Black Sun Rising

Chapter 8: Hades' Dogs

Miranda Lawson set her large shuttle to autopilot and let it drift towards the Mass Relay, stretching out on her bunk and staring up at the ceiling. She was still amazed by the fact that this thing had an operating drive-core, but one of the first things she'd learned on the job for Cerberus was that "Prototype Technology" was really code for "Don't ask any questions, because we can't answer them."

And when Miranda had finally gotten the answer, drunkenly spilled by a Cerberus engineer one night in a room at one of their most closely-guarded black-site research stations, Miranda wished she'd never asked the question.

She hadn't gotten a good night's sleep since that moment, and probably never would again.

She'd thought that a transfer to C-Sec might put the horrifying revelation out of her mind, but it kept gnawing away at her. It had been hard resisting the temptation to tell someone, anyone, the truth about what Cerberus was planning, but Miranda knew they wouldn't believe her.

That, and the Illusive Man would put a bullet in her head for leaking that kind of information— and she needed Cerberus's protection. Four years' worth of carrying a dark secret around in her back pocket was a suitable price to pay for protection from her father's agents.

Miranda closed the datapad and tossed it aside, biting back a sigh.

"It's a stupid ghost story, Eddie. The Reapers never actually existed."

"No, I'm sure they did. Just that the Protheans destroyed them, once and for all. The Asari Matriarch Benezia wrote, like, a whole ten-volume thing on it!"

Miranda saw her opening and took it.

"You can read?"

"Real funny, Lawson. Laugh it up."

The only time she had been even remotely tempted to open up during her time at C-Sec had been one particularly drunken night at the bar with Garrus Vakarian. Something about the way he'd asked if something was wrong, like his eyes were piercing right through all the secrets and obfuscation and bullshit—

She missed him. In the way she missed not having someone around to tease all the time, sure, but she still missed him.

A beep from the shuttle's communicator jolted Miranda out of her thoughts, and she pushed herself out of the cot to go answer it.

"Yes?"

"Operative Lawson," a calm voice answered on the other end, "there's been a development."

Miranda kept her curse to herself, biting it back from the tip of her tongue. Any 'development' that came directly from Kai Leng was never a good thing.

"What are my new orders, Sir?"

"It appears as though a group of mercenaries is heading to Korlus, on the trail of Vido Santiago. The same ones your report says you ran into on the Citadel, in fact. For obvious reasons, if their goal is to kill Santiago—as our intel seems to indicate—we can't let that happen."

"So I'm going to Korlus, then?"

"I wasn't finished," Kai Leng said, somehow sounding irritated even in near-monotone. "You're going to Pragia. It's in the Dakka System of the Nubian Expanse. Our Teltin Facility for biotic experimentation is there."

"What does that have to do with me, Sir?"

"Your assignment is to pick up a new prototype weapon we've been developing there, code-name 'Zero'. You'll be taking it with you to Korlus for its preliminary field-test. The coordinates should already be in your navigation computer."

"Understood."

"Oh, and Lawson?"

"Yes, Sir?"

"Welcome back."

The connection went dead, and Miranda pulled up the data on Pragia from the ship's computer. She immediately wanted several stiff drinks, but Cerberus hadn't done her the courtesy of stocking her getaway vehicle with a liquor cabinet.

Punching in the coordinates to the Dakka System, Miranda resumed her place on her cot. Setting an alarm for when the ship reached Pragia, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard that right. You want to what, Miranda?"

"I want to leave, dad. I want out of this… this place. It's not a home. We're not a family. And this isn't a life."

Henry Lawson laughed, and there was no humor in the sound.

"I don't think I've ever heard anything more absurd in my entire life," he said. "Do you realize how many people in the galaxy would murder just to have the chance to get the kind of life I've given you? The money, the comfort, the genetic modifications? How can you be so blind and ungrateful?"

"That's not the point! Everything you've given me always comes with a catch, or a hook. I'd trade it all away in a second just to be able to do what I want!"

"My god, are you serious? Do you even hear what you're saying, Miranda? You don't like catches or hooks? Good luck living out in real life. Catches and hooks are what make the world go 'round. Everyone's always going to want something from you. Everyone.

"And you want to do what you want?" her father continued, laughing again. "I'll let you in on a little secret, kid. I don't give a shit about what you want. I never have, and I never will. I created you. I made you from the ground up, every single detail. Without me, you wouldn't even exist. Every advantage you have, it's only yours because I gave it to you. I'd say that gives me the right to do with you whatever I goddamn please, wouldn't you agree?"

Miranda had turned and stormed from the room without another word, not stopping until she was in her bedroom, collapsed on the floor against the locked door and trying not to scream in rage.

She wanted to ignore her father's words, to write them off as meaningless taunts and vicious bullying. But Miranda could hear the ring of truth in them, all the same.

