25th September 2172
"Come on now mate, this is grade A stuff. One whiff can knock out an elephant."
Finch was trying to convince Shepard to try a new drug named Red Sand, made from refined element zero, behind the school yard.
"Mate, you know I don't do any of these. Alcohol is okay, when you can't take anymore you pass out. This shit is too dangerous." Shepard refused.
"But alcohol can't give you the same buzz. It's like a dream when you take it." Finch tried again.
"Seriously Finch, you forgot what happened to Richie when he was found in that fucking dumpster? Or Todd who died from overdose? This shit is made from eezo for fuck sakes. It's not meant for consumption." Shepard added. Finch huffed with disappointment. Later, his business like smile returned and asked:
"I guess you want just the regular then? Painkillers and anesthetics for your big sister?"
"Yeah, and I swear to God above she wants to open up me brain just to see how it works. After she got her medical license, she always asks me to get her drugs and dead bodies for her experiments. She managed to raise a dog that was dead for about 16 hours back to life! I don't know if I am impressed or creeped out mate." Shepard said.
"Is she hot at least? I wouldn't mind if a beauty put me under." Finch made a crass remark, earning a chuckle from Douglas:
"Sure mate, she is. If you really want to hit on her, your funeral. Too bad there won't be a corpse to bury."
They both shared a laugh. They were so used to Janet's curiosity and fascination with biology and medicine, it became comedy material. Their conversation was to be interrupted by someone however:
"You do remember that we have work to do, am I right boyos?" Bryce asked them.
"Don't worry Bryce, we are both ready. Doug, we will do business after the job right?" Finch asked.
"Yeah sure mate. And don't worry brother. The device is ready and tested. Wound up tighter than a nun's arse." Shepard said, earning a chuckle from the other two.
"Right then lads, we only have one shot at this." Bryce said and went to the agreed post. Douglas and Finch went to their posts too. If the job was successful, the Reds would walk with significantly heavier pockets. Theodore Ingram learned about a shipment of expensive electronic equipment that was passing through east London. That shipment was meant for a hostile gang with significant manpower, but the potential payoff seriously outweighed the risks. Theodore and his lieutenants agreed that should the job succeed, the 10th street Reds could expand further than just Earth. The galaxy was very big and adding the aliens and the bigger market, the Reds could become better than a gang of hooligans. But, first things first, they needed to steal that shipment. Theodore took a gamble at using the Shepard's technical ingenuity. How he managed to learn that much about tech was beyond him. Bryce praised him a lot, Douglas's inventions actually worked smoothly at other jobs, like shutting down security at some burglaries, disabling surveillance at some store robberies and masking electronic signatures. Still, the stakes were higher than ever, and Theodore didn't like using children for his schemes. So, he called both Bryce and Douglas to his table at the Red Carp yesterday to discuss the job.
Flashback, 24th September 2172
Red Carp pub
"Duncan, can you bring Bryce and Douglas to me table?" Theodore asked one of his subordinates.
"Sure thing boss." Duncan nodded and went to call the two brothers. In less than a minute, they trio arrived, Bryce having Douglas in tow.
"You can leave Duncan, this is between me and the boys." Theodore said. Duncan nodded and went to another corner with other members of the Reds.
"Umm, you need us for something boss?"
Bryce dared to ask.
"Have a seat lads." Theodore gestured at the empty seats opposite of him. The two boys obliged. Shepard knew that Theodore wanted to talk about something important. He could easily find out, but he used his powers to read surface thoughts and emotions. He rarely delved deeper to anyone's mind to avoid possible detection.
"Is something the matter?" Bryce asked again. He was never called to talk with the boss himself and he wanted to make a good impression. He always tried his best for the gang, be it in the football stadiums, the street brawls or the odd jobs. He became a dependable and respected part of the gang. He wasn't a fanatic or a drug addict, much to Theodore's pleasure. For a gang leader, Theodore wanted only capable and dependable members. Alcoholics, gamblers and drug addicts could be bribed. Womanisers, homosexuals and sex offenders could become victims of blackmail. Whoever wasn't smart or capable was redundant. Theodore took great care at keeping what he called quality personnel in the gang. Whoever couldn't make the cut was not accepted.
"I just want to hear your thoughts about the upcoming job." Theodore said.
"Well, I believe it could be a real bullion. Such opportunities don't show up every day. We would be settled for life if we pull this off." Bryce said first.
"True, there are risks and my EMP's have a chance of not working as well as intended, but this is too good of an opportunity to just pass up." Douglas addes.
"You are both right boyos. Success could help us expand our business and failure will likely destroy us. But no one succeeded without daring to risk." Theodore said.
