflection in a pane of glass. He remained slumped against the wall, a bloody, bruised turian with paint that had been all but scratched away - his soul taken with it.

'I know,' he said, his eyes shimmering, 'and I wish I could just walk away. But I can't. Even after all this ends, however it ends, there'll always be the next mission.' His voice became a thick rasp. 'Lina, this job is eating me alive...but I can't stop. Turians...'

He clutched onto his next words like the talisman they'd once been.

'Turians never break.'

The water marks on Lina's visor sparkled as she angled her head ever so slightly.

'No. Everything else breaks around you.'

Spent, exhausted, she made her way back to sit on the bed and placed her hands back onto her lap.

'Arlen, I can't control what you do,' she said solemnly. 'All I can do is remind you that you still have people who care about you, and they matter too.' She hefted up her cuffed wrists. 'Don't end up like this, or worse. Don't throw away everything you still have.'

Arlen blinked as something changed. It was like the final piece of a puzzle falling into place as for the first time in what felt like an age, he knew what to do. More than that, he knew why.

He straightened, pushing himself slowly from the wall. 'You're right.'

Lina showed no reaction, but had no choice but to look up as Arlen strode over to her with new energy.

'You're right,' he said again. 'I...l've lost so much but...I haven't lost everything.'

He placed a hand on Lina's shoulder, bringing her eyes up to his.

'Lina, I can't abandon my mission. I, we, have come too far to stop now. Somebody out there is trying to keep me out of the picture, I don't know who but sooner or later they'll make one mistake too many. I need to be ready when that happens.'

He closed his eyes, summoning his honour in a way he hadn't done for a very long time.

'But I promise you, I swear by the spirits - I'm coming back for you when all this is over. And I'm going to find Petra. Even if I have to spend all my remaining days in this galaxy doing it, I will repay you both for everything you've done for me.'

His voice rang with conviction, of a kind he'd almost forgotten he possessed. It was enough to make Lina smile, the pale shapes of her eyes compressing as her cheeks rose. It gave Arlen a surge of hope, that in spite of everything, she was still capable of such strength.

'I'll hold you to that, Interceptor.'