What was she, if not just columns on a checklist ticked off, and then coalesced into the shape of a person?

She reached for her phone, took a deep breath, and called up the one person she knew might be able to talk her through this. Just like he always had before.

The ship's alarm woke Miranda up from her nightmare, and she shut her eyes and shook her head against the unwelcome memory. It still lingered, like it always did, but it was far enough away now that Miranda could refocus on the task at hand. She could hear the heavy rainfall pelting the shuttle, and took a moment to create a watertight biotic barrier around herself before she exited.

As she moved down the ramps towards the facility's entrance, the first thing Miranda heard was a high-pitched, agonized scream. It was a scream that could only have come from a child.

She tried to ignore the sinking feeling in her chest as she entered the building, but didn't entirely succeed.

"Wait, what do you mean we have a visitor?"

"I mean someone's here for a pick-up, Miss Chambers. Got the word from the Illusive Man himself not too long ago. Apparently it's Operative Lawson, back in from the cold."

The news made Kelly Chambers' heart lift a little, only to have it go sinking back down again when the guard continued to speak.

"She's here for Subject Zero."

"Jack?" Kelly asked, her eyes widening. "But she can't go anywhere. She can't! She just got out of surgery a few weeks ago, remember? For her implant malfunction? And to be honest," Kelly continued, "I'm still waiting for an answer on why I haven't been allowed to see her since then!"

"Miss Chambers," the guard said, sounding slightly apologetic, "I'm going to need you to come with me, please."

The tone of the request made Kelly nervous, but she also wasn't about to refuse someone holding an assault rifle. They turned and walked down the hallway, towards the area where Jack's cell was located. The sound of a child's scream cut through the air, and Kelly hated herself for ever having agreed to come to this godforsaken place.

"What is Petrovsky doing to them?" she asked, not bothering to hide her anger. "If he wasn't his father's son, I'd have tossed him to the wildlife months ago."

"You and me both, Miss Chambers," the guard said. "At least your kids seem to be doing all right, though. They deserve someone like you looking out for them."

"No," Kelly said, her voice heavy, "they deserve to be free."

"You do know I'm contractually obligated to report it when you say things like that, right?"

Kelly laughed bitterly.

"Oh, come on," she said. "What's the Illusive Man gonna do to poor, little Kelly Chambers? I'm a psychiatrist, not a revolutionary."

"Well, here we are," the guard said, bluntly changing the subject as they came to Jack's cell. "Now, about Subject Zero—"

"Her name is Jack."

"Okay, fine. About Jack… that operation wasn't about fixing a faulty implant, exactly."

Something in the guard's tone put Kelly on edge, and she fought to calm herself back down as the guard opened the door.

"What're you talking about?"

"It was an… augmentation project," the guard said. "Maybe it'd just be better for you to see for yourself."

The door to the cell opened, and the stench of rot made Kelly immediately cover her nose and mouth against her reflexive retch. It smelled like no one had been in here for weeks to clean the place up, which Kelly realized with dread might have very well been the truth.

"Orders were to let no one see Subj—Jack, until the Illusive Man said otherwise. And even then, you were only given clearance because it—she, sorry—listens to you instead of trying to rip your face off."

Kelly saw a form huddled under the desk in the fetal position and wanted to cry.

"Get out," she said, channeling her grief into hard bitterness. "Just… get out. I'll take care of this."

"But—"

"Leave!" Kelly shouted, tears in her eyes now. "Just leave!"

The guard beat a hasty retreat, not wanting to face the anger of either Kelly Chambers or her favorite patient.

A few moments later, Kelly sighed and tried to compose herself.

"Jack," she said softly, "it's fine. You can come out now. He's gone. I'm here. It's me, Kelly."

It took Jack a few moments to move herself out from under her desk, but Kelly gave her all the time she needed. When Jack finally stood in front of her, it took every ounce of strength Kelly had not to break down all over again.

Jack was dressed in nothing more than a soiled white tee-shirt and equally-torn up canvas pants, with her feet bare on the hard concrete floor. Her messy black hair was free of its usual ponytail, and went down to just above her shoulder-blades. But it was her eyes that broke Kelly's heart. They had always been so full of life, in constant defiance of Cerberus's attempts to turn her into some kind of biotic weapon. Kelly had taken pride in helping keep that defiance alive, and now it was gone. Her dark eyes were empty, blank slates. There was nothing left.

For the first time in years, Kelly Chambers felt pure, unadulterated hatred.

After another long moment, Jack blinked and looked at her again, as if just seeing Kelly for the first time.

"Kelly?" she asked, the thinness of her voice a stark contrast to the past. "Is… is that you?"

Kelly moved forward and drew Jack into an embrace, holding her gently as she reacted at first, but then calmed down again.