"If it's the job you worry about boss, you can calm down. Me and the lads are ready and we practiced the ambush, hijacking and we have firepower in case things go like shit on a stick." Bryce tried to make a remark to calm the nerves of the boss man.
"Heh, this isn't about the job or the gang even. It's about you two. You both are too gifted and capable to waste your talents as gangsters. The galaxy is huge and you can find something better while you're still young." Theodore stated.
"Like what? We don't exactly have any high connections or serious diplomas. For Christ's sake, Douglas is still a teen. We just don't have any chance better than this." Bryce said. Theodore just smiled and Shepard immediately knew were it was going:
"My sources say otherwise. I learned from an officer that 2 years ago, right when Douglas was arrested for killing that psychotic wanker Arlington, a hunter was there. He took a great interest, too much to be a mere coincidence. I learned that he offered you a chance to be trained as a hunter, am I right Doug?" Theodore asked Shepard. Douglas knew that he couldn't refuse that. Theodore was telling the truth:
"Aye. A wanker named David Anderson visited me while I was in chains. He said he was impressed by me for killing someone at my 13 while unarmed. He also said that he knows about me real family." Shepard said. Now it was Theodore's turn to be surprised:
"Really? What else did he say?" Theodore asked. It was Bryce who answered however:
"He said that because Douglas's family was in the service for more than 2 centuries, he must also serve in the army. I believe it's complete horseshit."
"To conclude, there is no way I'll join them after what happened to me dad. My real father is gone and I know nothing about me mother. I will not abandon me family for a godamn witch hunt." Shepard added.
Theodore just shook his head with disappointment.
"Keith never told you what really happened, right?" he asked them.
Both boys looked at him confused.
"Thought so. It was a really fucked up situation. I served with him you know. We knew each other. We weren't really close, but we were in a first name basis you know." Theodore started, the 2 boys were shocked to hear that from the leader of the Reds.
"It was at the ending of the rebellions when me and your father were deployed to Pluto. A whole battalion deployed to capture an eezo mining complex which was in enemy hands. It was our job to liberate it. Unfortunately, the local enemy garrison was well hidden and many fell victims of the ambush. Me and your father were the only ones left alive from our squad. We eventually found more and with 40 men we started cleaning enemy buildings using flamethrowers. It worked pretty well for sometime, until we heard screams from a building we burned and went inside to investigate. I went inside with Keith and I hope you never see something like what we saw..." Theodore's voice became sad and grave. He took a deep breath, a swig from his beer and continued:
"... burned bodies everywhere. Most of them were bloody civilians. There were even children among them. All burned to a bloody crisp. Keith was the one who torched that particular structure. He went bloody insane when he saw that. He charged at the last enemy bunker, screaming like a godamn banshee. The bloke wanted to die for what he did. He only got shot in the leg..." Theodore's voice became hoarse. The 2 brothers were looking were stunned by the revelation.
"... after that ordeal, your father was discharged for psychological reasons. Category 6. He started drinking, trying to forget that image. Later, I was discharged too. I discovered that he met a certain woman, your mother, who made him better. He never told her about what happened and I believe you won't say anything about it too, right?" Theodore made the boys promise not to talk.
"We won't say anything, but what does this have to do with us and joining the army?" Douglas asked. Theodore patted Shepard's back and smiled:
"Me and your father were young, brash and arrogant. We thought that we could do anything we wanted. War was a game for us, until that incident made us realise the cruel truth. You two however, you are far more mature and cool headed. Especially you Doug. Keeping your powers hidden and in check taught you remarkable discipline, eh?" Theodore chuckled to the flabbergasted expressions of Douglas and Bryce.
"H.. How did you find out?" Bryce asked.
"Simple. A few years ago, Keith came here. We drank a few pints and he started blabbering. He told me about how he found you Douglas, your levitation trick and a few other stories." Theodore finished and took another sip.
"So, now what?" Bryce asked. Douglas was quiet. He didn't like what he heard about his adoptive father. He did feel bad about him, but it would take some time to accept this new knowledge.
"Now, get ready for tomorrow's job. When it's complete, you can make your new plans for how to proceed with your lives. But work comes first." Theodore said and signaled at them to go. Both the boys nodded and left.
End flashback
25 September 2172
"Alright, the EMP's are in place. Spike team, you copy?" Theodore said over the radio.
"Spike team in position. The spike strip is ready to be deployed. Repair team, what's your status?" Finch asked.
"Tools, tires and gravity pads present and accounted for. Watch team, come in." Bryce replied.
"Waiting on the rooftop, no targets so far."
Duncan said. The plan was simple and efficient. One team would destroy the tires and grav pads of the vehicles to immobile them. The repair team would then hijack and repair the vehicles while the watch team would provide fire support just in case. Soon, the 3 vans arrived. It was now or never.