"It's me," Kelly said quietly, running a hand comfortingly through Jack's hair. "It's me. I'm so sorry I couldn't get here sooner, Jack. I had no idea what they'd done to you."

Jack trembled, and when she spoke her voice was choked by a half-sob.

"I missed you," she said. "I thought you'd left me."

"No. No, I would never do that," she said. "I couldn't. You're my friend, Jack. Never forget that."

They stood there for a few more moments in silence, each of them just relieved that the other was still alive. Eventually, Kelly took a few steps back, but made a point of keeping her hands on Jack's shoulders.

"What did they do to you, Jack?" she asked. "Are you okay?"

"We… we can't talk about that," Jack said. "The scientists. They told me that if I told anyone what they did to me, they would kill them to keep it secret. Can't let them hurt you. Sorry."

Jack even sounded broken, and for a few heartbeats Kelly wanted nothing more than to blow this whole facility up, fly to the Illusive Man's headquarters and punch his teeth down his throat.

But that moment passed, and Kelly forced herself back to calm.

"They were lying to you," she said. "The guard who brought me here, he told me that it was some kind of augmentation surgery. And if he knows, I'm sure you can tell me. What happened, Jack?"

Jack's eyes clouded with fear, but a reassuring squeeze on her shoulders was enough to bring her back.

"The scientists, they gave me a drug," she said. "It didn't knock me out, though. They said... they said they needed to… to track my responses during the procedure. And then, then…" her voice shook, but she kept going. "They cut at me. Like I was an animal. Cut me open and put things in me. Weaving, metal. It… it hurt. It hurt so much. I thought I was going to die. I… I wanted to die. I wanted it to end."

Kelly pulled Jack close again and whispered to her.

"It's okay," she said. "I'm sorry I asked. I didn't want to make it hurt again."

"They said they were going to make me stronger," Jack said. "They said they were going to make me fight again. Turn me into a killer."

"They won't, Jack," Kelly said. "I've kept them from doing that for the past fifteen years, and I'm sure as hell not gonna stop now. You might be a fighter, and they might have made you kill, but you're not a killer. They can't make that choice for you."

"But what if they take you away from me?" Jack said. "Who's gonna help me stay in control then?"

"You will," Kelly told her. "You're the strongest person I've ever met, Jack, even if you don't realize it. Every other twenty-two year-old I know would have gone crazy by now, living in a hellhole like this place and getting poked and prodded for years."

Jack chuckled, a sound that lifted Kelly's spirits immensely. She took a step back, smiling weakly.

"I'm only not crazy because of you," she told Kelly. "If you hadn't helped pull me back over and over again after all those fights, and those drugs…" Jack shuddered. "I don't even want to think about it."

"Don't sell yourself short, kid," Kelly said, smiling back. "Whatever happens, wherever you go, always remember that I'm proud of you. Promise me you'll remember that. And if you have to fight, don't fight for Cerberus. Fight for yourself."

"I promise," Jack said, before a knock at the door pulled them both back to reality.

"Finish up in there," the guard's voice could be heard saying. "Lawson's here. It's time."

Jack put the pieces together in her head and frowned, anger creeping back through her tenuous calm.

"I was right, wasn't I?" she asked. "They're going to take me away."

"Probably," Kelly admitted. "But honestly, pretty much anywhere's better than this dump, right?"

"I guess so, yeah. This place does suck pretty fuckin' badly."

Kelly smiled, glad to see Jack returning to her normal self. She noticed the still-healing scars on Jack's visible skin and almost shuddered at their number.

"Just send me some postcards, all right?" she said. "I want to know about all the places you'll get to see."

"A postcard?" Jack asked, chuckling. "What year do you think it is, 1999?"

"Hey, so I'm an old geezer at heart," Kelly said, sounding mock-offended. "Whatever."

"At heart?" Jack teased, and Kelly gave her a playful punch on the shoulder.

"Forty isn't old!" she paused, reconsidering. "Well, maybe it is, but I'm not a 'geezer' yet!"

The two of them shared a laugh, but it was a laugh that made Jack feel empty when it had passed.

The further she walked through the halls of the Teltin Facility, the more Miranda Lawson wanted to burn it to the ground.

The Illusive Man knew about this place, and it was still being allowed to operate? She found the idea almost impossible to believe.

And it was that 'almost', that little, niggling, gnawing doubt at the back of her mind, that made Miranda truly upset. Because as much as she wanted to convince herself otherwise, what she'd seen of the Illusive Man's methods and philosophy had, in some ways, reminded her uncomfortably of her father.

And seeing Teltin was only making that comparison harder and harder to ignore.

Another child screamed, and the sound made Miranda physically flinch.

"How can you stand listening to that?" she asked, glad she'd skipped lunch.

The guard, one Officer Macavoy, shrugged.

"It only lasts a second. The other kid's usually put 'em out of their misery by then."

The implications of the explanation hit Miranda like a sledgehammer to the gut.

"You… you let the children fight each other? To the death? Are you serious?"

"Hey, calm down, lady. I don't give any of the orders. Some of the scientists just have… different methods than the others do. But as long as they get results, the top brass don't really seem to care."

"So you're saying the Illusive Man knows about this place?"

The Macavoy looked at Miranda like she'd grown horns.

"What kind of question is that?" he asked. "We're still getting funding, aren't we? You think the Illusive Man doesn't personally sign off on every expenditure order that goes down the Cerberus chain? You must be pretty new at this game, kid."

"I've been with Cerberus for four years, I'll have you know. I'm an Operative for a reason."

"I'm sure there's a reason for it, all right," Macavoy said, the tone in his voice suggesting something that made Miranda want to murder him in the hallway. But she kept her anger in check, remembering that she had a job to do. She just mentally filed away Officer Macavoy on her list of people to kill horribly once she'd made enough money to retire.

It was a very long list. Good thing her lifespan was, too.

The inadvertent reminder of her father's genetic modification made Miranda even angrier, and she decided it would be smartest just to stop talking. As she pulled herself back into the present, Miranda realized Macavoy was in the middle of saying something.

"… glad you're here to take Subject Zero off our hands, though. Little bitch almost broke my arm last month."

"I thought Zero was a weapon," Miranda said, unable to restrain her confusion at the idea of an apparently sentient firearm. Macavoy shook his head.

"Nah, she's a human. Biotic, like the rest of these freaks. Don't know why the boss seems to like them so much, but I ain't paid to ask questions."

The two of them finally came to the door of Subject Zero's cell, where another guard was waiting for them. He was holding two steel briefcases, and Miranda could tell he was nervous beneath his calm exterior.

"At ease, Macavoy," the other guard said. "I'll take it from here. The rest of this is above your pay-grade."

"Bite me, Julius," Macavoy said, his defiance only breaking after a short stare-down. "Suck-up," he muttered, before turning around and walking away. On his way out, though, Macavoy turned around for one last unsubtle look at Miranda.

"Every time I see that bastard," Julius said lowly, "he finds new ways to make me want to kill him. One of these days, I'm just gonna do it and blame it on the Varren."

"Call me first," Miranda said, before catching sight of a datapad Julius was holding out to her. "What's this?"

"Information on Subject Zero," Julius said. "Just so you're briefed before we go in there." He knocked on the door. "Finish up in there. Lawson's here. It's time."

Miranda's eyes scanned quickly and efficiently over the datapad:

Name: Unknown, taken in at birth. Designated "Subject Zero".

Age: 22.

Temperament: Volatile.

Biotic Implant: L-3.

Update: Upgraded to L-6 prototype implant, based upon prototype R-489X technology.

The last line gave Miranda pause as she recognized the alphanumeric designation: it was shorthand for prototype, reverse-engineered Reaper technology.

She swallowed her unease and kept reading.

Additional information: Recently underwent experimental procedure to strengthen bones and musculature, through the usage of R-489X grafts and weaves. In conjunction with the protection provided by the modified Phantom armor, this should render Subject Zero an ideal biotic shock-trooper.

Miranda kept her judgment to herself, lest she open her mouth and be court-marshaled for treason. She called a small burst of biotic energy into her hand and destroyed the datapad, ignoring Julius's surprised look. Even if no one else here knew what that designation meant, it was still incredibly classified information.

"Okay," Miranda said, "let's get this over with."

The door opened, and she had to fight not to retch at the state of the room.

"First thing's first," Miranda said, as soon as she'd gotten her bearings back. "Does this place have showers and a mess hall?"

"Of course," Julius said.

Miranda pointed to the younger of the two women she could see, who she assumed was Jack.

"Then get her cleaned up and fed, for Christ's sake. She deserves at least that much, after what you all put her through."

"But, the mission—"

"Can wait," Miranda cut Julius off, her tone icy and commanding. "We have the time. Or do you expect someone to be able fight well when they're exhausted, dirty and starving?"

Julius nodded.

"Very well, Ma'am. I'll escort Zero there presently."

"You do that. I'll be here."

Subject Zero followed Julius out of the cell, giving Miranda an unreadable look and a light shove with her shoulder as she passed by. Miranda turned to face the only other person left in the cell, who seemed to be evaluating her just as Miranda was doing the same in return.

"My name's Kelly Chambers," the other woman said at last. "Call me Kelly. I'm one of the psychiatrists here at Teltin. And you are?"

"Miranda Lawson," Miranda answered, before pausing just long enough to create a biotic barrier that covered the entire room, coating it like a second set of walls, floor and ceiling.