"Arm the EMP's and deploy the spike strip."
Theodore ordered. It was done just before the vans turned into the alley. When the vans hit the spike strip, their tires bursted. When they were immobiled, the EMP's fried the grav pads, ensuring that the vehicles wouldn't budge an inch without repairs. The EMP's worked brilliantly and soon the repair crew started the repairs while the spike team were keeping the captured drivers under control. Shepard, who was with the repair crew, was working like a machine. In less than 2 minutes, he repaired a van by himself, using a custom device of his own design. A combination of terran PDA processing power and an integrated non-sentient AI with the features and repairing capabilities of the Citadel omnitools. A real masterpiece Shepard called the omnipad. One of its kind and only he could operate it by using his powers:
"Boss, the repairs are finished. Spike team is driving the vans to the drop off and we have the real drivers hogtied and unconscious. Did the boys on the rooftops find any threats?" Bryce asked.
"No. You are clear. Good job lads. This is a mighty fine day indeed." Theodore said, visibly relieved from the textbook operation he planned. It always felt good for a plan to go well, but this called for a serious celebration.After they stashed the goods to the lot, the gang went back to the Carp to in high spirits. The booze was flowing like water and everyone was laughing, cheering and joking, just like when they were celebrating a victory of Liverpool:
"A TOAST TO ME LITTLE BROTHER DOUG! FOR HAVING THE GUTS AND BRAINS WE CLEARLY LACK. HEAR, HEAR!" Bryce proposed and raised his beer mug.
"HEAR, HEAR!" the rest shouted and clinked their glasses. Shepard liked the praise, but always preferred to avoid attention, both because of his powers and because of Anderson who was likely watching him. Still, Theodore allowed Shepard a small can of beer, telling the old bartender James to let the boy feel like a man a bit. The grizzled barkeep agreed, like many times before. Besides, what could go wrong with one can? Suddenly, an explosion followed by a tremor caused the whole block to tremble. Glasses, chairs, even those you were inebriated fell to the floor from the force of the blast. Shepard's senses went to high alert. What happened? A bomb? Everyone was close to the verge of panic, until Theodore shouted:
"QUIET DOWN EVERYONE! JAMES! OPEN THE EMERGENCY CHANNEL!" The barkeep opened the television to channel 16, the terran emergency broadcast. The emergency broadcast was used in cases of almost any dangerous situation to inform the viewers of what is happening to their area. Soon, the banner of Earth under the 3 pillars, one blue, one red and one yellow, was replaced by a voice announcement that was calm and professional, clearly to make the listeners less likely to panic:
"Attention listeners. This was a meteorite strike that just hit the city of London. Emergency services have been notified and will deploy shortly. All affected civilians move to the marked relief centers." The broadcast was replaced by a map that showed the locations of were the relief centers were currently built and the areas that were affected by the meteorite. One particular location made Bryce and Douglas go pale from horror.
While the destruction of the London military HQ was tragic, one fragment hit the Memorial hospital, right were their mother was examined by their sister to ensure that her health was good.
"We must go Bryce! The services won't reach them as fast!" Douglas said and pulled Bryce by the hand. It would be hilarious, a teen pulling a young adult like that, but Bryce was a bit dizzy from the drinks and Shepard was the sober one. In about ten minutes, they reached the hospital, which was heavily damaged. Blaring sirens and people pulling victims out of the rubble everywhere. Nancy and Janet weren't among either the injured or the volunteers and medics.
"We have to get inside. The building looks ready to collapse. If they stay inside any longer, they are done for." Shepard said urgently. Bryce nodded, and they both moved towards a relatively intact part of the hospital. Shepard checked around and used his powers to lift a piece of rubble that was blocking the entrance. They both moved inside. The lights were flickering and some places were too dark, so Shepard switched on the flashlight of his omni pad, while Bryce used his old lighter.
"Can you see them Doug?" Bryce asked quietly. He actually meant if Shepard could feel the presence of Nancy and Janet. Shepard shook his head, so they went to another floor. Douglas's head snapped like he was hit by cold water.
He immediately bolted towards the end of the corridor, Bryce following close. Behind a set of heavy looking doors, a calm, female voice was talking. It was muffled behind the doors, but Shepard could hear the thoughts:
"...don't worry, you will live..."
"..it hurts, it hurts..."
These thoughts belonged to Nancy and Janet. There were also 3 other thoughts that belonged to more injured. Clearly, Janet kept them under control. So, they entered and saw their mother, being tended by Janet, and 3 other injured people.