"That should keep any recording devices from seeing or hearing us," Miranda explained, "so we can speak freely."

"I appreciate that, Miranda," Kelly said, sighing as she sat down in the chair at Jack's desk. "Free speech is a bit of a luxury around here."

"How long have you been working here, Kelly?"

"Oof," Kelly sighed dramatically, leaning back and looking at the far wall. "Sixteen years. Took this post when I was twenty-four, but it feels like three lifetimes ago now. They pitched it as a post to help children with PTSD, can you believe that?" Kelly laughed bitterly, her eyes haunted. "What I didn't know at the time was that we were the ones giving the kids PTSD, by running sick experiments on them. I tried to stop it, but that almost got me killed—more than once, I might add. The way I could reach the kids was the only thing that made me an asset valuable enough to keep alive.

"So I decided to shift my focus," she said. "Now, I try to do as much for these kids as I can. Yeah, there're days I feel like a coward for not just throwing Petrovsky off the roof for all the sick shit he does, but…"

Kelly shrugged.

"At least they have someone. Every kid deserves a mother, right?"

Miranda hid her pain behind a weak smile.

"Yeah," she said, "I suppose they do."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Kelly apologized immediately. "I didn't mean to open up any old wounds."

Miranda did a double-take, surprised by the apology. She didn't think she'd been that easy to read.

"No need to apologize," she said. "You're very observant."

"It's my job," Kelly said, her voice gaining some brightness. "And it's about the only thing I can do to help these kids, short of blowing this whole place sky-high."

"If you ever do," Miranda said, "I'll bring extra explosives."

Kelly tilted her head slightly to the side, appraising Miranda carefully.

"You look younger than Jack," she said. "Odd age for a full Operative."

"Jack?"

"Oh, right. They probably never called her by her name. Jack is 'Subject Zero'."

"I see," Miranda said, before returning to Kelly's original point. "It's not that odd. I've been with Cerberus for four years. Took time in C-Sec as an undercover agent for the last two."

"They recruited you that young?"

"I volunteered."

Kelly was quiet for a few moments, and Miranda could see her putting the pieces together in her head.

"Ah," she said at last. "That makes sense. I can't imagine growing up with a father that distant was easy, especially if your mother died when you were young. Money can't buy happiness, after all."

Miranda was starting to get unnerved by just how good Kelly was at her job.

"How do you know who my father is?"

"Well, you look just like Henry Lawson, except for being a girl," Kelly said. "I connected a few dots. Did he approve of you joining Cerberus?"

"No," Miranda began to answer. "He—wait, why am I telling you this?" she said, confused and worried. "I don't even know who you are!"

"I'm just trying to help," Kelly said, her calm never wavering. "If you're going to take Jack somewhere dangerous, I need to know you're at peace with yourself enough to keep her alive. She's a good kid, Miranda, in spite of all the crap Cerberus put her through. She deserves to live long enough to know what being free feels like."

Miranda could feel the doubts, fears and contradictory impulses blitzing through her mind, until she couldn't take it anymore and had to stifle a scream of frustration as she sat down on Jack's bed.

"I don't get it," she said at last, after Kelly had moved over to sit next to her. "I just don't get it. Why would Kai Leng send me on this assignment? He had to have known—the Illusive Man had to have known—how I'd react. It doesn't make any sense!"

"Maybe it was a test," Kelly said. "Psychological manipulation is the Illusive Man's specialty. That's how he found me for recruitment. Maybe he wanted to see if you'd waver or crack under this kind of pressure."

"But… why?" Miranda asked, still incapable of wrapping her head around it. "Doesn't he trust me enough? Haven't I proven myself?"

"Clearly, he doesn't think so," Kelly said. "But it's up to you to decide what to do with how that makes you feel," she added, looking Miranda in the eyes. "Running from Cerberus tends to significantly shorten your life-expectancy. But staying with them tends to rot your soul," she finished, looking sorrowful. "I can vouch for that."

Miranda took a deep breath, forcing herself back to her calm, focused center. There had to be a solution. There was always a workaround, a way out. Some crazy strategy that could pull off what most people would consider impossible. Because Cerberus Operatives were not 'most people'.

Kai Leng had told her that before sending her off to C-Sec.

Wait a minute…

Something he'd said earlier about Vido Santiago popped back up in the front of Miranda's mind, and it only took her a few minutes after that to think of a plan. Yes, it was crazy. Yes, it would probably get her killed slowly, and in great pain.

But on the upside, at least she'd probably get to see Garrus again before she took a bullet to the brain.

"I have an idea," she said. "It's a long shot, but if it works… if it works, Jack might be able to slip away from Cerberus once this job is done."

Kelly smiled, and Miranda got the sense that it was her first truly unreserved smile in a long time.

"That would make me happy," she said softly, sounding like her voice was about to break. "Thank you, Miranda."

"Don't thank me yet," she said. "It might still get us both murdered."

"No," Kelly said, "I don't think so. You're both strong. And if you got rid of your self-imposed chains, Miranda, you'd be even stronger for it. But I'm sure that'll come in time."

Miranda was about to reply, but the sight of the door being opened cut her off. She quickly broke down her biotic barrier, and when Julius entered with Jack there was no sign that the barrier had ever even existed. When Kelly saw what Jack was wearing, however, she stood up halfway off the bed in surprise.

Jack's tattered clothing had been replaced by a suit of combat armor that was almost identical to the suit worn by Cerberus's mysterious Phantom corps. The only differences were that it was entirely black, and there were veins of blue laced with electronics that ran sporadically along its surface. Miranda instantly recognized the design as being modified Reaper technology, amazed that the Illusive Man's project had already progressed so far.

"I don't care what the safety manual for this thing says," Jack said, "I'm not wearing the goddamn helmet. It looks fuckin' ridiculous."

Kelly laughed.

"Well," she said, "you definitely seem to be in better spirits. Ready to get off this planet?"

"You know it," Jack said, before looking over at Miranda. The other biotic got the hint, rising to her feet.

"I'll give you two a minute," she said. "C'mon, Julius. We can wait outside."

Jack watched Miranda skeptically as she left, before turning and looking over to Kelly.

"What's her deal?" she asked, and Kelly smiled knowingly.

"She's at a bit of a crossroads, I think," she said. "Try to be nice to her, okay? She might surprise you."

"Really? I doubt that. She works for Cerberus."

Kelly's smile widened slightly.

"So do I, last time I checked."

"That's…" Jack began, before frowning petulantly at the sight of Kelly's smug expression. "That's totally different."

"Aw, relax," Kelly said. "I was just yanking your chain a little." She smiled, genuinely this time. "Look at you, all suited up and ready to go," she continued, walking over to get a closer look at Jack. "You've gone and grown up on me, kid. I'm proud of you."

"Thanks," Jack said, reaching up and putting a hand on Kelly's shoulder. "Stay safe, all right? I'll come back for you, I promise. Even if it takes a while."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me. Just make sure Miranda doesn't get herself killed, all right?"

Jack gave her a look, and Kelly frowned.

"Oh, don't be like that," she said. "Just trust me, Jack. Who knows? Maybe you'll even get to be friends."

Jack snorted.

"Somehow, I doubt it."

"You don't even know her."

"Exactly."

Kelly huffed, but knew Jack well enough to see that this was going nowhere fast.

"Have it your way then, you sourpuss," Kelly said. "I just can't wait to say 'I told you so'."

Jack laughed.

"We'll see," she said. Then her face got serious again, and she looked Kelly in the eyes.

"This is goodbye, huh?"

"Seems like it."

"I fuckin' hate goodbyes."

Kelly smiled sadly.

"You and most everyone else," she said, before leaning forwards and kissing Jack lightly on the forehead. "Safe travels, Jack. And try to message when you can."

"Okay, mom," Jack said with a smirk. "I'll try."

Jack turned and left the cell, not looking back. Kelly didn't hold it against her: she hated goodbyes just as much as everyone else.

Outside the cell, Jack met up with Miranda and Julius. The guard turned to Jack, motioning to one of the two steel briefcases.

"You sure you don't want the sword, Zero?"

"Yeah, for the last time, I'm sure," Jack said. "I'd probably chop my own arm off trying to use that damn thing."

"Suit yourself," Julius said, before reaching to his waist and pulling out a large hypodermic needle-gun. "This is just one last precaution," he said, loading a chip into the chamber. "It'll only sting for a second."

Jack sprang back and her expression curled into a snarl, but it was Miranda who stepped in front of Julius.

"What the hell is that thing?" she asked. "And what made you think it was a good idea to point it at someone who just had majorly invasive surgery without any warning?!"

The guard took a step and a half back in surprise, and Jack eased up her stance. She looked curiously at Miranda, who was still staring daggers at Julius.

"Please, Miss Lawson, relax," Julius said. "This is just a safety measure, that's all. It's a small, remote controlled explosive. If Zero ever tries to attack you, you're gonna need a way to bring it down safely."

Jack glared hatefully at being objectified, and Miranda's expression wasn't much more lenient.

"Right," she said, "because Jack is totally going to trust me if I have a trigger to a bomb underneath her skin. If this mission is going to work, I need to have her with me one hundred percent. Which is not going to be the case if she's afraid her head might get blown off her shoulders at any moment."

"Fine, fine," Julius said, putting the gun away. "You want to take that risk, Miss Lawson, it's your funeral. We took the liberty of refueling your ship while you were on-site. Should be more than enough to get you to the Mass Relay."