"Finally! Some assistance. Come on, help me out!" Janet barely paid any mind to her siblings, completely focused at safely moving the patients to a safer location, away from the piece of ceiling that looked ready to fall. There was none of her mirth when she was operating mice or sewing back body parts of dead people. Gone was the glint she had in her eyes when she was researching and experimenting. Only stone cold professionalism remained, which made the 2 brothers nervously look at each other and assist their sister afterwards. Bryce and Douglas used their shirts and 4 broomsticks to make a makeshift stretcher, successfully evacuating everyone, including their mother, who was unconscious because of the painkillers Janet gave her to alleviate the injured woman. Thankfully, she was stable, the same for the other 3 victims. They were all moved to the closest trauma center next, Janet kept working on other injured while Douglas and Bryce helped at tending to other victims, setting up tents and fixing some equipment. 2 hours later, their father arrived. He was relieved to see everyone alive. Nancy also woke up and she looked better, despite her bandaged arm and neck brace:
"Thank god you are alive. I was scared out of me mind." He said as he hugged them.
"Father, what the bloody hell happened? Did they say anything on the news?" Bryce asked.
"Aye. The news said that this meteorite strike was a terrorist attack." Keith said.
"What? Who did it? And how?" Bryce asked.
"The batarian hegemony isn't as dead as it appeared. They are behind it. I don't know many specifics, the news say they detonated a small asteroid so that the fragments would hit London military HQ. The armed forces are on high alert. So don't do any more odd jobs. We have enough money for now at least, eh?"
"Dad, I'm going to enlist as a medic." Janet said, taking everyone by shock.
"What? You serious sis?" Bryce asked.
"Very. This is my chance to broaden my horizons. I almost forgot there were aliens. In the army, I will be able to both be helpful and secure a few cadavers for my experiments." she said and started chuckling. Here was the mad scientist persona again.
"I can't really stop you Janet. At least you will be tending to the injured in hospitals and warships, so you won't be in much peril." Keith said and hugged his daughter.
"Father. I have to join too. This was an attack at home turf." Douglas finally said.
"Why? You know what they will do if they find out you are a psychic, don't you?" Keith was shocked to hear that from Shepard. He was the one who was completely against the idea of joining the army. What changed? Shepard lowered his head slightly and explained:
"2 Years ago, when I was arrested for killing that psychopath Arlington, a bloody hunter swinged by. He said he was impressed and said I could become a hunter. They are granted more freedom than the rest of the army."
"A HUNTER? Does he know about..." Keith was cut off by another voice:
"Yes, I do." Anderson appeared out of seemingly nowhere, startling everyone except Douglas, who felt his presence just a few seconds ago.
"Like he said." Shepard added nonchalantly.
"And to answer your other question Mister Mandrel, no. The secret of Shepard's capabilities is still secret. Since he really wants to become a hunter and I was the one to recommend him, I will also be his trainer." Anderson continued.
"Wait you posh wanker. How can I trust you? I don't even know yer bloody name." Keith interrupted.
"Of course, pardon my manners. My name is David Anderson. I am a member of the Hunter Division and I took a great interest to the capabilities of your adopted son. A DNA test confirms he is the son of Sebastian Shepard,one of the best CISP operators and last of the Shepard family, which served for more than 2 centuries."
Anderson answered.
"And what happened to the lad's parents then?" Keith asked. He always wanted to learn why would a man abandon his child.
"Sebastian disappeared under unknown conditions in London, about 13 years ago. There are no traces whatsoever. No body, no evidence, nothing. About his mother, I asked Sebastian himself who she was. I never got an answer." Anderson said.
Keith sat on a chair to wrap his mind around this whole debacle. First his daughter wants to become an army medic, then his adopted son gets an invitation to the Hunter Division? This day kept getting crazier by the minute.
"Are you sure about that lad? If you accept, there is no turning back." Keith warned.
"I have to. It was an attack on home turf. If I can put an end to this, I have to do it. The batarians nearly took away me mother and sister and killed who knows how many in this attack. They played with fire and I am the coming burn." Shepard answered in a resolute and steady voice.
"Heh, that's my boy. If you really want to give hell to the galaxy, who am I to stop you?" Keith smiled and patted Shepard on the back.
"Don't worry baby brother, I will stay here to protect them. Also, take this." Bryce said and pulled out his 4 inch pocket knife.
"You probably gonna need it more than me. I have another one for me." Bryce gave the knife to Shepard.
"Come here boy say goodbye to your mother." Nancy said and hugged Shepard with her good hand.
After the pleasantries were exchanged, Douglas followed Anderson to a black vehicle. It looked like a buggy, but better armored and with a beefier engine. They both went inside and Shepard made gis first question:
"When do we start?" he asked. Anderson just said:
"There is no need to hide your powers anymore. Just get the answer you seek. Shepard obliged and saw only one word.
Now.