"Thank you," Miranda said curtly, before looking back over her shoulder at Jack.

"You coming?" she asked. Jack stood still for a few moments, thinking. But then the scream of a nearby child yanked her out of her thoughts, and she began to walk forward.

"Y'know," she said as soon as they were alone, walking over a bridge that looked down on a Varren pit, "I wasn't expecting you to stick up for me like that. What's your name?"

"Miranda."

"I'm Jack."

"Nice to meet you, Jack."

They continued to walk in silence, until the unwelcome sight of Officer Macavoy made itself visible on the far end of the bridge, walking toward them. When he recognized Miranda, his grin made Jack want to vomit.

"Hey, Operative," he said, leering. "How's about one before you hit the road? Guy like me can get real lonely in a place like this."

Miranda smiled.

"Oh, you just wanted some company?" she said. "Why didn't you say so?"

Macavoy let his guard down as he took a step forward, and Miranda struck. Gripping him with her biotics and clamping a barrier down over his mouth to shut him up, she lifted him off the ground and threw him over the side of the bridge, down into the Varren pit. The nearly-feral animals set upon their unexpected meal with gusto, ripping Macavoy limb from limb.

A beat of silence passed between the two young women, and then Jack looked over at Miranda.

"Lawson," she said, "you're all right."

Miranda smiled.

"I try my best," she said. "Let's get the hell out of here, Jack. We have more important things to do."

As it turned out, another Cerberus Operative had called ahead to inform Jedore of Miranda and Jack's approach. So getting to the main base of operations had been easy.

Everything else, not so much.

"You know," Wasea said, glancing pointedly at Jack a few minutes after their arrival, "sometimes I wonder why humans even bother with biotics. Even with extensive Eezo modification, there's no way they could match us Asari."

"You want to test that claim out, bitch?" Jack seethed, forcing Miranda to physically restrain her. "Only the Blue Suns are part of this deal. You're expendable!"

"So are you, as far as we're concerned," Wasea said. "Our deal was with Cerberus, not their pet. Know your place."

"Let me kill her," Jack hissed to Miranda, pushing against her restraining hold. "Just let me do it. She's begging to be ripped in half!"

"No, Jack," Miranda said. "You're better than that. Don't rise to her bait." She lowered her voice to a whisper before continuing. "Not yet," he said. "You know the plan. Stick to it."

Jack slowly relented, clawing through the haze of endorphins clouding her mind until she was herself again.

"Thanks," she said to Miranda under her breath. "I'm good."

Miranda let Jack go, shooting her own glare at Wasea.

"Insult her again," Miranda said icily, "and we're going to have a problem."

"You really want to go running your mouth off in a room full of my soldiers, human? Your capacity for boasting is astonishing to me, even after all these years."

Miranda smiled.

"It's only boasting if I can't back it up," she said.

Jedore laughed.

"I like this one," she said. "Looks like the Illusive Man hasn't lost his touch."

"Jack," Miranda said just loud enough to be heard, making sure she had her partner's attention before subtly moving her head to the side. Jack got the signal and growled, lunging at Miranda.

"I had her," she snarled, putting a hand around Miranda's neck. "She was mine!"

Miranda made a convincing show of slowly prying Jack away from her, moving the two of them out of sight as she went. Wasea jeered something about Miranda's lack of control over her dog, but neither of the humans were listening.

As soon as they were out of sight, Jack let go of Miranda's neck.

"Okay," she said, "what's up?"

"You get the connection established?"

"Of course," Jack said. She tapped a few points on the forearm of her suit, calling up an Omni-Tool that seemed a good deal more complex than a standard issue version. A few more taps and the feed from Jedore's Omni-Tool started playing, which a few taps more turned into Wasea's feed, and then Enyala's feed.

"Tapped all of 'em, and those idiots have no idea," Jack said with a smile. "Damn, this Reaper tech doesn't mess around."

"Just… be careful with it, okay?" Miranda cautioned, eyeing the armor nervously. "Even I don't know everything it does."

"Well, I read a bit of the manual back at Teltin," Jack said, her eyes narrowing briefly at the mention of the facility. "I do know that this thing," she said, holding up her palm and revealing an orange circle in the middle of the gauntlet, "is a mini-cannon thing that shoots when I tell it to with my mind. Pretty badass, right?"

"Yeah, it is," Miranda said, still uneasy. "Just don't point it at me, okay?"

Jack laughed.

"Ease up, Lawson. I'm not gonna shoot you. You stood up for me back at Teltin. And if Kelly vouches for you, that's good enough for me."

Miranda opened her mouth to reply, but she was cut off by the unexpected sound of Enyala's Omni-Tool feed coming to life through Jack's hack.

"I repeat, we have the mercenary crew. Or some of them, at least."

"Give me an exact count. Can you ID any of them?"

"We have an Asari named Liselle, an intact Geth apparently called Nahv'dar, a Human named Murphy, another Human we can't ID, and a Turian named Garrus. Last name unknown."

Miranda's eyes went wide at the news of Garrus' capture, but she said nothing.

"Damn, so you didn't get Zaeed. Oh, well. He'll probably be in the group that makes it here. I'll deal with him. Take the prisoners up to the Dreadnought for storage, for now. I'm sure Commander Sederis will have a place for them in the brig. Maybe T'Soni's getting lonely. Keep me posted."

"Roger that. Good luck, Ma'am."

"Same to you. Enyala out."

The feed cut to silent, and it was then that Jack noticed the shocked look on Miranda's face.

"What's up?"

Miranda blinked and looked at Jack, slowly coming back into focus.

"Garrus," she said. "They got Garrus."

"Who's that? Your boyfriend or something?"

"He's… a friend," Miranda said, and Jack smirked.

"Right. A Turian, though." Her smirk widened. "Freaky. I like it."

"Oh, shut up," Miranda said. "He's on a Dreadnought now, or he will be soon. An Eclipse Dreadnought, and probably their flagship."

"That's a tough break," Jack said, sincerely. "I'm sorry."

"But," Miranda said, her expression becoming distracted again as she slipped into her thoughts, "if I heard that right, they got Murphy, and Shepard too. That means Zaeed will want to go after them. And that means we might be able to convince him to let us come along for the ride when he does."

"Wait," Jack said, "this Zaeed guy would attack a Dreadnought? Like, full-on, straight-up assault an Eclipse Capital Ship?"

"Yeah, probably," Miranda said. "He's done crazier things than that before, if the stories are true."

Jack grinned.

"I like this guy," she said. "That sounds like fun."

"Commander Jedore! Commander Jedore, come in!"

"I'm here," Jedore's voice answered through Jack's hack. "What is it?"

"It's Massani! Zaeed Massani is here, and he's destroying our positions! He's pushing up towards Okeer's lab, and… oh my god, he's got Krogan with him! A lot of Krogan! They're closing in on us! Send backup! Send backup!"

"Negative, soldier," Jedore said coldly. "If Massani's on his way with that much firepower, I need to fortify this position. Tell Okeer to release whatever Krogan he has left, and hold your position for as long as possible. Kill as many of those bastards as you can. That's an order. Jedore out."

The feed went silent, and Jack and Miranda shared a mutually horrified look.

"Man," Jack said at last, "what a bitch. But hey," she continued, smiling, "it looks like we might get to take her down soon. Should we go get ready?"

"Jack," Miranda said with a determined smile, "I thought you'd never ask."

…

…

…

A/N: Wow, that managed to both come together a lot faster than I thought it would, and be a LOT longer than I originally planned. I hope it was still enjoyable to read, though! Now, for some explanations. But first: writing parts of that chapter made me hate myself. Reviews will help me feel less bad. Just sayin'.

Okay, explanation time. This chapter is, in part, a result of two things. One, my unabashed love for Kelly Chambers, one of the coolest characters in the trilogy. She's one of the few purely good-hearted characters with nothing but love and goodwill for everyone, which is an admirable and rare quality in the ME universe, to put it lightly. So I wasn't about to pass up the chance to put her in this story, and I couldn't think of anyone better suited than her to the task of helping Jack become slightly less maladjusted than she is canonically. Even though she couldn't stop Cerberus from treating Jack like a pit-fighter and drugging her up, at least she could be there when it counted as a supportive figure. So yeah, Kelly is awesome and if she died in your ME2 game RELOAD AND DO IT AGAIN.

Second, the idea to make Jack into a pseudo-Phantom occurred to me when I stumbled across a youtube video showing that, if certain conditions are meant (one of which is you being a HORRIBLE PERSON), Jack shows up as a Phantom in ME3, who you then have to kill. It's heartbreaking, horrific and awful, and if it ever happens to you RELOAD AND DO IT AGAIN.

But since I'm a horrible person, I figured I'd have Cerberus do that to her here, minus the brainwashing. So she's still her awesome self, just reinforced with Reaper tech in her bones and stuff. Like Wolverine, but cooler. Wheeee.

Also, I feel really bad for Miranda as a person, in general. This chapter is basically subtitled "These people's lives are horrible. They all need hugs. And Cerberus is run by a bunch of assholes."

So yeah, that's that. Next chapter (since this one got away from me) will be the climax and end of what has become the Korlus Arc (and to think, in my original outline it was only one chapter long. HA!). After that, it's time for a PRISON BREAK.

Also, as per usual, props go to Kanukoris for being all-around awesome. Go read their story Veteran Zero. It's really good, and stuff.

Thanks for reading, and see you next time,

- JP